Stone Circle Brightwood

Maybe @Steph?

Easy had split off from @Sunny when they left their meal, wanting to give her elder brother his space for the last leg of the journey. She could deal with hurt or sick wolves just fine, but when emotional vulnerability was displayed, the girl tended to nope right out of there.

Besides, they were there for two different reasons, and Easy was eager to see her old friend. They hadn't been able to meet up during her last visit, but she hoped Steph would be well enough to play this time around. Thus, as she approached the borders, she howled not for Valette, but for - "Steph! Steph, are you there?!"

Eeeee!!!!

Steph was bored out of her mind. It seemed like since she had healed and then had that collar removed off of her, she was full of energy, but not much to do with it. So, when the call rang out-for her!- she up and sprinting towards the borders before the echo left the air.

Her eyes shone with happiness and her tongue lolled out of her mouth as she ran to Easy. Steph figured her friend was in good health, so she didn't bother to hold back the physical greeting. Easy! she yelled out, just before she launched herself on the girl with a playful growl.

It wasn't long before a black streak came galumphing from within Easthollow's borders, heading straight for Easy with no intent of slowing. That was fine, though. The older girl crouched, readying herself to receive the weight of her friend.

"Steph!" the Morningsider rejoined, aiming happy nips at her friend's face and neck, growling playfully all the while. "I'm here to bother you endlessly," she declared, tail wagging as she aimed another playful bite at Steph's shoulder.

She gleefully returned the nips and licks to Easy, an excited whine coming from her throat. When her friend confessed she was here to "bother" her, Steph threw her head back. Thank God!! she exclaimed. She felt the bite on her shoulder and it spurred her on. 

She went for Easy's back leg, attempting to playfully gnaw on it quickly before jumping away. She expected Easy to come after her, and plopped down on the ground, giving her friend the advantage.

"Hey! Easy laughed, lunging for Steph's head to combat the feel of teeth on her ankle. But the girl was too swift, and Easy's jaws closed on empty air. Tail swishing, she bounded after her slightly smaller friend. Steph hadn't gone far, so she didn't feel the need to run.

With another growl, Easy descended on her prone playmate, aiming for Steph's ribcage. Hopefully, the other girl was ticklish!

She laughed as Easy came for her, and rolled onto her back. It may have been easy access to her belly, but Steph had her own moved. She was, in fact, ticklish, and couldn't hold back laughter as she felt teeth scrape against her soft underbelly. An open mouth went for Easy's ear as her back legs attempted to push her back. If she was successful, she would right herself and jog away. If she wasn't, she would twist her body in an attempt to get at Easy's own belly.

Easy probably had enough weight on her to retaliate against Steph's next move, but she wasn't aiming to dominate her friend and was dissuaded from her attack easily enough by the other girl's hind legs. She shook out her pelt, ridding herself of the weird feeling that things touching her ears always gave her before bounding off after Steph once more.

What Eash had over Steph in sheer mass, Steph more than made up for in speed. Perhaps it was that she was still tried from the trip, but Easy was fairly certain Steph would beat her in a race any old day. Luckily, it didn't seem as though either of them were playing for keeps, and Easy caught up quickly enough to shove her shoulder against Steph's, hoping to knock her off-balance.

Easy let up and Steph was able to job away from her. She wasn't interested in a game of chase- that would be too boring for her. She was happy to let her friend catch up, and she laughed as a shoulder was bumped into hers. Steph lost her balance for a moment, but was able to recover and retaliate in kind, her own shoulder going towards Easy's abdomen. Her tail wagged in happiness as attempted to gnaw on the side of Easy's neck.

Easy yelped in protect against the sharp shoulder that jabbed into her stomach. It didn't hurt, but Steph's lanky figure was a perfect javelin, and the sensation distracted her enough that it was a surprise when she felt teeth in the fur of her neck.

A toothy grin spread across her face as she found the solution - Easy skidded to a halt and reared back, spinning away from her friend to run back in the direction they'd come from.

Suddenly, Easy was spinning away and headed in the opposite direction. Steph didn't pay much attention to where the borders were, figuring Easy was welcome anyways, so it didn't matter. She was quick to spin around and follow Easy, galloping until she caught up with her. Steph's jaws went to her hocks, attempting to either trip her up a bit, or spur her to go faster.

Even though Steph didn't seem bothered, Easy was mindful of the borders and didn't stray too far from them before she turned to face her attacker. She slapped the ground with her forepaws and lunged at Steph, tail wagging as she attempted to fit the entirety of the other girl's head into her gaping maw.

Lavender didn't like this game very much, but Easy figured Steph could get out of the hold easily enough if she was similarly disinclined.

Easy turned into a play bow, and Steph's eyes alighted with excitement. She hadn't had this much fun in a while, and she was so happy Easy had paid her a surprise visit. She tried to go after Easy, but the next thing she knew, Easy's jaws were trying to swallow her head. 

Steph didn't scare, and even laughed a bit as she tried to twist her head out of her friend's mouth. She turned her body and laid down on the ground, figuring Easy would either have to let her go, or come down with her.

Easy was content with the pace of their play. It was not as frenzied or competitive as she tended to get with @Dauntless, and she felt she could be rougher with Steph than she was with Lavender.

When Steph went down, Easy relinquished her face but collapsed beside her, grizzling playfully in the back of her throat as she pushed her paws against Steph's chest. Her jaws went back to the other girl's face, intending to start a round of jaw wrestling now that they'd worked off some of their more explosive energy.

It had been far too long since Steph had roughhoused with someone, and it was long overdue. She was having so much fun with her friend that she was reluctant not to get up and continue the more physical play. But, she didn't want to push her luck. Plus, she was a little out of shape, and her breathing was getting labored.

So, when Easy prodded her with some jaw wrestling, Steph opened hers and joined in. Her front legs danced with Easy's for the upper hand, though in this position, with them both lying on their sides, there really wasn't one. After a few minutes, Steph conceded and laid her head down, panting from all the playing. She was still smiling, however, and hoped that Easy was having as much fun as she was. It was in that moment that she realized Easy had come alone. Where's Sunny and Dawn? she asked.

The play petered out in good time, leaving the two girls lying companionably in the snow. Easy's thoughts drifted to Clary - she wondered if it would have been twice as much fun with the other girl there as well - while Steph's mind wandered to Easy's siblings.

"Dawn is doing leader stuff at home with Daddy," said Easy with a little shrug, though inwardly, she wondered when Dawn and Steph had met. "And Sunny's somewhere around here. He, um... he came to say goodbye to Keoni. I guess he was in love with her or something." Daddy had only shared this with Easy by accident, and had then made her swear not to bother him about it, or else. Belatedly, she remembered that Keoni was Steph's Dawn - she must be terribly sad about the loss as well. "I'm sorry your sister died," said Easy, awkward but sincere. "I know it's not the same, but you can share my sisters, if you want. And you can visit any time! Daddy already said so. And we live a lot closer, now."

Surprise marred her features when Easy said that Sunny was in love with Keoni. He was? she asked to confirm. I didn't know that, she confessed. Did she love him? It must have been so hard on him to lose her, like it had been on her family. She gave her friend a soft smile at her condolences, Thank you. 

She giggled when Easy offered up her own sisters, You are like a sister to me, too, she said honestly. Her tail thumped the ground when she was invited to visit and was told they lived closer now. Where at? she asked, wondering if she should go. Maybe it would be good for her to get out and see a little bit of the world. She'd feel a lot better going somewhere where she knew some of the wolves.

No one had really talked about that - Easy assumed that she had, because that was how love worked, right? If you loved someone, didn't they also love you back? Why would you love them, otherwise? But she felt sorta weird answering that question, so she just gave a shrug to indicate that she wasn't the one to ask.

"I like that better than cousins," Easy agreed with a wag of her tail. "What even is a cousin?" This train of thought was abandoned, however, in favor of explaining to Steph the route she'd taken in order to reach Easthollow. "So basically just straight up from here," she finished with a thump of her tail.

Steph took Easy's shrug as she didn't know if Keoni loved Sunny back. It made Steph wonder more about it, though. If Keoni did love Sunny, wouldn't she have gone with them when they moved to Morningside? Or did she feel obligated to stay? Or! Were the feelings not returned? She figured it would be a difficult subject for Sunny to talk about, and since he was the only one who could tell her, she most likely would never know.

Her expression changed to concentration as she tried to think about what cousins were. I think it's just kids of other adults. Like, we're not technically siblings, even though I think of you like one, but we're not not related. Steph didn't know if that was right, but it's the best guess she could come up with. 

Her eyes followed the direction that Easy talked about. It sure didn't sound very far. Maybe Mom will let me visit soon, she hoped aloud. You think Grayday would be okay with that? She didn't want to go if it would cause hackled to be raised, but if Easy's Dad was okay with it, she definitely wanted to go soon.

Easy blinked at that. "We're not?" she asked curiously, head cocking to the side. "But isn't your mom my aunt? That's what I was told, anyway." But he hadn't said Valette was his sister - they were just friends. Huh.

"Daddy wouldn't mind," she said with certainty. "Our cousin Seelie comes to visit and he and Mom are always happy to see her. And even when strangers come to visit he sometimes lets them stay a while."

Steph was confusing herself, so she must have confused Easy, too. What I meant, is that cousins are like a step off from siblings. We're related, but not by the same parents. Did that make more sense? I think our parents are siblings, but their children are cousins, not siblings. She was pretty sure she had that right. You're family, she said firmly. That much I know for sure. The rest doesn't matter, she chuckled. 

Easy seemed sure that her father wouldn't mind her visiting, and even gave proof to solidify it. Alright, she agreed. I'll come visit soon. She wasn't sure exactly when, but she would keep her promise. She was pretty sure Valette would be okay with it, since she knew exactly where she was going, and had no plans to veer off course.

"I like that," said Easy with a wag of her tail, deciding that she and Steph could still be best friends, whether or not they were sisters, cousins, or married to each other's brothers. The best thing was that they were nice and close to each other, now - Steph was even going to come visit!

"Well, I'm dying of thirst," Easy said to her friend, shaking the grit from her pelt and looking around with bright, cheerful eyes. "Where's the best water around here?"