Blackbeak Bluff doubloons

Dusk bathed the phantom in rich mahogany as he left the forest behind in search of the cliffs. Now was the perfect time to hunt; seabirds would be returning to roost here where navigation for a quadruped was tricky. Picking his way carefully along the rocks, his gaze fell to where the jagged stones met the sea some vast distance below. How easy it would be to slip and meet an untimely demise. Fortunately, Murk had found his sea legs long ago.

A squawk from above signalled his move. Head spinning skyward, he zeroed in on a lone gull preparing for landing and picked up speed. Using his powerful back legs to propel himself upwards, he caught the bird mid-air and landed with a clatter back on solid ground. A swift bite to the neck was all it took to still its flapping.

More would be caught and cached for later, but a subtle shift in the air made the fur on his spine prickle uneasily. He was being watched.

@Castel maybe ? not sure what character you planned to throw at this, grim! timings can be changed if needed

Emris had been watching for a while, her pale form blending into the rocky outcrops that lined the cliffs.

The gull’s squawk had drawn her gaze upward just in time to see the stranger’s precise leap, the mid-air catch, the practiced landing. Efficient, she thought, ears twitching at the sound of the bird’s lifeless thud against stone.

The air shifted, carrying the faintest trace of the other wolf’s scent.

She stood, stepping out from her vantage point with deliberate ease, her large paws finding steady purchase on the uneven ground.

Half-expecting an ambush, the seawolf spun to meet his onlooker with hackles raised. But when his molten gaze fell upon a rather meek looking wolf, he made a noise that could have been a chuckle but was muffled greatly by a mouthful of feathers. It took some talent to go unnoticed for that long; he would have assumed them to be another rock had they not made their presence known

Despite the stranger's small size, and much to Nox's surprise, they looked perfectly at home upon the clifftops. Letting the gull fall to his feet, his tongue worked between his teeth to rid them of any stray feathers before he finally broke the silence.

"It's rude to stare, yknow." Watching, waiting, to see what they would do next.

Emris tilted her head slightly, unbothered by the seawolf’s remark.

Her thick pelt caught the evening breeze, shifting faintly as she stepped closer, steady on the uneven ground. The gull at his paws was noted with a glance, but her attention lingered on him, calm and assessing.

“Is it?” she replied smoothly. Her voice was even and her eyes were flush upon his face.

She didn’t move further, content to keep her distance for now. Instead, she pulled herself into a sit upon her haunches. Content to watch.

Much to his curiosity, the stranger made no move to back off. Instead, he fixed her with a cool stare as she moved towards his place on the rocks. Her calm presence demanded his attention, and so he complied, mirroring her steps with an approach of his own.

"Some may see ye as a threat," his voice lilted, unsure if this wolf was friend or foe. It wasn't until she settled that Nox allowed himself to relax slightly, tail stirring between his hocks. 

The light wind tousled his unkempt fur. It was atop cliffs like these, buffeted by the sea breeze and toeing the line between life and death that Nox felt most alive. He wondered if she felt it too.

Emris held her ground as the seawolf approached, her lilac eyes unwavering as they met his molten stare. There was no challenge in her gaze, but neither was there submission. His words brought a faint curve to her lips, more acknowledgment than a smile.

“Aye, some might,” she replied, her voice low and even, carried by the breeze. “But you don’t seem the sort t' spook easily.”

She let her weight shift upon her legs, settling herself with ease against the jagged rock.

The wind tugged at her thick coat, carrying in the salt-tinged air that clung to the cliffs. Her gaze flickered briefly to the churning waters far below before returning to him.

"What brings y' here?"

It was a long standing habit of his to scrutinise the body language of others. Call it an obsession, but Nox believed even a subtle movement could tell you infinitely more about someone's character than words ever could. As she spoke, his gaze traced the line of her mouth, eyes crinkling slightly as her attention diverted momentarily to the water. 

"Nay," he confirmed, parting his lips in a smirk at her observation. "I'm used to far more...uncouth crowds." It was true, a life on a seafront had eroded his mind; a smile could obscure the darkest parts of someone.

She asked of his purpose and Nox considered his answer carefully. "The scenery, the birds." Rolling his shoulders, he reclined onto his haunches and looked out towards the horizon, bleeding orange from a setting sun. "Ye don't seem scared of heights."

Emris caught the faint crinkle in his eyes, the shift of his expression. He watched closely, his scrutiny as natural as breathing, but she didn’t mind.

Let him look.

"Guess we got that in common." Uncouth crowds. She met his smirk with a slight quirk of her brow, settling more comfortably onto the rock beneath her.

“I’ve found lil use for fear,” she replied simply, her gaze flicking briefly to the gull before following his out toward the horizon.

The sun's fiery descent bathed the cliffs in a warm glow, the wind tousling her thick pelt as it rose from the waves below.

"Seems we do," he chuckled dryly, her comment piquing his curiosity. A common upbringing was one thing, but he knew all too well what it could shape someone into. "My crew were a rowdy bunch. Take yer eyes off a meal and its gone in a flash." Her interest in the gull was met with a cool stare followed by a nonchalant shrug, as he pushed the bird towards her. "Hungry?" There was plenty more to catch.

Nox reached for a loose stone nearby, feeling its rough surface pinch his skin as he rolled it beneath his paw. There was some merit to her thinking; great dreams could be achieved by those fearless enough to chase them. But there was a fine line between courage and stupidity. With a flick of his wrist, the stone clattered off the cliffside into the open air below. Crossing that line was a fast pass to death's door.

"I find fear keeps us alive."

Emris watched as the bird slid toward her, her gaze shifting from its lifeless form to Nox’s nonchalant expression. She inclined her head slightly, accepting the offering without a word, but made no move to eat just yet.

Her lilac eyes flicked back to him, studying the line of his jaw, the ease with which he spoke of it. “Maybe. But too much of it keeps y' from ever really livin'.” She shrugged lightly, her thick fur shifting with the motion.

She glanced over the edge, watching the faint ripple of the sea far below.

“Y' talk like you've toed that line 'fore.” she mused, turning to let her eyes wash over the lanky man. Her tail swished with faint amusement before she finally bent to take a few bites off the caught gull, tearing uncaring at the stringy, lean meat.

It was hardly an impressive offering - a scrawny seagull couldn't hold a candle to a rich, fatty slab of deer meat - but it was a gesture of goodwill nonetheless. If one chose to interpret a deeper meaning to it: it was an invitation. 

"Ay, there's a balance," he added to her comment, watching too as the stone disappeared beneath the waves. "But either way, hero or coward, ye all return to the sea eventually. Best we can do is make it a life worth livin'."

A prickle of unease raised the hairs of his spine as he felt her gaze upon him, keenly aware of his small stature compared to the stranger's lean form. It was a fair observation, if a little inaccurate, but Nox made no move to correct her. "Haven't we all?" he replied casually. Let her believe he was strong.

Emris tilted her head slightly, her gaze never quite leaving his. “But if we all end up in the same place, it’s what we do ‘fore we get there that matters, ain’t it?”

She let her weight shift as she settled more comfortably on the rock, the salt-laden breeze ruffling her thick fur.

Her lilac eyes flicked to the gull again, her paw resting lightly against its feathered body. She shoved it back towards the stranger man.

“Y’ seem like someone who knows that well enough,” she added, her voice low but steady.

“Big or not, y’ve held your ground here. That’s worth somethin’.”

"Now we're speaking the same language," spindly tail beating a steady rhythm into the stone. "Tis why I'm tryna make a name for myself out here." On the saltwind he left a thread dangling, waiting to see if she would bite. 

His eyes widened in surprise as the gull was returned. There was little left on the carcass besides a few mouthfuls of sinewy flesh, but already Nox was drawing the bird closer and tearing apart the remaining meat.

"And it's worth somethin' that ye'v stuck around," he countered, the delicate bones splintering between his teeth with a satisfying crunch. "Name's Nox. What's yers?" It seemed only courteous to offer his identity now after they had shared such an intimate thing as a meal.

Emris let out a soft huff, somewhere between a chuckle and acknowledgment, her lips curling faintly as his tail thumped against the rock. “A name, huh?” she drawled, a laugh upon her breath. “Well, guess y’ picked a good place to start. Out here, no one’s gonna hand it to ya.”

She watched as he made quick work of the gull. The crunch of bones beneath his teeth was a sound she was well used to.

When he spoke again, her ears flicked forward, catching his name.

Nox. Short, simple. Fitting.

She tilted her head, her lilac eyes meeting his.

“Ma called me Emris.” she offered with a swish of her own tail, tipping her head to the lanky seawolf. “I’m curious to see what y’ make of yours.”

Her singsong laugh was like music to his ears. It felt good to be praised, to be told for once in his life that he was on the right path. A sour taste filled his mouth as the woman's word's echoed round his head. 

Y' picked a good place to start.

If only his ma could see him now.
 
"Yer not wrong 'bout that," he swallowed dryly, tension visible in the subtle crinkle of his brow. And so he was greatly relieved when Emris introduced herself. It was a pretty name, and for the first time Nox found himself lost in her earthen tones. Though he did not offer a bow in return, he began to foster a feeling of respect for her, meeting her amethyst gaze with a fire of his own. 

What did his name mean to others? Would they remember him a fearsome captain of the seven seas? His own head tilted. "Do ye want to find out?" 

“Maybe I do,”

She replied evenly, her accent lilting softly over the words, and didn't bother to hide the smirk that glinted upon her face. Rugged, but feminine to her core.

Her eyes remained steady on his, the faintest flicker of intrigue in their lavender depths. “Guess that depends on what y’re plannin’ to make of yourself, Nox.”

She shifted her weight, her broad paws steady on the uneven stone, her thick pelt rustling faintly in the wind. “If y’re talkin’ ‘bout finding out what y’r name’s worth, then yeah. Might stick around a little longer. 'Sides,” Her tone carried a touch of humor, but the undercurrent of sincerity wasn’t hard to catch.

"Y' ain't bad company."

Holding her gaze, Nox ruminated over her words for a brief moment before he spoke again. "Well now ye'v got me talking," he began, "I'm thinkin' of building a crew here. A real community, y'know? With me at the helm." Though Emris remained his focus, his expression softened in thought.

It was ambitious, sure, but every young man's dream had to start somewhere. Mictec's rejection hung heavy on his heart, but perhaps Emris could be the one to lift that weight.

Her next comment drew a familiar curve to his lips. It was a secret known only to himself that the forest was steeped in loneliness. If she was already willing to stick around, then Nox needn't trouble himself with persuading her further. "That's high praise," he revelled in the warmth of her honesty. "Yer not so bad yerself."

Emris' tail twitched while her lips turned into a faint grin. “Guess that makes sense, considerin’ y’ already talk like a captain.” There was a teasing lilt to her voice, but her eyes stayed on his, gauging the weight behind his words.

Ambition was a funny thing—either it carried you forward, or it buried you under it.

His compliment caught her off guard, and for a moment, she let out a soft, breathy laugh, her ears flicking back briefly from a mix of embarassment—and blush.

The faint curve of her lips lingered. “So, what’s the plan, Captain?”

Talk like a captain? Well, that was the highest praise of all! "Ye really think so?" A glimmer of surprise crossed his face, tail stirring. After a lifetime of living in his mother's shadow, it was nice to feel seen.

Nox latched onto the feeling like a claw in the flesh, watching as the woman's stony facade lifted for just a moment. It was a mixture of satisfaction and genuine affection that drew him to his feet then, oil-slick pelt brushing past her briefly before he trotted a few paces away.

"Already got a place picked out," he grinned. "The plan is to see if ye like it too." Tail waving an invitation, he waited to see if she'd follow.