The Heartwood Snow White, the Huntsman

@Shadow Sorry, I didn't remember I'd replied to this thread in the rough drafts.. My mind keeps playing me tricks :(
Also, sorry for the wait, my life's just that crazy.. xD
EDIT (1/22/2015): Removing tables.

The moment when Jinx took in the white prince into her home, she said she'd give him until the next full moon to earn his place. Life in the Ouroboros wasn't easy, but The young prince hadn't expected it to be. From the beginning he knew he had to make an effort to be accepted, not only by the queen but by every member of the pack, and that meant he had to be useful to the group, to have a task and to be good at it. So he decided he'd earn a trade, and what better for the adventurous prince of the north than be the pack's outrider? He loved exploring and he was an excellent ambassador, nothing could go wrong...

After a week or so of exploring within the pack's borders, the boy decided to reach out and see what else was out there. So far he had crossed the mountain range through the flatlands and straight into the Ouroboros, never paying attention to the territories he had traversed.

The young prince walked east for hours until he got to a new forest where the imposing oaks reigned and the maples and flowery dogwoods coloured the landscape with a wide palette of cheerful tones. The place was so bright and so merry that it seemed to have come out of a fairy tale. The leaves were starting to change color from bright shades of green to garish limes and yellows, and they'd soon turn to browns and reds once the summer ended and autumn took its place. Keith walked into the woods admiring the scenery, the bird's songs were so musical and full of joy as the place, and small furry balls of all kinds prowled the woods. He walked until he found a small creek from which he drank to sate his thirst.

The silver wolf's tail swished slowly, these were difficult times for Swiftcurrent Creek. Unsteady truce with The Sunspire and with Njal and Tuwawi leaving, taking the pups with them. Swiftcurrent Creek would be short of six members overnight, the comfort that the pups had emitted would be gone. Difficult times indeed. And he needed to help the Creek recover, he decided to go exploring again. Exploring helped the aspiring outrider to get rid of his nerves and think clearly. Nothing could go wrong could it?

The silver wolf had wasted precious time avoiding The Sunspire, obeying his Alphess's words and journeyed through the flatlands, his mind on other things he did not pay attention to what was around him.

The ashen male walked for hours until he got to a forest that he had not found yet. Oaks, maples and dogwoods covered the entire forest. It looked so bright and cheery that it didn't seem to belong here at all. But summer was coming to an end and the leaves were starting to change color from bright shades of green to yellow. They would soon turn to brown and red once autumn fully took over.

Though Shadow hated forests for their suffocating canopies, he decided to explore this one. He walked into the woods, never seeing such beautiful scenery. Birds sang overhead, their songs filled with joy. He spotted a small creek from the distance and decided to drink before continuing.

There was a white wolf drinking too, his scent not the ones of loners so he was a pack wolf. The ashen male lapped up some water before turning to the white male "Hello," he said in greeting.

The water was so cool and refreshing that the young prince almost let his guard down, but the scent of an approaching wolf brought him back to full attention. He didn't lift his head from the water until the other male greeted him. His voice was calm and he seemed friendly, so Keith wagged his tail in a peaceful manner.

"Hey" the boy responded with a sharp bark, droplets of water running down his muzzle, "Fancy forest, eh? Though it's a bit.. girlish for my taste.." he admitted.

"Fancy forest, eh? Though it's a bit.. girlish for my taste.." said the white wolf, Shadow chuckled, "Same, everything seems so colorful and calm, it feels like it doesn't belong here at all." the black tip of the ashen male's tail flicked in a peaceful manner. Sometimes peace was so much better than war, he sighed and drank more water. It felt cool and refreshing after a long hike.

"So what brought you here?" he asked the white wolf, he was not a loner. Did he have the same goal that he had. To become an outrider?

The grey male seemed so calm and serene, maybe it was the place because Keith felt like a dove himself. "Exactly" he agreed nodding. The silver boy thought back of Blackfeather, the contrast of the Heartwood with the Gloomy woods he stumbled upon that other day was huge; and they were right in front of eachother!

The young prince sat back on his haunches to answer to the ashen male's question, "Wanderlust" he simply woofed, his eyes gleaming with passion. What he really was doing there was uncertain, He wanted to be useful to his pack but mainly he liked to go places. Ever since he departed from his homeland he had came across a lot of amazing places, and he learned that the world was a big place that was yet to be discovered.

"What about you? do you come from afar?" he inquired slightly tilting his head. the Silver boy didn't expect to meet anyone there because the place didn't carry any specific scent of claim, so he came through carelessly.

The ashen male copied the white wolf's actions and sat back on his haunches as he thought about the other male's question. "Just the urge to go exploring," he finally replied. That was half true, he was here because of the urge to explore, however he was also here to get away from the tense air of his pack. Things were difficult back at home.

"I come from a pack in the valley. What about you? You're not a loner." Shadow's tail wagged slowly wondering which back did the white wolf come from. His scent was the scent of a pack that he had not visited before.

Sorry for taking so much time to reply, I've been slow the last couple of weeks :(

The grey male said he had an urge to explore, but there was something hidden in his words that the young male couldn't decipher. "No, I'm not a loner, I come from the Ouroboros Spine..." he barked pointing with his snout at the ring of mountains at his back. He fell silent for a couple seconds before looking back at the male, tail wagging and excitement in his words, "Hey, wanna take a look around?" If the other male really wanted to explore, Keith would gladly take his company to do so.

"I'm Keith by the way.." He added, and then crossed the creek to stand beside his new grey friend. He loved meeting new people, and so far he hadn't met quite as many as he would've liked, so whenever someone new showed up (except for Kaname) he tried to befriend them.

It's fine. :)

Ouroboros Spine... the silver wanderer turned his gaze swiftly to the mountains that the other explorer had pointed out. There was silence before the white wolf asked "Hey, wanna take a look around?", excitement evident in his voice. He watched quietly as the other male crossed the creek and stood beside him. "Sure, that'll be great." he smiled.

Exploring alone was different from exploring with others, and he hadn't met quite as much wolves as he wanted to in his travels. At least Keith wasn't hostile, and a fellow explorer was what he needed. A companion on his travels, maybe not in all of them but just one time would be great for a change. "Keith huh? I'm Shadow," he introduced himself and grinned at his new white friend.

A bit of PP if you don't mind.. :)

The guy seemed nice, he was a bit quiet yeah but.. Nice.. It's not like Keith was being a preacher but he usually liked to interact with more spontaneous wolves. "Alright Shadow" He wagged his tail, and turned to continue walking, "Lets go" he motioned with his head for the other male to follow and waited until he caught up.

The silver youth sniffed the air to catch a sweet aroma that somehow brought pink to his mind, and followed it downhill to a large clear with a pond in the middle surrounded by red maple trees and some green oaks. But what caught the boy's attention were the small bushes covered with red berries that were scattered throughout the field. "Are these edible?" he asked to his friend without looking away from the bushes.

"I don't know, I usually just avoid eating them and stuff." he looked at his white companion, a smile appearing on his lips. "You wanna try?" he asked, a smirk playing on his lips, eyes glittering with amusement. "I don't want to die just yet."

He turned his platinum gaze to the berries and sniffed it carefully, though he kept quite a distance so the smell of it wasn't clear. Should he approach or not? Turning to give his white exploring companion a small grin, he slowly approached. It wasn't like it was going to explode or anything but better safe than sorry, huh?

Lets give this a twist ;)

Shadow kindly invited Keith to eat the berries. They did look tasty though, so red and sweet, if it wasn't for the fact that these could kill a bear in seconds.. "Oh, how decent of you, Shadow. Of course I wanna try them!" he turned his gaze to the berries, and closely stepped closer.

"You think they'll kill me?" he teased glancing back at shadow "Nothing kills the man, you hear me?" he barked with a grin on his face, he put his head closer to the berries and after sniffing them once again he opened his mouth, he wasn't actually gonna eat them, he knew they could be poisonous, he grew closer to them to the point where one of them was hanging from the bush right inside his mouth, he eyed his friend, the berry dangerously close to his mouth; the berry that would for sure kill him in minutes, but out of nowhere a gigantic stag lifted his head from the bushes and grunted at them.

The yearling's pupils grew smaller and his heart beat stopped for a second. He jumped back startled by the beast in front of them. "Shit!" the Stag stepped forward threatening to stab them with its huge antlers that to the young prince looked two meters long and another two wide.

"Oh, how decent of you, Shadow. Of course I wanna try them!" The silver wanderer highly doubted he would try it, it would be like his own death sentence, or not. "You think they'll kill me?" said Keith teasingly, "Nothing kills the man, you hear me?" that drew a smile onto the gray outrider's face.

He watched as Keith placed his head closer to the berries and after sniffing them, opened his mouth. He drew closer to the point where one of them was hanging from a bush right inside his mouth. Shadow's gaze grew brighter and he cocked his head as Keith eyed him. He was not going to eat the berry that could kill him in seconds.

But suddenly, out of nowhere, a gigantic stag lifted its head out of the bushes. The silver wanderer's jaws fell open. "Shit!" he said, backing away.

The young prince barked at the beast hoping that it would back away , but all he got was a deep grunt from the stag which stepped forward stumping the ground dangerously close to the Yearling's head. At that point the adrenaline took over the boy's body and mind, and he took off running away from the mad beast with his tail tucked between his legs. He didn't look back to see if his friend was following for he heard the stag chasing him with heavy stumps, he just ran for his life. There was no point in trying to fight an animal that would end the prince's life with a swift move of its head, stabbed wasn't the way the boy wanted to leave the world and much less so young.

His fast limbs took him out of the clear and into the trees where the stag wouldn't probably move so fast. He stopped after a minute or so and looked back to check on his friend, who he had forgotten about the moment he saw the giant antlers.

The silver wanderer watched as Keith barked at the stag but all the stag did was grunt and take a step forward. At that moment, the white wolf took off, running away from the stag with his tail tucked between his legs. The silver explorer raised an eyebrow when he saw that the white wolf did not look back once to see if he was following. Wow, talk about loyalty. He shook his head, lost in his thoughts before the stag grunted again. Antlers dangerously near him.

Immediately the silver prince bowed his head respectfully to the stag and took another step back. The stag seemed to have lost interest in the wolves and turned around, leaving the outrider sighing in relief.

Rolling his eyes, he followed Keith's scent trail into the trees. At least his friend had the sense to go into the trees, if the stag followed, it might have saved his life. He approached the white wolf, growling playfully "Wow, you're a brilliant friend, Keith."


His fast limbs took him out of the clear and into the trees where the stag wouldn't probably move so fast. He stopped after a minute or so and looked back to check on his friend, who he had forgotten about the moment he saw the giant antlers.

Sorry, I didn't know Keith was such a coward xD
btw sorry for the late reply, I've been struggling to post.. Sometimes I just don't have the motivation to post, I hate it when it happens :(

When shadow's scent was close enough for Keith to get it he came out from behind a giant oak with amusement in his face. He chuckled at his friend's words and trotted a little bit faster to get to him. It wasn't his intention to leave him dealing with the beast alone, he just ran off following his instincts, there was no way the young silver boy would risk to fight such an enormous monster! Keith was just unlucky to have a player who likes to torture him... Poor thing..

"Did you see those antlers!" he barked with a remaining trail of adrenaline in his voice. He laughed "Ow man I swear I've never seen such a scary thing in my life! Are you ok?" He said while scanning his friend for any considerable wound.

I know that feeling. :(

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"Did you see those antlers! Ow man I swear I've never seen such a scary thing in my life! Are you ok?"

The sterling outrider raised an eyebrow, "Now you ask if I was okay, you were running away without even looking behind to see if I was following or if I was alive." he smirked. "That stag didn't even scratch me or touch me," he said smugly. "You abandoned me, Keith. You are a great friend, I cannot find words to express how great a friend you are!" he said sarcastically.

He twisted around to lick on his ruffled fur and shook away the leaves and twigs that had settled on his pelt as he grinned at Keith. It was all fun, it was sarcastic and playful, he didn't really mean what he'd said. He knew some wolves would run away without a thought about their companions , he knew that and perhaps Keith was one of them.

Maybe we should fade this one? Y'know.. since it happened like a million eras ago...

The ashen male joked about the silver boy's concern, and with laughter Keith sat on his haunches and sighed in relief that his friend wasn't mad at him for his escape. Even though the boy didn't wish any ill will to his new friend he had his priorities, and his own safety was at the top.

"Hey Shad..." he said without even asking if he could call him that.. "I was planning on going a little bit further north" he barked turning his snout to point at the Sunspire range, "There, to the mountains..." his main goal: getting to know as much as he could of the park. "Do you have any plans?" he inquired with the intention to invite him to travel with him.

Oh, and it's ok if Shadow doesn't agree to come with Keith, I know that would mess the timelines up so..

xD yeah, good idea. Last post for me.

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"Hey Shad..." The sterling outrider raised an eyebrow at that. "You can only call me Shadow, nothing else." he said, his tone serious. "I was planning on going a little bit further north" The silver male smiled but shook his head. "There, to the mountains..."

"I'm afraid I will not be able to travel with you, my current pack are rivals with The Sunspire." he smiled at Keith before turning around, flicking his ears in farewell. "I should be going. Enjoy your trip," he called over his shoulder as he made his way through The Heartwood.

Jeez, why did Keith keep running into the most serious and stiff wolves in the WORLD!? First Kaname with his fancy voice and his millennial serious face; and then this guy wouldn't take his awesome nickname? "Alright pal, chill..." he barked after a slight snort.

The ashen male refused to his invitation. It seemed liek he had some issues with the sunspire pack... Wasn't that Kodo's pack? "Oh, that's ok, I understand... Thanks Shadow" he barked putting a clear emphasis in his name, "See you 'round..." he woofed as he watched as his new friend rapidly dissappear between the distant trees, and he himself took off heading to the mountain range.