Totoka River So this is it....

@Charon Meet-up?

The ocean, huh? It smelled.

That was her first reaction, as her sight was cut down to a 50% capacity. Her eyes came in later, right after hearing, which picked up a lot of noise. Birds crying raucously, a coarser sound than the crows and ravens that inhabited her forest. The waves constantly crashed against the sands, relentless in their assault on land. She had half of a story conjuring in her mind from that alone, something about the ever raging war between some water and earth spirits...Bah, she was no good at stories. Not like her mother. Besides, she had more important things to worry about than some made up story.

She had come here to seek out the wolf she had met a while ago. Charon. His home was on the coast, he said. It was called Stavanger Bay. She hadn't heard of the name before, but took the opportunity to travel to the ocean regardless. Even if he didn't show, she could at least see the ocean for the first time. While it did not meet up to her expectations, she had a feeling it was not a force to be messed with. She could barely imagine the ferocity of the ocean during a storm.

After following the river to where it spilled into the ocean, she chose to go southwest first to search for this Stavanger Bay. Maybe she would have the luck of running into someone who knew their way around first, or better yet, she would find Charon.

The young Beta -- who was now actually Beta -- decided to take some time to explore the Coast and look for Atreyu there. He'd spent a lot of time roaming the coastal area from when he was young, and today he decided to visit Totoka River, because where the river hit the oceanside there was a great place where he could swim safely. Maybe he'd even catch some fish while he was out there. Charon hoped that he wouldn't be able to catch fish or swim though: he hoped that he'd find Atreyu, alive and well, and that he would be able to take him home.

Charon trotted along the side of the river, on his way to the oceanside. He kept his eyes on the road, looking around constantly to see if he could find Atreyu, but there wasn't a trace of him. Charon had tried to follow Atreyu's scent trail after the bear attack, but he hadn't managed to find him. Like Jorunn, he was gone... Probably forever.

When he spotted the silhouette of the white wolf in the distance, Charon did not instantly think of Potema. At first he thought it was just another wolf, and his muscles tensed, ready for a possible negative encounter. Maybe this wolf knew about Atreyu.

Upon nearing, Charon called out: "Hey, you!" But when he came closer, he recognised the girl he'd met the other day. He hadn't expected Potema to come visit, and the pleasant surprise was met with a smile. "Oh, hey, it's you! Did you come to visit?"

She had walked for only a few minutes before she discerned a wolf's voice from the barrage of gull and ocean. Straining with her single eye to look at the direction of the shout, she perked up instantly at the sight of a white, freckled pelt. Charon! She smiled in return, closing the distance between them, tail wagging in a friendly manner. "I did." She beamed, noticing the difference in his size in the month between their last meeting. He was bigger than her, bigger than Damien even. That's what four month's difference did to you.

"How's your pack doing?" She asked, interested at how Charon fared as Beta, the youngest she was sure to ever know. She hoped that he was doing a good job, but being second-in-command was rough on anyone, especially on someone his age. She didn't know how large the pack was either, by the Void, she hadn't even met any other Stavanger wolf besides him! They could be from a different pack culture; her mother did say there was a lot of cultural diversity here in Teekon.

Charon's tail wagged in unison with Potema's as he came closer. He nudged her on the shoulder when he reached her, glad he'd happened upon her here. Sometimes it could be difficult to find a specific pack, especially one shrouded by forest and cliffs like Stavanger Bay. Charon liked that Potema had come to visit him, as it made him feel liked and appreciated. He could use that after all that had happened to the Bay in recent times.

The young Beta pursed his lips when Potema asked about the pack. "We're fine," he said, but he heard that it was evident that he was lying. "Well, okay, maybe not that fine. We're kinda small at the moment, and to make things worse my siblings got attacked by a bear. It killed one of my siblings and a good friend, I... think." Charon frowned darkly when he thought back to Atreyu's leg being ripped from his body as if he was a ragdoll, and Jorunn's body being carried along by the sea. There was always a chance that they'd come back, that they'd make it, but past experiences had told Charon that he shouldn't get his hopes up too much.

She nudged Charon's shoulder back, though more hesitantly, since it was only her second encounter with him. It felt strange, but even stranger if she did not reciprocate. He was a nice guy after all; she didn't feel like making him feel bad or uncomfortable. She pulled away and smirked, tail waving gently.

His lie was not that hard to detect, he made that obvious to himself. A feeling of dread entered her mind as he described a bear attack that killed one of his siblings and a packmate. Potema's ears flattened as she imagined the thought of that happening to herself. "Th-that's horrible." She said, genuinely feeling this emotion. "Did you kill the bear?" If that ever happened to her pack, the bear would have been tore apart instantly.

Charon felt the urge to comfort Potema somehow when she looked sad, but there wasn't really anything he could do. It wasn't like they knew each other that well, after all, and she was right to look so shocked and frightened at the thought of a bear shredding someone to pieces. Charon wished he wouldn't have had to save Flóki; then maybe he could've somehow saved Atreyu, after Jorunn had been carried out to sea. He thought of Flóki then, and thought back to how hard it'd been on Levi when Kevlyn had been taken from them. Flóki seemed the same so far -- scared, apprehensive, quiet and above everything else, sad and lonely -- and Charon worried that he might fall behind in his growth process.

When Potema asked if he'd killed the bear, Charon frowned and sadly shook his head. If only. "I would've, if I didn't have to save my other sibling," he said with a sad expression on his face. "I saw the attack happening and I knew I had to just get my sibling to safety, or he might've died before I could kill the bear too." Charon didn't know for sure he would've actually been able to kill the bear, of course... But Potema didn't need to know that, since he wanted to impress her.

Potema watched Charon's eyes, noticing that he was in deep contemplation, most likely about his family, both the ones he lost and the ones left behind that were also mourning. It must be heavy for pack as a whole and for the family. Despite what he tried to mask, his face had a look on mourning that Potema was largely unfamiliar with. The pack had no deaths to her knowledge, only disappearances. Even then, they were dealt with easily. She had never grieved before.

"I don't think you could have taken down a bear by yourself anyway. Even if I helped you." She said, matter-of-factly. She didn't know how to console. Her stepfather was a counselor, not her. "But enough about that....you said you were going to teach me how to swim, right?" She forced a smile, passably realistic, but to her it felt fake.

Charon didn't like that Potema suggested he couldn't have taken on the bear by himself, but he decided to let the matter rest. It was a nice sentiment that Potema wanted to help him, anyway, even if she could not. "Thanks. If I knew where it was now I would hunt it down with a bunch of wolves and kill it 'fore it hurts any more, but the coward fled the pack territories, and I dunno where it is now." If he knew, Charon would've made sure to create a hunting party, ask friends, ask nearby packs; anyone.

Potema asked about learning to swim then, and Charon reminded himself that he had promised. He'd forgotten all about it, figuring she was here just to see him, but now he remembered making the promise. "That's right, I did promise that," said Charon. He turned to look towards Totoka river and smiled briefly as he said: "I learned to swim at this river, too." It seemed so long ago now that he stood here with Spectra.

Potema knew that asking her own family to assist would be much. The Blackfeather pack was miles away from here; it took her days to get here, anyway. She even doubted some of the wolves have even been to the coast. He would have to gain help from the packs nearby, sadly. Even she didn't think she could help herself; she wasn't a fighter after all.

She looked over at the river where Charon himself learned to swim. She walked over to the river, dipping a paw in it and withdrawing quickly. "How could you stand be in something so cold?" She shivered and shook off the water.

Charon watched as Potema set foot in the water. He considered asking her to keep an eye out for Jorunn and Atreyu; he believed them dead, the words of Ragnar resounding in his head, but there was still this smidgeon of hope.

When Potema spoke about more light-hearted subjects, Charon was distracted and he decided against asking her to keep her eyes open. The young Beta trotted towards the water after she'd put a paw in. "You shouldn't go in gradually, you gotta run in like you mean it. Then it's really cold for a moment, but you get used to it real quick and it's over a lot sooner." Charon looked at Potema, considering splashing her or trying to tackle her into the water, but then he decided against it.

Instead, Charon dashed into the river, the water crashing as he hit it. The water wasn't all that cold -- just for a few seconds as he got used to it -- and he kept running until he fell into the water. Instead of swimming, Charon paddled back to where he could stand. With his head and back out of the water, he looked at Potema and shouted, "Come on, try it!"

Having no other opinions, Potema had no choice but to listen to what Charon instructed. Whether if it a good tip or not, it was worth a try.

Charon ran in, demonstrating his lessons. It certainly made a big mess, splashing Potema, and the surrounding area, with a bout of cold water. Potema closed her eye and shook her body, shivering from nose to tail. When her eye opened, she saw Charon paddling in the water with ease. Potema pouted, preparing herself to jump in. She took a deep breath, backed up, then ran in.

He was right — the water only felt cold but for a few seconds before she became adjusted. She still felt her paws touching the ground or whatever, while the water lapped at her shoulder. Charon was deeper, but she did not dare go any farther. "Now what?"

Charon watched as Potema took the plunge and crashed into the water as well. He smiled, glad that she was following his advice instead of being a wuss. It made teaching a lot easier; he couldn't do anything with wusses. Then she looked unsure as she asked what was next, even though the next step was pretty obvious.

With a grin, Charon said: "Now you gotta collect your bravery and just sort of keep walking until your paws stop touching the ground. Then you start to paddle your paws. Like so." Charon moved into the deeper water until his paws stopped touching the ground. He'd picked a spot with little to no current, because the river could be treacherous in some areas, and when his paws stopped touching the ground he started to paddle his paws so that he moved forward through the water, swimming. Charon doubled back towards the shallows then, until he could stand again, and instructed: "You try it."

All you have to do is walk until you cannot touch the ground.

For someone who was taught this at a young age, this might not be such a big deal. But for someone who spent her life with her paws firmly on some sort of ground, it was terrifying in a way. Potema looked at the deep water where Charon had paddled, unable to see the bottom. She glared at it, almost willing the ground to come up ever so slightly so she would not have to leave the soft mud that made up the bottom of the stream. But alas, it was not to be.

Taking a deep breath again, and silently praying to Sithis and Mephala that she would not drown, Potema slowly walked in. As the ground began to incline, Potema stood on her toes, unwilling to leave the mud, until she could not stretch her body anymore, and sank.

The paddling motion came to her, but the fear of drowning as she dipped into the water was stronger, making her flounder in the water, which was worse. Her instinct made her head back to the shore, tripping as she went, running past Charon onto safe ground, not caring how much of a coward she looked.

Charon expectantly watched Potema as she first made her way into the water. She looked at it for a while, and Charon waited patiently -- much more patient than he usually was -- for her to gather her courage, before she decided to take the plunge.

Her technique was far from perfect, but that was something that could be worked on. "That's it!" Charon shouted encouragingly while she floundered, even though it looked more like drowning than swimming. But despite how it looked, Potema did manage to find her way back to the shore, which meant she had swum.

While she ran out of the water Charon noticed the fear in her eyes, but he decided to try positive encouragement anyway. He trotted up towards her and said: "Well, that wasn't all bad. You did swim for a bit. Sorta. Must've, since you got back here. We just gotta work on your technique." Charon didn't even consider the possibility that she might not want to try again.

Potema coughed up the water that had entered her mouth as she sank beneath the surface. She paid almost little notice to Charon as he tried some kind of encouragement. The teen coughed a few more times before raising her head to speak again. "So I can just —" She broke off into a coughing fit again. "— drown again?" Her fear of drowning overruled her urge to go into water and try again for fun's sake, and for the sake of impressing Charon.

Charon wasn't sure why Potema seemed to have a harder time with learning to swim than other wolves. Maybe it was because she was already older, and he'd learned when he was a lot younger? He considered trying in the ocean, since the salt water made it easier to float, but then there was the current and the waves working against you, so he didn't think Potema would want to if she already hated swimming here.

"You didn't drown," Charon pointed out matter-of-factly, "You swam back to the shore. You just need practise!" He wasn't sure if this was actually true, but he decided that a white lie didn't hurt. Wolves that were learning something scary yet important as swimming just needed some encouragement, in whatever way necessary.

Short post. :/

Wasn't drowning getting water in your lungs? Because that was exactly what just happened to her. The girl coughed one last time, shaking her fur again. "I guess I did." She said begrudgingly. If you could call tripping over oneself swimming. "There must be an easier way of doing this." She said, looking around, searching for a shallower place in the water, if it would help. This water was too deep for her to start in.

Charon beamed a smile when Potema agreed with him that she had actually swum. That was a start -- now he just needed to get her to try again. He saw her look around after she said there had to be an easier way, and then came up with another brilliant idea: "How about we go to the shallows, where you can still just about stand, and you try to pull your paws up and swim? Then you can always put your paws back on the ground if you panic." He didn't think it should be necessary to go about it this way, but if it helped Potema, then they would just have to do it this way. Charon wasn't sure if it would work, though, since he had never tried it that way. He always just started to swim when his paws stopped connecting to the ground, never in the parts where he could still stand. Practise would have to prove whether it was a good idea or not.

While Potema was too frustrated to sense it, she was just as unsure about this method of learning how to swim as Charon was. They both had to go on a hunch about this. Potema, knowing nothing about swimming or water, decided that this was probably the way to do it. "Let's do that, then." She declared, walking over to what she supposed was shallow waters.

Potema walked tentatively into the water now, slowly reaching its center and finding that it only came up to her shoulders. Great. She could swim in this, she guessed. "So I just paddle around now?"

Charon was glad that Potema decided to get over her fears and try again despite her frightening experience. Swimming was a pretty basic skill, so she really had to practise. Truthfully, Charon felt that every wolf could swim instinctively. If they were driven to the water by a fire, he didn't doubt that any wolf would just be able to swim. Sadly -- or luckily, probably -- there were no fires around to teach Potema right now.

When she asked if she should paddle, after going into the deeper water where she could still stand, Charon nodded. He stood next to her and said, "Yup, just pull up your legs and paddle!" He hoped it'd work like that; he had never actually tried, only just walked up to the area where he could no longer stand and then it'd just happen automatically.

Just pull up your legs and paddle, he said. Like it would be as easy as that. Potema was a land wolf, no, a forest wolf, at heart. The water sources she lived in were too shallow to swim in, unless you counted the dark, raging river that winded like a snake underneath the Woods, which was just as dangerous as the ocean, she thought.

The girl paused, contemplating her surroundings and location before she dared lift up her legs and paddle. It was harder than she expected. The girl instantly sunk before she began paddling, and when she did, it was an effort. Her paws were always scraping the ground, making her dance in between standing and paddling. She tried swimming in a circle, alternating as she went, before finishing the 360 degree figure and standing back in the shallows, thoroughly drenched. "I did it!" She crowed triumphantly, raising her sodden tail in an attempt to wag it without the drag of the water.

The process of swimming was a bit difficult to Potema -- it seemed that she wasn't a natural at this at all. Perhaps it was because she started out so late in life, Charon considered. Well, whatever the reason, it didn't matter; she was doing it now! "That's it," Charon encouraged excitedly with a broad smile on his face. His tail flapped the water as it wagged briefly, while he watched her put forth the effort to swim, even if just a little bit. She was touching the ground most of the time, but it didn't matter; she seemed very insecure about this whole swimming thing, so Charon decided to just encourage her as much as he could.

"That was great!" Charon said enthusiastically when Potema finished and excitedly shared that she'd done it, and he bumped his head into her shoulder playfully -- but not so hard that it would knock her over -- to show his excitement at her achievement.

Fade out?

Potema felt her fur tighten around her, making her feel very, very cold. And not in the winter way that she liked. In a damp, chilly way that would have made her sick if she didn't dry herself off. The girl shook her fur after Charon bumped her shoulder, not caring if he got wet. He was a seawolf after all. He would be ok.

"Thanks!" She smiled, feeling a sense of accomplishment that she only ever got when she learned something new. Swimming would be useful someday, she knew, perhaps even more so than learning herbs (she guessed). What made it better was that she wasn't the only one who was excited about it. She had someone to share in it. It felt great.

sure thing :)

Charon didn't care that Potema sprayed water all over him again. He laughed as she did, actually enjoying the spray of water; he was still pretty wet himself, anyway. Charon grinned as he looked at Potema, whose wet-haired face made her look funny (though he probably looked the same). "Hey, maybe next time we could try out swimming in the ocean," Charon said. "I know lots of safe spots!" It was strange, but Charon somehow felt like a carefree puppy again right now, and he hadn't in a long time. Usually he felt responsible for the world -- not so much because he wanted to help it, but simply because he felt he was best suited to lead it -- but right now he felt young and free.

For another bit the two splashed along in the water, until it was time for Potema to go home again. The two split ways and Charon went home, feeling satisfied and accomplished -- perhaps as much as Potema herself did -- because he'd help another wolf learn to swim today.