Sun Mote Copse waterfalls

she had left behind the lake with its waterfalls to follow the waterway further down. would it feed into another lake? she had waded through a swampier stretch of land before trees began to dot the horizon in a thicker cover.

then the scent of others had cropped up.

admittedly there was some tingling of nerves in her limbs to move quickly beyond this place. the last time had not gone so well for her — and while others may have thought the summer the ideal time to travel, she had grown tired of it.

maybe it would just be a visit, seeing what the locals were like on this end of the world.

she tipped her head back and let out a warm call. unaware that some residents may not hear the polite act.

Her parents and Skip were leaving tomorrow…

Seal had been happy for them, but as the hour drew nearer Seal’s sank deeper into her feels.

Thankfully, a novel call reached the young esquire’s ears.

She hurried toward the border near the marshland, on the western side of the river, and spied a wolf she had never seen before.

“Hello,” Seal said genially as she cut a path through the rose milkweed to stand before the stranger. “My name’s Seal and this is Sun Mote Copse,” she explained. Then, she tilted her head as if to ask, who are you?

there was a special kind of comfort in being greeted by a bright young woman. one who introduced herself and this place. iope could not stop the soft wave of her tail.

thank you for meeting me, seal. her head dipped politely.

i'm iope, i was hoping to meet the locals, maybe see what this place is like. i don't want to bother you too much, though, if you're busy here!

No matter how old she became, it was unlikely Seal would ever lose her genuine friendliness. It didn’t cross her mind that this might be a Strath wolf or a traveler with sinister intent. After all, the woman had a kind vibe about her, bolstered by her curvaceous shape. Seal saw much of herself in this stranger.

“Iope,” Seal repeated and comitted the name to memory with a wag of her tail.

“So you’re a traveller, then?” she asked, voice imbued with a light scottish brogue.

“I’ll make you a deal,” Seal offered, “I'll show you around our borders if you tell me a sight you’ve seen on your journies?” She hoped Iope would humor her. Seal loved trading tales.

a traveler...she wondered when exactly she had become that. yet it had set in a while ago it seemed, whether she had wanted it to or not.

but she nodded softly with a yes kind of answer. had this young woman traveled too? or maybe the accent was something local to the copse.

that's a generous deal! she beamed warm and bright. maybe it would help stave off some of the sinking loneliness from traveling too.

she had been prepared to rattle off one of a far off land but it suddenly dawned on her. sun mote copse?

i'll give you a more exciting one next, i promise, but...i think i actually ran into some locals from here recently. her tail waved warmly behind her. towhee and skipjack? i was accidentally hogging the lake not far from here when i ran into them — which is a beautiful lake to have in your backyard.

Seal’s tail curled, pleased Iope humored her. “Excellent,” she said as the corners of her mouth fishhooked into a happy grin. “Follow me! We’ll go along the Southern border first. There’s a waterfall I want tae show you,” Seal explained.

They continued to chat as the pair began to walk together.

“Oh?” Seal chirped when Iope explained she had already run into some of her family. “Towhee is my Grandma an’ Skipjack is my little brother,” she told the voyager. “Though, my parents are taking him on a trip tae see the wilds, soon.”

Then, Seal pointed out the area known as Mercy’s Garden, where many herbs grew among the wetlands. Then, they began to cross the gentle river that demarked the southern forst known for its excellent hunting.

“Aye, the Hinterlands are beautiful, aren’t they?” She agreed with Iope. “Makes one wonder why more dinnae travel here…”

she was not sure if she had ever been treated so kindly when wearing the title of a guest. however she was not keen to look a gift horse in the mouth.

perhaps it was easier to feel safe and welcomed truly when she was meeting family of someone she already knew. well, knew might have been a stretch, but still. she might have tried to look for the familial similarities until the garden was pointed out. she could not hide the way her tail waved at once behind her.

the scents were fresh and delightful.

the scents of freshwater and wetland kept the place well hydrated, she imagined.

they are — and your family has found the most gorgeous corner of it! praise for this land, for this family. i would be plenty happy to bring back stories here any time you wished. the first gathering i ran into, far far from here, was not so friendly as you.

had that been the man's problem? or had iope not approached it right? the kind of thing to keep her awake at night even years from now, maybe.

“No?” Seal replied when Iope spoke of a meeting gone sour. “Tell me more,” she added, almost impishly, wanting to know all of the gossip.

The two women continued along the Copse’s perimeter until they reached the waterfall.

“You’re welcome back any time,” Seal told Iope as the woman moved to depart.