The last few months had been somewhat of a blur for the young traveller. Leaving her birth pack to travel solo was not a decision she had made lightly, it had come with months of careful thought and advice from the elder wolves at Arden Lake. Dua knew some of them had travelled great distances in their time, others had been more... tentative and relaxed in their travels. A few had warned her of the dangers of what lay beyond the borders, others had encouraged her to explore whilst she was young and capable of long excursions. She wasn't a young pup anymore, her second birthday was nearing and the call of the wild had appealed to her, plain and simple.
The forest was dense, the ground littered with scratchy thorns and course ferns that often attached themselves to the white wolf's claws and caused her to pause, raising each victimised limb in turn to shake off the debris somewhat comically, nose crinkling in annoyance. Dua's fear of contaminating herself with dirt and germs definitely made the travelling process slower because she stopped to preen and clean herself far more times than necessary for the average wolf. It was an annoyance, but something she was now more than used to.
It was an overcast morning as she stepped through the foliage, nose bobbing from the earth and up to investigate each scent. One glance up at the sky streaming through the conifers was enough to distract her - only momentarily - but it was at that moment that her front left paw pressed on an unstable twig and it snapped beneath her sleight weight, jolting her leg sharply to the left. The shift in weight threw her forward, bringing her immaculately clean face to the ground with a thud that shook the earth. Ah, a morning face plant. Refreshing.
The forest was dense, the ground littered with scratchy thorns and course ferns that often attached themselves to the white wolf's claws and caused her to pause, raising each victimised limb in turn to shake off the debris somewhat comically, nose crinkling in annoyance. Dua's fear of contaminating herself with dirt and germs definitely made the travelling process slower because she stopped to preen and clean herself far more times than necessary for the average wolf. It was an annoyance, but something she was now more than used to.
It was an overcast morning as she stepped through the foliage, nose bobbing from the earth and up to investigate each scent. One glance up at the sky streaming through the conifers was enough to distract her - only momentarily - but it was at that moment that her front left paw pressed on an unstable twig and it snapped beneath her sleight weight, jolting her leg sharply to the left. The shift in weight threw her forward, bringing her immaculately clean face to the ground with a thud that shook the earth. Ah, a morning face plant. Refreshing.
April 26, 2018, 10:43 AM
It was a fine, cool morning for a hunt, the spring breeze fluttering through the trees as Lily padded through the woods. Nose lifted in inquiry, she repeated to herself all the lessons Korei had taught her, trying to shove to the back of her mind the nagging voice of her sister. She had a goal: three rabbits before the end of the day to take back to the caches. She didn't think it was too terribly unreasonable.
A sudden noise nearby took her mind off rabbits, though, and the girl started in alarm, pumpkin gaze flashing round for signs of life. The woods belonged to no one, she knew, but she'd heard tales of war to the south, and she didn't want anything of that nature to come knocking on her door.
Her brief search led her to a white she-wolf, looking harmless, face. . .in the dirt? Perplexed, Lily padded toward her, a friendly smile on her face but her guard up nonetheless. "Hello," she greeted cheerily, canting her head to one side. "You okay down there?"
A sudden noise nearby took her mind off rabbits, though, and the girl started in alarm, pumpkin gaze flashing round for signs of life. The woods belonged to no one, she knew, but she'd heard tales of war to the south, and she didn't want anything of that nature to come knocking on her door.
Her brief search led her to a white she-wolf, looking harmless, face. . .in the dirt? Perplexed, Lily padded toward her, a friendly smile on her face but her guard up nonetheless. "Hello," she greeted cheerily, canting her head to one side. "You okay down there?"
April 26, 2018, 01:51 PM
Although she was frozen in the faceplant for only a few seconds, Dua could have sworn she'd aged about four years in the time it took for her to realise what had happened. Before she'd had the chance to retract from the unflattering and somewhat uncomfortable position, a voice met her ears and she hastily flipped herself up into a seated position, flecks of mud and debris dropping from her face as her ears twitched. She was pleased to see that the dark wolf has a kind face. Lifting a paw to swipe at the dirt and twigs entangled in her fur, Dua batted them out as best as she could. "I'm uh... good, I think," she responded sheepishly. And she was fine, other than mildly embarrassed. (And inwardly seething that she was dirty.)
Cocking her head to the side, she brushed the side of her face and one ear with her paw, continuing to try and remove the remaining few twigs and whatever else was stuck in there. "Dirt for breakfast, I don't know how the plant eaters do it. Not for me," she added, followed by a chuckle and a light sigh. For a vast majority of the time in which the young wolf had been travelling thus far, she'd had limited contact with other wolves -- not by any choice of her own, it just seemed that many routes she'd found herself following didn't happen to run near any populated areas. She'd been enjoying the peace, being a wolf of few words, but she'd also missed the daily chat her old pack mates had provided her with. For this reason, she offered the young wolf a smile and a flick of her tail.
Cocking her head to the side, she brushed the side of her face and one ear with her paw, continuing to try and remove the remaining few twigs and whatever else was stuck in there. "Dirt for breakfast, I don't know how the plant eaters do it. Not for me," she added, followed by a chuckle and a light sigh. For a vast majority of the time in which the young wolf had been travelling thus far, she'd had limited contact with other wolves -- not by any choice of her own, it just seemed that many routes she'd found herself following didn't happen to run near any populated areas. She'd been enjoying the peace, being a wolf of few words, but she'd also missed the daily chat her old pack mates had provided her with. For this reason, she offered the young wolf a smile and a flick of her tail.
April 27, 2018, 02:51 PM
Lily laughed at the girl's joke, eyes sparkling with delight. "I've never tried it. Never wanted to," she giggled, giving the ground a dismissive sniff before raising her muzzle and giving the stranger a level stare. She didn't smell like any of the packs around here; her scent profile, indeed, made it seem as if she'd wandered alone for some time.
"I'm Lily," she said with a nod, smiling. Her gaze swept through the trees surrounding them, landing inquisitively back on the woman's face. "What brings you out here all by yourself? It's easy to get lost in here." She'd learned that the hard way, spending one harrowing afternoon trying to retrace her steps to get back to Broken Boulder.
She really needed to get better at navigating through trees. She'd been spoiled by the open range for so long that any other territory was vastly out of her comfort zone.
"I'm Lily," she said with a nod, smiling. Her gaze swept through the trees surrounding them, landing inquisitively back on the woman's face. "What brings you out here all by yourself? It's easy to get lost in here." She'd learned that the hard way, spending one harrowing afternoon trying to retrace her steps to get back to Broken Boulder.
She really needed to get better at navigating through trees. She'd been spoiled by the open range for so long that any other territory was vastly out of her comfort zone.
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