Dawnlark Plains Lemonade

This takes place at the same time as this thread. Tags for visibility! :)

Larkspur's big blue eyes gazed wistfully in the direction @Harlyn had gone for a long time after her mother disappeared into the distance. She shifted her weight restlessly, just barely resisting the impulse to go after her. After a time, she sighed and flopped to the ground, still staring mournfully at the distant willows. She ignored everything else going on in and around her—@Silas and @Pippin milling, the birds chirping, the hunger sawing through her innards—and closed her eyes. Another sigh escaped her as @Deirdre's pretty, pale face cropped up in her mind's eye, projected brightly on the back of her eyelids. Despite herself, Spur's lips twitched into a faint smile as she thought of her one and only friend.

Zephyr had strayed yet again from his home, becoming less and less attached to the family there and more focused on his dream. Heldi had not yet come back to him, and already he worried she had run off again. Flustered and needing some distraction, the ebony brute headed out towards the plains to explore.
The scent of another seemed to beckon him, and again thoughts of the pack flooded his mind. There was no point recruiting, not now, not till Heldi came back. Perhaps, however, the thinning male would make a friend. Trotting on through the plains, it wasn't long before a golden pelt came into view. Zephyr let out a friendly chuff to the female with a smile, holding his body neutrally.
"Hello there"

The smile disappeared, replaced by a look of slight panic when a strange voice spoke from behind her. Staying low, Larkspur spun, blue eyes casting around for any sign of her brothers. Where had they gone? They then looked up at the gigantic black stranger and a tremor passed through her small body. Despite his friendly tone, she began backpedaling, now desperately seeking somewhere to run and hide. But the plain was wide, open and barren.

Quaking, the pup pressed herself to the ground and squeezed her eyes shut, willing the scary stranger to go away and leave her alone. Or for Silas and Pippin to come rescue her. Or for her mother to return. Or for all of the above.

Upon drawing closer, Zephyr realized the female was young, young enough that it made him wonder where her mother was. Her reaction caused him to draw to a halt, plopping down into the earth and putting his head on his paws. If he had to, he'd go belly up for the little female.
     "I'm sorry little one, I mean you no harm. Are you okay to be out here by yourself? Do you need help going somewhere?" 
The brute did his best to look as nonthreatening as possible, blinking his grassy gems at the pup with a smile wrought across his muzzle. He kept his senses out for a mother, however, intent not to gain any more scars today.

None of her wishes came true. Harlyn and her brothers remained out of sight and the stranger did not take the hint and depart. Instead, he plopped down nearby—she heard the distinct sound of his bottom falling to the ground—and addressed her. His voice was very kind, yet it did not inspire trust in Larkspur. Her whole body quivered as she mentally scrambled for how to respond to this situation.

"I'm n-not," she replied to his first question, eyes opening slowly. Technically speaking, Silas, Pippin and the other hollow wolves were somewhere around here, if not necessarily visible at the moment. "No," she added very quietly, hoping this time he would understand that she wanted to be left alone.

Zephyr whined a little and scooted back another two feet, her anxiety not falling upon blind eyes. The ebony males smile faltered a little at her clear discomfort and his grassy eyes shone with worry. She claimed to not be alone and said no help was needed, but the gentleman couldn't find it in him to leave a pup out here defenseless. He decided to carry on with conversation to see if maybe she would open up, but doubt filled his belly.
"Alright, as long as you're safe. Im Zephyr."

Her lips parted when he scooted further away from her, some of the tension in her muscles relaxing ever so slightly as she assumed he was preparing to disembark. Instead, he hovered, introducing himself. Larkspur stiffened again, glancing sideways and desperately willing @Silas or @Pippin to come save her from this stranger, to prove that she wasn't alone if nothing else.

She was shy, not dumb, so she knew he expected an introduction of her own. Yet Larkspur did not feel comfortable giving him any information about herself. She had lived a sheltered life until their departure from the hollow, yet Harlyn and Mordecai had instilled in their children a wariness of strangers. It also helped that Spur was naturally disinclined to engage. The pup remained mum, lips pressed tightly together.

With a sigh, the black and white brute stood and rose to his full height, glancing around and sniffing for the family she claimed were close. It seemed as though she was right, for there were faint and similar scents. He had to hope she was safe here, for it was obvious in her silence there would be no getting her to open up. 
          "Very well, little one. If you're so against me, Ill go. Suppose its good to be wary of strangers."
He backed up further, giving one last sweep of the landscape. A sad glance at the girl was all he gave before turning and slinking back towards the borders of his pack.

He remained a moment longer, then evidently admitted defeat. He retreated with a few parting words that made Spur's pursed lips twitch. She remained motionless until he disappeared into the distance, then let out a long, shaky breath of relief. It took another few minutes to gather herself and stand, at which point she began scanning her surroundings for any sign of her wayward brothers. Larkspur wasn't angry that they hadn't come, though she was desperate to reunite.

"Si? Pip?" she called quietly, sniffing the air and turning to follow their scents further out on the plain. "Mommy?" Spur added, just in case Harlyn had returned in the meantime. Her cries were met with silence at first, though thankfully it wasn't long before she located her litter mates and, shortly after that, their dam returned (with company) to take them to their new home.