your love is gonna drown.

@Kerosene :D

Harlyn was an early riser, but that day, she even beat the sun.  The black of night was fading steadily to the hazy glow of dawn as the dark female strode along the Northern edge of the Heartwood.  She hadn't really intended on wandering so far from Mordecai, however there was a sound in the distance that compelled her limbs to carry her forward.  Likely, she'd be back long before her companion even awakened.  Even if that wasn't the case, she put forth some effort into leaving a trail for him to follow so that he could easily seek her out if he chose to.

The female's ears cupped forward as the sound grew louder, letting her know she was quite close.  It was the simply music of rushing water that sang to her that morning, but it was different than the typical river surge.  It echoed out to her from some depth.  Ideas of what terrain she might soon come across swept through her imagination and when finally the treeline broke and a vast gorge opened up beneath her paws, she was not in the least bit disappointed.

Harlyn stood simply admiring the view for a few minutes before continuing along the edge of the high cliffs.  She was in no hurry as she really had no destination.  She wasn't about to go cliff diving (she's not Fin, after all!), but it was a beautiful sight that she fully intended to enjoy for a little while longer before she went back to Mordecai.

Thanks for getting this up. I really appreciate your starting. :]

Wake up. Look alive.

He told himself those things as he lay curled within the tangle of roots of a large tree. Exhaustion had fallen upon him late last night and he'd made a bed as soon as he'd found something that would suffice. The natural coverage bore the illusion of safety, but at that level of delirium and fatigue, he didn't much care where he'd slept so long as the chances of someone waking him up were lessened by location. Either way, the makeshift den was a success. He'd survived the night.

Now? Now dawn was breaking. He could feel the daylight hours begin to illuminate the once dim colors of the night. The birds were starting to chirp again. Things were moving. Things were waking. He should too. He knew it. His mind was rolling with thoughts of what he might do and where he might explore next, but his body had yet to make that connection. Move legs... He willed to himself, but he was overruled by a bout of laziness. This spot was so nice. Comfortable. Five more minutes mom... just five more minutes... 

He held his eyes closed for a while longer. Silently, he counted to five in his head. Then ten. Then twenty. By the time he reached thirty, he realized he was just putting off the inevitable. The sooner he got up and got moving, the more awake he'd be. 

There was no explaining it. One moment he was resting, dead to the world, and the next he was up. The fog of sleep veiled his eyes as his mind made loose connections as to what and where he was going. Following the river, he supposed. It was as good of a landmark as any and with the world waking up, water would naturally be attractive to all things. It always was. He traveled upstream automatically. His paws seemed to move of their own accord. 

The sleepy haze clung to him like a desperate lover. It lingered, holding tightly to his form as he tried to pry it off gently. Perhaps a snack would help? Maybe a cool splash of water? He contemplated his options only to realize the water level had dropped off. Well, not dropped off, per say, but submerged itself between a valley of cliff walls that would be difficult to scale. His ears drooped, flattening upon his crown as he debated whether or not it was worth the risk. Screw it. These walls were close enough that if he hopped back and forth between this crevice, he might reach the bottom unscathed. He was going to try. 

Kero dropped down onto a ledge. Rocks scattered, rolling off the side of his landing. He stabilized himself and glanced around, balancing on his perch as he plotted his next move. That outcropping looked steady enough. Maybe... 

no problem! :)

Harlyn wandered along the edge of the gorge for rather a while before she spotted something that intrigued her even more than the land itself.  Her dark brows narrowed over the brilliant embers of her eyes as she scrutinized the situation from afar.  It seemed this wolf was intent on making some rather foolish decisions...


The druid quickened her pace to bring herself to the ledge above him, lowering her head as she came to a stop to peer down upon him.  She barked once to get his attention followed by a steady whine.  "Do you need help down there?" she called after a moment once she was certain she wouldn't be startling him by speaking.

If he put one foot there and another there. Straddled that ledge. Hopped down to that one... It was slow work, but it was progress all the same. He was working his way down the side of the ravine. There'd been a few close calls here and there, but his fool's errand was proving somewhat fruitful. Not to mention, it was a great workout. Both physically and mentally.

He was sizing up a jump when he heard a bark somewhere above him. His ears turned, as he glanced upwards and spied a wolf who'd thought to follow him. Maybe they were both stupid. Or maybe they were both looking for a little adventure. Either way, she popped her head over the ledge and looked down to him with a question. Did he need any help? He snorted. This was kind of all on him to figure out. 

"Not sure how you could help from up there." She had a different angle sure, but he wasn't sure it would help much. "You ever make it to the bottom of one of these things before?" He watched her for a moment, before turning his gaze back to the ledge he was eyeballing. He crouched, gathering up his strength before he leapt for it. He made it, barely. Grasping the edge with his forepaws, he scraped his hind paws against the side and pulled himself up. 

He glanced back at her with a grin. "Harder than it looks."

Harlyn watched the wolf as he debated his next move, biting her lip nervously.  She was thrilled when she got his attention, though she sucked in a deep breath in trepidation, worried that perhaps her distraction would cause him to misstep and take a tumble.  Fortunately, he wasn't quite as dumb as he seemed to be to her (I mean, come on... look at him right now!), for he was able to redirect his attention without plummeting to his death.


She frowned at his response, for he did have a point.  How was she supposed to help?  She heaved a sigh at his question.  She was usually a very patient woman, but to see wolves putting themselves in danger so needlessly... Well, she had little patience for such recklessness, that was for sure.  "Yes, but I usually prefer to take one of the less... vertical paths," she answered, taking a few steps along the ledge, "I might be able to guide you towards a safe path up?  Let me look and see..."  Her eyes swept away from the male along the various ledges and crags that lined the wall of the gorge, hoping to discover just what she'd offered to find.

He steadied himself on the ledge and glanced about. It wasn't too much further to the water. Up, at this point, looked a hell of a lot harder than down. Given gravity and the natural pull downwards, he wasn't sure getting up was easy as she might suggest. "Why don't you come down this way? Live a little?"

Kero glanced upwards, looking towards her. He lifted a paw and pointed towards a ledge. "Jump down to that one and you'll be able to reach this one no problem." He'd done it. She looked capable of she wanted to give it a try. "If I back up just a little bit there should be pretty of—" he backed up and slipped. He fell.

While Harlyn searched, the wolf she was attempting to save seemed to be distracted by trying to get her to be just as reckless as he was.  She shot him a frown, but kept quiet, taking a few more steps while she continued to search.  She had no intention of joining him, and so she was fully intent upon ignoring whatever other fool thing came to his lips when suddenly, the shifting of rock and the rush of his voice mid-sentence stole her attention.


"NO!" she barked as she dove back to the cliff just above him, straining her eyes desperately to find him while a nervous whine slipped from her throat.  Swiftly she began to pace along the ridge's edge, unable to see where his body had fallen to.  With her emotion swelling so strongly in her chest, she was unable to help but toss her head back in a short howl, meant to encourage him to respond (if he was still alive, but she did not dare to think that yet), but also meant to expel some of her own anxious energy.

He fell.

And landed on a ledge just beneath the one on which he'd stood. He'd seen it. It was out of view from her angle, but it was big enough to hold him and low enough to conceal him from view. He waited, curious as to what she might do with his potentially fatal plummet to his doom and was not disappointed. She scrambled, hopping down the ledges, and whined for him. He snickered quietly. He was such a jerk.  

Kero popped his head up over the side. "Worried's a cute look for ya," he said, setting his head down on the ledge. He glanced toward her, rolling his golden hues in her direction. He still wanted to see if he could get down to the bottom of this river this way, but maybe that was for another day when he was on his own.  

He lifted his head from the spot and caught the scent of blood. Where he's rested his head was a small puddle of it. "That's not supposed to happen..." he mused, hopping back onto the ledge from which he stood. He ran his tongue over his muzzle, tasting copper upon his him. "Must have busted it." Meant his adventure was best cut short given his busted chin.

"Still wanna guide me up and outta here?"

Harlyn carefully slipped down from ledge to ledge, trying to see if she could find his body, all while praying to the gods that she wouldn't find it mangled and broken far, far below her.  When finally she spotted him, her breath caught in her throat in what was nearly relief but for the immediate irritation with his nonchalant response.  She bit her lip in frustration at his candor.  What a fool!  Had he no idea the danger he was in?  The danger he'd so moronically pulled her into now?  "You're lucky to be wearing not dead right now," she replied in annoyance, still relieved in spite of her aggravation that she wouldn't be returning to Mordecai to tell him how she'd watched a wolf die that day.


The scent of blood seemed to hit them both at the same time.  She was still a couple of levels above him, so she couldn't exactly tell where it was he was bleeding.  She saw the flick of his tongue, though, and heard the comment he made.  She assumed it was likely his lip, or maybe his chin or teeth.  God forbid it was his tongue - maybe he'd bitten the smart ass off of it.  Harlyn regarded him coolly when he asked if she wanted to help him up now, her mind immediately snapping a no at him, though what slipped from her mouth was a bit different.

"If you follow that ledge along to the right to where it dead ends, you can climb straight up a few steps," the Cinderloch advised before turning to look back up, tracing her way back the way she'd come herself in order to make it the rest of the way back up, "I'll wait for you - you can follow me from there."

He smirked. She was right to be angry. No doubt, she'd given her quite the scare, and while he was alright (mostly), in reality, he could have broken every bone in his body bouncing all the way down there and ended up feeding the fishes at the bottom of the river. He was fortunate to still be alive and lucky he hadn't been nearly as clumsy as his faking a fall could have been.

She was helpful in guiding him where he needed to go. Kerosene turned his eyes in the direction she suggested and hopped up to where he could make good on her suggestions. He scaled the wall a bit, placing his paws at the indicated locations and made slow progress up towards where she stood.

She lingered, just as she said she would and after a while Kero joined her. From there, they worked their way back towards the top and Kero took it slow. He was starting to feel a little bit light headed and the sun beating down on his back wasn't helping. He needed to get to the top soon where he could be dizzy on wider ground.

"I don't feel so good," he admitted, crawling upon the grass as soon as they'd reached the surface. He slunk down onto his belly and lay there for a moment, trying to clear the light-headedness from himself. He lowered his chin to his paw and raised it again. "Damn it. Still bleeding." He licked the red from his foot and tried to lick at his chin again. Glancing towards her, he tipped his head back. "How bad is it?"

Harlyn was very careful as she climbed back out of the gorge.  She stopped every so often just to glance backwards over her shoulder to make sure that the fool behind her wasn't doing something stupid again.  Fortunately, he was not; in the end, they both made it again to level ground.  The druid breathed a sigh of relief as she stepped a few feet away from the edge of the cliff to safety.


She turned just in time to see the strange male pull himself up over the ledge.  Her head tilted slightly with concern as he dragged himself across the ground and admitted to not feeling so good.  Worried that she'd underestimated the severity of his wound, Harlyn hurried towards him with her head lowered and eyes trained upon his chin.  "Hold still," she said, silencing whatever other questions might have been upon his tongue.  In truth, it didn't look all too bad, however she certainly did not like him losing that amount of blood.

"Keep your chin pointed skyward and pray that the spirits do not leave your side," Harlyn advised him, "I'll be right back."  With that, she trotted swiftly towards the Heartwood just a few yards away from them to search out the herbs she needed.  She had just reached the edge of the woods when she turned briefly to shout back at him, "Chin skyward!" before disappearing between the trees.

His vision was going blotchy around the edges. He could see it, like tiny circles and rings at the edges of his vision. Lowering himself to his stomach seemed to help ease the discomfort a bit, but closing his eyes just made his head reel even more. He groaned, overwhelmed by a raging headache as the blood continued to well upon his chin. This... this was not shaping up so good for him.

He attempted to crawl towards the treeline, seeking the shade. She stopped him, taking a good look at his chin before she appeared struck with an idea that suddenly required her to be elsewhere. Uhh. "Is it bad?" he asked, before his head reeled again. She'd mentioned something about keeping his chin up, but all he could think about was his head. It hurt like a bitch.

Kero lowered his chin and started crawling towards the trees again. She turned, looked at him and repeated her orders. Okay. Okay. He held his chin up and kept crawling until he hit the shade. She'd disappeared by this point and Kero's head swam. He hissed, sucking in air as he rolled onto his back and lay there. At least this way his chin was still up, but his vision was going. He needed a drink.

Harlyn darted through the trees as quickly as she could, slowing every now and then to trot with her nose to the ground, sniffing urgently at the plants that littered her path.  It didn't take too long for her to gather what she needed and turn herself back towards the edge of the woods where she had left the male.  Well, not exactly where she'd left him, or so she discovered when she came across him far closer to the woods than she remembered him being.


Harlyn gave him a sharp look before leaning down to nudge his chin back even further.  While she ran, she'd actually chewed the leaves to a fine pulp so that once she returned to his side, she was able to go straight to work spreading the mush onto his bleeding chin with her tongue.  Once she had put a nice thick coat of the crushed leaves upon his chin, she mopped up a little more of the blood that had spread down his jaw and across his throat to alleviate any discomfort he might be feeling because of it, then stepped back to admire her work.

"Okay, that poultice should help to stop the bleeding and prevent any spread of infection," Harlyn informed him, "If you feel up to it, I'll help you up and into the woods - there's a stream not too far where you can get a drink which I will allow as long as you promise to be careful and not get on your chin; I don't want you washing that medicine away before it can do its job."  She gave him yet another pointed look before moving to his side so that she could help him up and over to the water.

Laying on his back was somewhat... relaxing? If one could call it that. It was a vulnerable position and one he didn't want to be in for too much longer, but at least he was able to keep his chin up via gravity as opposed to awkwardly straining his neck. Unfortunately, it only made him hyper aware of the situation he was in. His ears were making mountains out of mole hills; converting tiny sounds into inevitable doom should someone take advantage of his exposed soft spots. He didn't like it. But he didn't have to like it to know what was good for him.

He stayed put and tried not to focus on the pounding in his skull. His mouth was dry, which he didn't like, but he knew that would be remedied as soon as he could find his way to some kind of water. Which was likely why he'd tried scaling that rock face to begin with. Either way, he was pleased to hear the pounding of feet return and less pleased as she began to work on him. 

"Ahhh. That burns..." he hissed, pawing at her as his hind paw reflexively thumped on the ground like a rabbit. Eventually he settled, letting her apply the mixture to his chin and clean away the blood dribbles from his creamy fur. Only when she'd finished did she dare tell him what she'd been up to. Could have been trying to kill him for all he knew. Could have been.

Her mention of a stream sounded like a distant dream. "Water. Now. Yes." The words felt very primitive even on his ears, but all the same he attempted to roll over and stand. Whoops. Too fast. He let his head finish spinning before he tried it again, but more slowly. "Take me to your water." He droned, now on his feet. "And tell me more about exactly what you did. I want to learn. For next time."

Even in a situation like this, the man still kept his sense of humor.  Harlyn wanted to find it admirable, but she did not like how much blood he'd lost and would remain nervous for him until she was certain the poultice had done its work.   She leaned down to help him up, then allowed him to lean his weight against her as they walked slowly towards the stream.


She gave him a sidelong glance as he asked about the remedy upon his chin.  He didn't seem to be the type that would be interested in healing.. However, he did seem to be the type that would get himself injured often, so perhaps it was self-awareness that inspired his curiosity.  Nevertheless... "Agrimony and yarrow," she replied, "The former to staunch the bleeding, the latter to help your skin heal."  She kept her eyes upon the terrain as she spoke to him, making sure to avoid any potential pratfalls.  The last thing she needed was for him to trip and split open his skull next.

She moved to help support him as he stood. Pretty lady all but offering to cuddle? Don't mind if I do. Kerosene learned against her shoulder a bit, using her as support as she guided him towards her water source. It was slow going as he had to pause for a few moments here and there to keep his head from spinning, but he suspected that was more from the dehydration than the scratch on his chin. Either way, they were off and he hoped they happened upon water soon.

She spoke. He tried his best to listen since she was replying to his question. Two herbs. The first he wasn't so familiar with. The second he'd at least heard of before. "What do they each look like? Smell like? For identification purposes?" he asked, trying to create a mental picture of something else since his own vision was blotchy. Water would help. Water was wonderful. Water was–

Here! They'd found it. He could hear the babbling of the brook and almost taste it upon the air. Kero mustered up a little pep into his step as he gave an extra boost to push him towards the water. Half crawling. He lowered his head to drink and nearly bathed in the cool sweetness of it. Tasted like heaven.

Harlyn heard his question, but she refrained from answering at the moment for they had made their way now to the stream.  As expected, the strange male slipped off of her shoulder and crawled eager towards the water.  She sat back as he drank, watching him for a moment or two before she turned her head and allowed her gaze to slip up the stream.  "Stay here," she instructed him, hopping up onto all fours and trotting off into the brush.


She was only gone for a minute or two before she returned, clutching a few stems of leafy herbs between her teeth.  She set them down upon a flat rock near the male before returning her attention to him.  "Here..." Harlyn said, separating the two clumps of plants from each other so that he could see the difference between them better, "Yarrow and Agrimony.  You can either smash them into a pulp upon the rock or chew them up with your teeth.  You'll want to reapply it to your chin in a little while, especially if it starts bleeding again." 

He lapped. She gave him plenty of breathing room to drink and pant it out. He stared into the distance, mentally steading himself before he tried again and took to drinking once more. After a while, he was starting to feel better. The spinning sensation in his head was slowly lifting and he was beginning to come back to earth a bit. Risking it, he turned his head to look for her only to find her missing. Odd. She'd said something and then...

Returning to the water, Kero kept at it until his tongue tired from all the lapping. It felt like she was gone forever, but upon her return, he glanced at her and risked standing. Steadier this time, he shifted and crossed a few paces to meet her until he was left staring at the herbs she presented. Oh. She'd done one better than describing the two. She'd fetched them for him.

He looked at the each herb, noting its shape, color and the scent associated with each one."Which is which?" he asked as she explained what he was to do with each. Chew or smash. Chewing sounded easier even if the taste was horrid. "Sounds easy enough. How often should I apply?"

The instructions she'd given him were not difficult to follow.  Even a complete fool like him could manage it.  The only thing she worried about now was that he wouldn't be bright enough to remember what herbs to grab should he need more.  She sighed then, her pity getting the better of her frustration.  Foolish and reckless as he was, he was a child of the earth and so the druid found compassion for him in her heart.


"Agrimony has the larger yellow flowers," Harlyn clarified when he asked, "Yarrow has the smaller white flowers.  The agrimony you likely will only need to apply once more.  The yarrow I would keep using for a few days to help the cut heal."

She was patient with him. He appreciated it. He assumed most wolves didn't ask so many questions about their own health care, but he was a curious fellow and he had a knack for learning, even if it were unintentional. She explained the differences between the two plants and he regarded them as she spoke on each one. Agrimony with the yellow flowers. Yarrow with white. He'd study them more on his own time. He'd stolen enough of hers for now.

"Mm," he murmured, turning his nose to sniff the plants, noting their particular flavors. His gaze lifted, glancing at her. His chin, though sore, would no doubt heal nicely and his headache was already starting to dissipate. Dehydration. Perhaps that's what had started his fools errand for the bottom of the gorge to begin with. There was water down there.

"Thank you," he said. He had no more questions and she was thorough in her instruction. "For everything."

His sincere expression of gratitude took her by surprise.  She regarded him for a moment thoughtfully.  Just as was true with many that the Cinderloch had come across in her travels, there was much more to him than he seemed.  Perhaps not the brightest or wisest when it came to making decisions, but he did have a good heart.  Harlyn could always appreciate that.


"What is your name?" she asked him suddenly when she realized she had not yet been given it.

An expression of shock crossed her face when he thanked her. What? Had none shown their gratitude for small favors and mercies during her travels? She was knowledgable and efficient. Her actions deserved the small kindness he'd given her. Words were air, but they bore so heavy a weight.

"Whatever you wish to call me," he replied, lowering his chin to settle on a paw. He looked up to her, winced as the pressure was applied to his wound and was instantly reminded that position was not favorable given his condition. He shifted, readjusting himself so that he lay more comfortably. "I've had many names. Which one do you wish to hear?"

Harlyn fought the urge to roll her eyes when the male dodged her question with a cryptic reply.  What was it with the men in this area?  First Nero/Five and now this fellow.  Did their mother's not call them by their names enough that they committed them to memory?  The druid gave him a little frown, though it was clear by her expression that there was no real irritation behind it.


"If I were to run into a wolf who smelled of you in the future," Harlyn replied, "A packmate of yours perhaps, and I were to ask them if they knew you.. I would say 'Do you by chance know...?'"  She tilted her head and gave him a pointed look, making it quite clear that it was his job to insert name there.

"Shit-for-brains," he spoke easily, realized what he'd said, and thought back to his first meeting with Kroc. She'd given him that one and he'd run with it. "Erm. Sorry. There's at least one wolf in these parts who'd recognize me by that." It wasn't a slight on her at all.

Truth was, he was currently without a pack. He'd been looking, but had yet to find any place worth settling. To everyone else he'd encountered? "Most will know me by Kero," he amended, lifting his head from where it lay upon his feet. "And if I were to ask of you? What name would I give?"

Harlyn once again had to resist the urge to roll her eyes at him.  She did have a sense of humor herself, but she was not nearly so... persistent about it.  She wondered if this wolf ever took anything seriously, but then she remembered the circumstances that had lead to their introduction and she decided the answer was no, no he did not.  Any wolf idiotic enough to try and climb down into a gorge, nearly getting himself killed obviously didn't have the wisest of heads upon his shoulders.  But, at least it was still there.


"Harlyn," she responded when prompted.  She gave him a smile then before she regarded him seriously, "You will be alright?  No more walking off cliffs, hm?"  She would not be there to help him the next time he did so.  Harlyn was growing to miss Mordecai and longed to return to his sane company.