King Elk Forest Water to wine and the finest of sands

Here ya go, @Loa

Mawk had had a busy day. Two newcomers to the pack and the situation with Illecebra, along with other things, was getting to him and he felt like he needed a rest. A break, a break from the stress he was feeling. Being a wolfdog, controlling his instincts and emotions were hard as both sides of him tugged and pulled - oftentimes he felt like he would just snap. Believe me, he had snapped before. It had hurt those around him and it had made him fearful.... of himself. He was capable of much more than he imagined and he had left his troubles behind temporarily so he could have a rest, but the blizzard had decided when to strike and it was more than annoying. The thick snow was passed his ankles in many places and it was unbelievably irritating.

With a sigh, the wolfdog plopped onto his stomach under the shelter of a large tree. The straggly epsilon wasn't the greatest fan of the cold.

---

there was so much...space. for all of her life, the woman had been kept within walls, bars and fances, and now, there was not a single barrier in sight. there was nothing distincly familiar in sight, either; the only thing that was reminesient of her life was the chain collar that encircled her neck loosly. it was odd, the outside without the company of a human. and it seemed, the wild was cruel without food to fill her stomach and a warm kennel to return too. For a matter of weeks she had been alone, but it felt like much longer; her pelt had lost it's shine and her frame had thinned, and the cold was a menace she had yet to get used too.

and there was the lonliness. she was used to the constant noise of those in the kennel with her, the visits from the people (and the steady clink of kibble in her bowl) but here, alone in the wild, there was none. and when she finally caught sight of someone, it was with no hesitation that she let out a yip and approached the much larger male, the words wolf and feral obsolete from her vocabulary. her stance was open, her tail wagging in obvious happiness to see another.

---

Mawk was about to rest his golden-cream head on the ground when a yip sounded from close by and the wolfdog's head shot up like a deers. He froze when he saw a dog (and it was unmistakably a dog) approach him. Mawk stared at her in obvious surpirse. How had a dog survived weather this cold? Any ordinary wolf would have growled and perhaps attacted this lonely dog, but Mawk didn't have either the heart to do such a thing. Besides, he was part dog himself. Instead he stood up (he was tall and uncomfortably felt like he was towering over the dog) and tilted his head, though gave a wag of his tail in greeting. This may have looked funny, though, since his tail was curled like a Malamute's. But anyway, the dog wasn't doing any harm, right?

"Who might you be, then? Whas' a doggo like you doin' out in the Teekon?" he barked, curious. His country accent was, as usual, there, but it had still faded compared to when he had first arrived. Though, that didn't matter right now. Mawk wanted to know what was going on. Had the dog somehow got off it's leash somehow?

"Is that what this place is called? Teekon?"
Sounded a little odd, she decidded, but at least it was a name. She sized up the other dog, who's tail, she noted, curled up over his back as her's did. She watched him a moment, then in response to his question, answered simply, "They left the gate open" As if that would make any sort of sense, though as she had no idea of the existence of wolves, she thought it out to. The other towered over her; she noted with a little jealousy, though it hardly bothered her. "What are you doing here? Did you escape, too?" She questioned boldly, peering at him. Maybe he was one of those street dogs, but they, as their name entailed, lived on the street, and there were hardly any streets here. 

Mawk raised his brow with even more curiousity. She was in the Teekon, but she didn't know where or what that was? And she spoke of man, too? "Oh, you'ra domestic dog." he stated, with a flick of his ear. It had been a while since the wolfdog had spoken with a pure dog and it was still... odd. "Name's Mawk. I'ma wolfdog - so, ya know, part wolf. I was born with man, but I left once I was able to."

That's if this dog knew what a wolf was, since many didn't.

---

A domestic dog? "I'm a show dog." she clarified with a flick of her ear. She wasn't overtly proud, but in this fact, she was. Plus, she was a pretty darn good one, judging by her owner's constant praise. Of course, she hadn't seen her in a long while, and though she hated to admit it, she kind of missed the silly human. He introducied himself as Mawk, and after a moment she introduced herself in turn. "I'm Loa."

He furthered his greeting that he was a wolfdog. Her brow furrowed, and she glanced to him with a tilt of her head, chain links jingling at the abrupt movement. "And what, exactly, is a wolf?" So he had escaped too, and she wondered if others who had ended up in this Teekon place, too.

---

Mawk inwardly rolled his eyes, but gave her a polite smile. "Wow, really?" He said, though in truth he wasn't the faintest bit interested. It didn't matter to him, after all. "Loa's a nice name," He added once she introduced herself. Mawk, being the unsocial thing he was, simply wasn't a great talker, though he did try. But, when the dog asked what a wolf was, Mawk silently groaned. Explaining what a wolf was was a heck of a difficult thing to do. "Err, a wolf is like a giant dog, but really strong and powerful. They're sometimes hunted by man, but sometimes the wolves... erm.. kill 'em instead. You'll meeta load around here. I myself am part of a pack a wolves." He attempted, giving again a polite smile. If this dog was to survive in the Teekon then she would need to know about the dangers. And believe me, there were many. Even wolves, who might kill a dog on sight. Oftentimes Mawk had been mistake for a pure dog, though once they got a hold of his scent they realised otherwise.

---

what the hell. so a wolf, according to this one, was a super-dog that got killed by humans, and often, just by each other? And, they were everywhere. Simply phenominal. "They live in the woods? Permanently?" she questioned, brow furrowed and gaze slightly incredeblous. "Are they especially dangerous, these wolves? Are you especially dangerous?" she questioned further, slightly unerved by super-dogs inhabitting these lands. But it was certainly...exciting. And exciting was a lot better then the mundane life with her silly human. Though, there was only so far exciting went before it crossed the line into terrifying.

---

Mawk just nodded. "There are many packs around here. I am from the Silver Creek pack." They were a small group but all fairly close - at least in Mawk's mind, anyway. "Packs 're good 'cause they keep you safe and help you, but ya have to work for it. I'm workin' on becoming a mercenary and a Scout." He explained, his face brightening slightly as he spoke of his current home. He had friends there, too. 

He chuckled slightly at the dogs next question, and gave another flick of his tail. "Some wolves are and some are not, I'm not."

"At least, not when I'm ina good mood."

---

she was learning a great many things, and quickly. wolves lived in packs, groups, and were sometimes dangerous, sometimes not. it did make sense for them to live in groups, for surviving here alone seemed daunting...even though she was determined to do exactly that. Though, on second though...perhaps she ought to try and join one of these packs. Mawk was dog-ish, he claimed, and he had joined one, had he not? She said none of this to him however, instead glancing at him sideways when he uttered his last comment. "Well, Mawk, what's the best way not to get killed here, then?" For she didn't particularily want to be killed by a wolf when she had just gotten here, and Mawk was her sole source of information regarding the creatures at the moment.

---

Mawk thought for a moment, then replied, "Skills. Fighting skills, mainly. If you get attacked you have to know how to defend yourself. Speed can help, as well as strength, and intelligence. I know some wolves that have barely any strength but can easily outsmart their opponent." He said, with a grin slowly appearing on his muzzle. Now, since Mawk himself was trying to become a mercenary, this was a good opportunity to put his work into practice, even though he was still training himself. "If you want, I can try and teach you a few things?" He offered.

---

Fighting. That was his answer, though what chance she would have against a wolf would be slim. Mawk towered over her already, and he wasn't even a full wolf. Much as she now longed to meet one of these full-blood wild wolves, she ought to be prepared in case it turned out to be one of the dangerous ones. As he said, she'd likely have to rely on her wits, for if Mawk decided to attack her right now she hardly thought that she would last more than a few seconds. 

"Okay. If it'll help me survive, I can hardly say no, can I?" she answered with a grin, ready for this challenge that had presented itself quite suddenly. Learn to fight, and perhaps she would be better off. Finding food would be another optimal idea, but a lucky catch earlier had her stomach full and that thought was not currently on her mind. "Where do we start, then?"

---

Yay, another Mercenary thread for Mr.Potato!

Mawk continued to grin as she accepted his challenge. "Alrighty then. The best place ta begin is sizing up ya opponent, tryna spot any weaknesses they 'ave that you may be able to use to your advantage. Often wolves will circle one another when they're doin' this." He began, moving his body so that he was standing a little further away, and he nodded to her before beginning to circle her. "Now, I won't bite, and I'll let you try and land a blow on me first. Just give it a go and we'll see what ya got. He barked, motioning with his tail for her to go when she was ready.