Wild Berry Meadow I've been cold, I've been merciless

@Raven - backdated to the 21st of August because timeline :))

How strange how she hadn't run into any other memorable wolves since she left Drageda, but then again; it was getting colder and she supposed more and more of them just stayed with their pack to stack up for winter. She couldn't blame them; that was exactly what she was going to do whenever she got back to Teaghlaigh, not aware that they'd be gone the minute she got there. She made her way to the flatlands by taking a shortcut through the mountains and now found herself in a dying, yet still beautiful, meadow.

The smell of packs nearby was hard to miss, but she didn't pay it any mind; she'd been homesick for a while now and just wanted to go back where she belonged.

Yaaay! :D

Raven felt the grating pain of hunger churn through her belly as she trotted through a sunny meadow whose elbow-height verdant grass was beginning the rapid transition to autumnal gold. This was one of her favorite places to come gather medicinal plants and flowers, but that was not her mission today. On this afternoon, she came here in the hopes of finding something reasonably uncomplicated to catch and eat. The famine had sunk its teeth firmly into the throat of the caldera wolves, and while Raven's main concern was the puppies that Finley still nursed, she couldn't ignore the protests of her own empty belly either.

As a cool breeze rippled across the hilly plain, whispering through the grass in soft sighs and susurrations, Raven inhaled deeply. Amid the fragrant notes of warm, sun-soaked earth, late summer berries, and the woody-sweet scent of nearby forest, there was the unmistakeable aroma of...deer? No, wolf. Her senses sharpened, she peered around and saw a lupine figure cutting across the field. Her tail waving and a grin on her face, she woofed a soft greeting to the stranger.

Then again, they would probably not be happy with her absence... Perhaps it was better to be lost for some time longer. It wouldn't be hard either, it seemed, for though she could not sense the other, the other sure could do her. Ocher eyes grew wide, sunlight creating a spectacle of colors to dance around her irises, and a grin was pleasantly resting on her pointy, pretty face. It was not often she was the one being greeted - most of the time, she approached, but the change of pace was a nice one.

Hiya there! She called, making her way slowly but surely towards the other. Dun't believe we've met befur. She joked, obviously never having seen the woman. Though, her fur was like ink... No, more like the ravens she had observed at Ravensblood Forest. Just a tone darker than her own, and not with the trademark smudge of white upon her throat... How could she remind her of someone? So strange.

The wolf returned her greeting with cheer, and Raven couldn't help the delight that showed on her face. As the stranger drew closer, Raven herself closed the distance as well and within moments, the two were within a comfortably conversational proximity to one another. She was a beautiful creature, vibrant and healthy, cloaked in shades of pewter and shadow that shone with golden lustre in the sun. A shock of pallid white at her throat was her only discernible marking, and eyes of glowing ember seemed to carry far more wisdom and experience than her youthful appearance would lead a casual observer to assume.

Raven grinned and shook her head in response to the stranger's comment. "I'm not used to seeing other wolves out here! I'm Raven, from the caldera." It was fairly obvious where that was, as the slumped shape of the collapsed volcano's shoulders could be easily seen from here. "I was just hunting for some medicinal plants when I saw you passing by." That wasn't entirely true, but it sounded a lot better than I was just out here starving.

A younger Chusi would perhaps put the link between the stranger's appearance and that of her biological sister that had been stolen so many moons ago. She held no memories of her, but something like family... you couldn't forget entirely. But the older, far wiser, Chusi of the Now blamed the female's eyes for that familiar feeling. They were the same, electric shade of yellow as the man that had somehow hammered a piece out of her golden heart and taken it away with him. Yes, that and their dark coats were similar. She wondered if her preference for Mouse's icy blue orbs had stemmed from her former obsession with Ingram's ones, as if she needed something cooler now that she was trying to get over him.

Eheh, meh neither - Nevah really been 'ere befur tho. She admitted with a slight dip of her head. Though far from borders, she could sense the raven-like creature belonged somewhere. So ya're a medic? She questioned excitedly, immediately thinking of Mattias. Mah friend is one too - he made mah cracked paws feel a'whole'lot bettah just a bit 'go. She spoke with eyes wandering everywhere, wondering if she could find plants that would be useful. But, no, she had no idea about what plants were good and which ones were bad. While she was a trained warrior and leader, healing had never been something for her.

Raven knew nothing of the stranger's ties to her own family; she wasn't the best at keeping tabs on family affairs in the pack, let alone outside of their borders. She liked how the she-wolf perked up at the mention of her being a medic, though, and as she explained how her friend had treated her sore paws, Raven found herself nodding approvingly. "Yeah, I've been into medicine since I was a pup. I've gotten...actually pretty good at it." She'd never been one to brag, but as she actually stood here and thought about it, it dawned on her just how vast her knowledge had actually become in just a few short years. "So...cracked paws?" Her eyes fell to the lady's feet and lingered there briefly before moving back to her face. "Have you been traveling for a while?"

Though Chusi rarely bragged, she felt great pride in all she had learned at Teaghlaigh, and from her journeys. While she didn't expect anyone to fall at her very feet and admire her, she did expect them not to doubt her in her fields of expertise. The butterfly smiled. Same goes fur meh - with becomin' a warrior, I mean. She chuckled, feeling great that she had something in common with a stranger. She followed her electric eyes to her own feet, feeling blood rush to her cheeks. Mhm. She nodded. Almost done tho - 'been through most of tha Teekon. She told.

Sorry for the wait! College has been intense the past week or two. I'll try to get replies up much faster from here onward. :)

Raven was impressed when Chusi said she was a warrior. It was hard for her to picture the elegant, ember-eyed beauty kicking asses in battle. But, as a healer, she knew better than most that there was always more to a situation -- or, in this case, a person -- than meets the eye. Looks could be deceiving.

But then the strange she-wolf went on to say that she'd journeyed around most of the Teekon Wilds, and that was when Raven was really impressed. She could barely find her way out of a blackberry bush without getting lost, but this woman had managed to travel the entire region and didn't seem to be too concerned about her whereabouts. How? "Wow! That's...awesome." Her interest was clearly written in her face as she shook her head with a smile. "I'm terrible with direction. I tried to track down a friend a while back and got so lost I thought I'd never find my way back. You must have seen some fascinating sights!"

She felt a slight blush warming her cheeks at how Raven looked at her. It was really quite easy as long as you had points to look at for the 4 sides. For her, mountains, the sea en the Northern star were all great pointers and they helped her along quite nicely.

ah, shucks - ya be makin' meself feel good. She joked, a few stray giggle finding their way to her tongue. Ya be right though, I've seen alotta cool places. I especially liked the Vale - it's like a lil' paradise surrounded by rock en mountains. She tried to explain, but no words could come close to the beauty of the real thing.

Raven, assuming that her new friend referred specifically to Northstar Vale, nodded in agreement with her words. She had seen it from a distance in her (lost) travels around the area, and it truly was a beautiful place to behold. Well, mostly she had seen the mountains that encompassed it. Even from here, she could see their white-capped spires jutting ever skyward, glacial crowns gleaming in the sunlight. Raven had always been a bit of a homebody, but some small part of her deep down had enjoyed traveling and seeing new things. She thought of how much she could learn about medicine by visiting different regions where different plants grew.

"It's so interesting to meet you... what was your name?" For she had realized at that moment that she hadn't asked and her new friend hadn't offered. Manners weren't a thing that meant much to wolves, particularly those of different packs. But this was a wolf that Raven wanted very much to remember after today.

A blush rushed to her cheeks. How rude! She had completely forgotten to introduce herself. Usually, her name was the first thing she gave a stranger, having no bounty or anything on it. As far as she knew, she was pretty friendly and well-liked by nearly everyone she knew. Then again, wolves lied every now and then. Perhaps Raven didn't find it at all interesting to meet her or find the Vale to be beautiful :o. But, thinking like that didn't get her anywhere either.

Fearghal - Chusi Fearghal. Nice ta meetcha. She chipped, still a bit embarrassed.

Care to wrap this up? :)

Raven smiled as her newfound friend offered her name, committing it to memory and hoping she wouldn't forget it. Her ability to remember tended to be terrible where some things were concerned. Minor details and subjects in which she had little interest seemed to slip through the fingers of her memory like sand. However, she found this she-wolf to be quite interesting indeed -- her own curiosity was piqued by her tale of travel, and Raven would do much thinking on the subject and its relevance to herself in the coming weeks. Somehow, she didn't think Chusi would be so easily forgotten.

"Well, I should probably be getting back home," she commented, waving her tail in a gesture of friendliness and good cheer. The sun had indeed traveled across the sky quite some distance in the time they'd been chatting. "It really was very cool to meet you, Chusi. I hope we cross paths again soon."

Feel free to archive or post and then archive - thanks for the thread! <3

Raven from the Caldera was not an easy wolf to be forgotten either, her vibrant eyes and dark coat reminding her of her teen love more than anyone had ever done. Of course, this was not the only reason she liked the girl - she was friendly, a good listener and probably the bestest healer ever - or at least she'd be someday. Chusi didn't forget names easily, even last names she usually remembered, and she was sure that if they'd ever cross paths again that they'd easily befriend each other again and again.

Same - I'll seeya tho! Hopefully! Se giggled then, turning tail with a last glance at Raven to catch any other smile or goodbye before forging her own path through Teekon again.