Hideaway Strath Rad dudeski.

Set 6/9.

The sun was shining. The birds were chirping (probably, she wouldn't know). A pleasant breeze sifted through their hideaway. Towhee felt a little better today. This was an adventure, right? If it didn't feel that way for her, she could try to view this whole thing through @Fig's and @Fennec's eyes, although on second thought, maybe not Fen's...

But then she stumbled across a feather while marking the borders and she got so choked up about X that she had to lean against a tree, forehead sinking against the rough bark with an inaudible thunk as she closed her eyes and tried not to succumb to another panic attack. She didn't even know if that's what they even were, they were more like crippling sadness attacks.

She collected herself eventually and resumed her duties. When Towhee's mind inevitably wandered to X and she thought of that fateful day, she tried to remember the way the hawk had at least ripped Tegan's ear in half on her way out.

He had spotted her a mile away thanks in no small part to the orange that shocked across her coat, and been intrigued. Her curious coat aside, it had been far too long since Dingo had pillaged the depths of any woman, and that idling lust is what kept him close on her trail. He was not subtle; Dingo kept trying to grab her attention with pick-up lines that devolved with each effort, yet she was doing a fine job of ignoring him.

Playin' hard to get I see, he surmised from behind her a ways, presuming that his shouted cat-calls were being deflected on purpose and not because the object of his current fixation was deaf. He decided to play it cool, ignore her too - maybe that was the way to charm this oddity. Dingo thusly emerged from the bushes and went on to stride pretty close to where Towhee was having a moment but feigned disinterest as he moseyed.

Towhee liked to think she was on top of her game, but between her mild panic attack, her errant thoughts and her relative lack of familiarity with the lay of the land, she wasn't. It took her a solid few minutes to notice the straggler. When she finally did, she came up short on what to do too. The seasoned mercenary stood there like an idiot, wondering if she should chase him away or try to recruit him.

He didn't appear threatening, at least. His coat reminded her of Niamh or the late Wildfire, sort of a mix of the two. He was in good shape as far as she could tell, so physically he was a good candidate for recruitment. But there was a strange look on his face that Towhee didn't quite like. She sensed he was up to something.

"Can I help you?" she asked, voice brusque like usual, still totally oblivious to his attempts to catch her attention prior.

He kept his head down, sniffing at the soil as if he was trailing something other than the elusive vagoose, and only tilted his ears her way when she spoke (with some kind of accent if he wasn't mistaken, or an impediment, but oh well her mouth could be put to other uses—) and then turned to glance her way as if -- oh! Hello there! Fancy seeing you here, damsel-in-distress. She looked flustered and Dingo attributed it to his dashing good looks, unaware that she'd been having a panic attack against the tree just moments prior.

Oh, my bad, he drawled as he came to a stop, and looked around as if lost. I was trying to track some breakfast -- or lunch, I guess, I dunno. Food. What're you doing over there? His brow lifts and he cranes his neck to try and get a better look at the trees, but saw nothing of importance. He didn't have many scruples, this Dingo - he'd put his dick in crazy if it meant having a good time. You could help me hunt, I'll divide the spoils with you.

She felt a prickle of heat along her back, her first inklings of territoriality over the grounds. Ignoring his invitation a moment, Towhee answered his first question. "I'm patrolling. My brother and I are working on claiming this place, starting our own pack." Saying those words to a total stranger for the first time made her heart beat a little faster. Her head straightened a bit and her tail ticked upward a few notches.

"It's early days," she admitted in the next breath, "and we're actually on the market for eligible recruits. Maybe we could hunt together and if you don't suck, you could join us." There was a reason Towhee had never claimed an ambassador's title, despite all her experiences dealing with joiners.

Dingo had been around the block a few times and he knew how difficult it could be for wolves to form their little family bands; he was in need of some stability himself, though he would never admit it, and as the woman explained her situation he found himself mentally inserting himself to those plants. By plants I mean to write plans but I guess Dingo was thinking pants, sorry. By admitting that she was looking for recruits, she opened herself up to Dingo as a potential target - once the pack was formed he'd be set for life! Maybe he could even charm the girl in to bed with him by showing off his (albeit limited) skills. Impress her, or something.

I could be a recruit - he cut in with a smile, fluffing himself a little bit and standing proudly - though not enough to contest that little raise of her own chin - C'mon, I've been wandering around this place for a while and I know where we can find some food. Do you like fish? There's a lake not far -- or if red meat is your thing I can show you where the deer hide. He wasn't actually that mindful of his surroundings but Dingo would stow his usual modus operandi (the sex) and put his nose to use chasing a potential future, seeing as that would make life easier for him later down the line.

What's the plan? He added, wanting her to feel in control (for now).

Despite her terrible sales pitch, he seemed on-board with it. A little taken aback by her own success, Towhee took a moment to process the next few sentences out of his mouth. She didn't have much of a preference when it came to food, though his mention of fish made her curious. And she didn't think it was a good idea to go after a deer with just the two of them.

"What color is fish meat?" she wondered. Had Towhee ever had fish? She couldn't remember, even having lived by a lakeside of some sort all her life. "If not red?" In any case, this was an adventure and here was an opportunity to learn a new skill. "I guess I'll find out for myself." She flung out a foreleg in the lead the way gesture. "You got a name?"

She relented — looking a bit stunned at first, which Dingo took as a compliment towards his own skills as a charmer and a wordsmith. Her question made him smirk. I'll show you, he replied instead of giving away the answer. It wasn't important. But then she asked for his name and he paused in his stride to bow with a little flourish: I'm Dingo, m'lady, what may I call you?

The woman was motioning for him to continue so he hastened to lead the way, prancing along without meaning to; he was a petite creature for a man, which was probably one of the reasons he tried so hard to over-compensate. Hopefully she liked watching him as much as he liked watching all the ladies he'd stalked. It wouldn't be long before he'd backtracked to the weir, or at least a small pond in the vicinity, and once there they could try to fish.

"M'lady?" she echoed, quirking a brow. "Dude, no. Call me Towhee or Tow. Call me anything but 'lady.'" Having set that record straight, she lapsed into silence, trailing along at his tawny hip as he led the way toward water. She wasn't very hungry, though if they did manage to catch some fish, she would take her half back to the kids.

He chuffed at her discomfort and made no move to correct himself in the moment, but would make a note of things in the future. Evidently this was one butch woman; he could get behind that, gender equality or whatever. Towhee was a curious name but no stranger than his own - again, no comment.

Well then Towhee, its just this way -- He was fibbing, and honestly had no idea where the pond might be --- until he nearly stepped in its shallows. He splashed a bit through pond scum and recoiled as if wounded, surprised that he had found it so fast. Green slime slicked his orange paws - ew. Tadaaa! Was it big enough for fish? Hopefully yes.

Rather abruptly, they not only arrived at a pond of sorts, Dingo inserted himself in its shallows. Towhee herself stopped short, though she looked down at the water swirling around his heels. He lifted a paw and it was covered in slimy green goo: algae.

"Aren't you probably scaring off all the fish?" she wondered, looking up at his face. She'd missed his bravado, though a small snort escaped her at the expression on his face.

Her observation roused a nervous chuckle from him. Yeah I suppose so, but he wasn't looking at her so she probably wouldn't catch his exasperation. They were not off to the best start with this whole food dealio and Dingo hoped it would not impede his chances of joining whatever pack she was trying to form. He backed away from the pond with a shake of each paw, then settled to his haunches.

From where he sat he had a pretty good view of Towhee, but looked beyond her, watching as the pond water settled. I have a feelin' that pond is too small for fish. But he refused to be defeated! As he observed the water, the algae rich surface trembled and Dingo looked more intensely at the pond. Oh! Frogs! The other white meat.

She took a step back as he retreated from the water, taking a seat nearby. Towhee's eyes remained fixed on him, careful to catch anything he said. When he spoke of frogs, she quirked an eyebrow. Frogs didn't sound appetizing. And she still wanted to know what color fish were on the inside, if venison was red and frog meat was white.

But... "Why don't we just go after something more standard, a rabbit or something?" she proposed. "And by we, I mean you. I'm not exactly wowed by your skills so far, now's your time to prove yourself."

Well, shit. Clearly his ineptitude was showing, and Dingo couldn't have that. When Towhee suggested that he fetch some food he almost bristled. The man typically overpowered the women he was with and didn't take kindly to being bossed around - but the way she effortlessly commanded him around was a little different. He needed something out of her beyond the usual dip-and-run shtick Dingo relied on. If he was going to get himself a nice and cushy home, he'd have to pull his own weight for once.

Okay, he agreed, Yeah, sure, rabbit. I'll just scoot along and -- I'll find one and -- he was on his feet and roaming around like a, well, dingo, seeking some scraps, eager to find some kind of trail. When he did inevitably find some whiff of rabbit his ears perked, and he bolted off through the green. Dingo was so focused on the task already - but called uselessly over his shoulder, BEE ARR BEE!

She intended to accompany him, perhaps even give him a hand, and she did trail after him at first. But when Dingo lunged (wordlessly, as far as she knew) off into the trees, Towhee didn't attempt to go after him. Leaving him to his solo hunt, she folded her haunches and sat, enjoying the June breeze that whispered down from the mountains and gave the dale a respite from the late spring humidity.

While she waited, she found herself pondering what she thought of Dingo so far. He seemed pretty easygoing and he was pretty nice to look at, though the idea of finding a mate or even a casual hookup was the furthest thing from her mind. Aside from her rabid heat, she had no designs on such notions. Besides, she was already committed to her family, even if it wasn't cookie cutter.

She could see a potential friendship there though, in time. There were some holes in Towhee's heart, to be sure, shaped like specific wolves; those would never be properly filled. But she was trying to be open to the idea of new connections. Coming here was, after all, about turning over a new leaf of sorts.

He was gone for a little bit longer than intended. It was harder than he thought to track down a stupid little fluffy bunny, but he found a trail eventually and followed it straight to a warren; though he was small and a bit of a spitfire, he wasn't tiny enough to wedge his head in to the burrow he found and had to resort to digging, made all the more nasty because of the green slime that had dried to his paws. It was a muddy affair; however, he did manage to get to the central hub with a little bit of elbow grease.

The shrieking of tiny lapine voices as he sliced them to pieces with his teeth, well, that was a chorus he didn't need to hear ever again. Thankfully his companion would not have noticed it - though he was still oblivious to Towhee's broken ears. Once the din of chaos concluded, Dingo took a second to breathe and then picked a few of the bodies to hastily munch, crunch, and consume for himself. He then gathered what remained of the dozen-or-so newborns and hoofed it back to where he'd left Towhee waiting.

Well, mostly. He overshot by about nine feet and emerged from a different angle of the forest, and his mouth was full so he couldn't shout out to her. Dingo approached with all the grace of a flopping fish — trying to make sure she was aware of his approach even if she couldn't see him — and then threw the tiny, bloody bodies at the dirt by her feet, with an obnoxious, BLEHHHH — there ya go!

It was actually kind of crazy, the more she thought about it. How different she was today than a year ago, two years ago. Once upon a time, she would have curled her lip at the mere thought of befriending an outsider. Family had been the only thing worth merit back then. Of course, Towhee still felt loyal to her family, this recent splintering aside, but somewhere along the line, she'd definitely become more flexible about accepting those who weren't kin. To be fair, she still held those of her blood in higher regard than everyone else.

Dingo's return scattered her thoughts, even as he scattered a litter of tiny rabbit corpses at her feet. The sight was rather entertaining, actually, and Towhee's tail thumped against the forest floor. Although Fig and Fen could handle standard sized rabbits, at least in part, these carcasses were perfectly suited for a child's supper. She imagined their meat would be tenderer too, tastier. This was a good catch.

"Your fishing demonstration was pretty underwhelming but you've managed to somehow overwhelm me with the sheer number of dead baby bunnies," Towhee observed, "so I guess you'd say I'm just whelmed." She didn't quite laugh, though there was a small twitch of her lips and an impish gleam in her orange eyes. "You're in, if you want to be. Do you actually want to be?"

He waited in antici --




--pation for something other than a glorious finish, if you know what I mean, and was positively floored when Towhee decided she liked what he offered. That was a nice stroke to his ego; the thumping of her tail cause his ears to twist attentively to listen to the beat, and in his head Dingo imagined that it wouldn't be that far off the sound of the two of them bumpin' uglies. For now that's what he'd satisfy himself with: his imagination. At least for a little while, as he got nice and fat off of the pack's stores.

I guess whelmed is better than nothin', he commented through his panting, and licked some of the blood off of his face before it could fully dry. She seemed to do a double-take and go forth to get confirmation about his intentions. He grinned, but it was bloody and pretty gross. Yes please ma'am, er, Towhee, boss. She didn't like being called lady so she'd probably like ma'am even less, tsk tsk, he should know better. Where are we takin' these furballs? He queried hastily as a way to move the conversation along before she could get pissed.

I figure we can fade here and you can assume he met 'em behind the scenes, if that's coo' with everyone?

"'Ma'am' is almost worse than 'lady,'" Towhee replied dryly. She didn't mind "boss" so much but she hadn't actually discussed her rank with Phox yet. She jotted that down on the to-do list in her head, then said, "Just call me Towhee."

It kind of surprised her that he would randomly appear here, then end up joining forces. But she'd put him through the paces and he'd delivered. Now they would just see if he stuck around, pitch in and all that. He didn't seem all that serious, though only time would tell if it was a good fit.

She hesitated a little at the thought of bringing a nearly total stranger around Fig and Fen, though Towhee knew she should take him to meet Phox. "You should meet my brother and the kids," she replied. "Grab your loot and I'll take you to them," she said, suddenly realizing the subject of her deafness had never come up. She wondered how long it would take him to realize, if nobody told him.

With that thought in mind, she turned and led him to the rendezvous site to meet @Phox, @Fig and @Fennec.

I'm good with that!

Yep, as he expected, she hated titles. Maybe not-so-much boss, but she did seem to pause when he said it. Was she the Alpha of her merry little band? Maybe, maybe not. But there were kids so he had to presume she'd carried a litter recently - although she didn't look hefty enough - and that made him mentally recoil. Vagoose? Positive. Kids? Nuh-uh, noooope, no-thank-you, he ain't up for being a daddy to anyone unless they were old enough for vitamin D.

But her brother --- hold up, were they her kids or her brother's? The man squints for a second but before he can ask any questions, he is given the order to grab those fluffy bodies and follow along, so he does that. The rabbit carcasses are small and he managed to stuff them in his gob despite some awkwardness; kind of like a mother gator with all her babies tucked between her teeth - except, he looked more like he was carrying a horde of fuzzy little tennis balls. Not so appealing.

Hrrkrrr, lerrs grrr! His voice vibrated through the balls in his mouth; hover for translation or not because that is a  f a  d   e!