Alpine Lake you're following a lead that came from a bird.

Generally speaking, Figment was a homebody. He had never seen much allure in the world outside of his pack borders before. It wasn't that he was afraid of the wilderness. He was very much confident in his own abilities to take care of himself (not that he'd ever tested them). It was simply that everything he'd ever wanted was within his territory borders, right along with everyone he'd ever loved.

But, that was generally speaking. There were exceptions to be made--exceptions he seemed to be making more and more recently. He dearly loved his family, but he still felt as though he didn't quite belong with the Firebirds. It didn't make any sense to him, but not understanding didn't make it any less true. Being outside of the borders was strangely comfrting. He could breathe out here. He could think out here.

Figment had gone further than he'd intended in his aimless wandering. When he stopped, it was because a river cut across his path, blocking his way. There was no crossing it--at least not here. The water was running too swiftly. He could hear the sound of what he thought might be a waterfall somewhere in the distance, which would explain the speed of the rapids. Fig took a breath and looked upstream, thinking he might head that way to see if he was right about the falls. He wasn't ready to go home yet and there didn't seem to be much else for him to do.

Overall, Maia had been having a pretty good time lately.  Minus the whole food thing everything was right as rain.  Just stories, hunting, exploring, and ignoring any sort of fighting training.  Great!

She knew she should probably give in and attend Towhee's lessons at some point, but remembering fighting the Moonspear wolves just made her feel terrible.  She hated it.  Maia had been in so few actual fights in her life, she had forgotten, and the stories were nothing like reality.

Today was exploring.  She had liked this lake before leaving and she still did.  Seemed, though, like she wasn't the only one with this idea.  Hey!! she called out to the boy whose name she didn't exactly know.  He was a packmate, though! So probably alright.  Probably.

Figment hadn't taken more than two steps before he heard someone calling to him. At least, he assumed the Hey!! was directed at him--an assumption that was confirmed the moment he turned around and saw the stranger heading his way. He didn't know too many of his packmates seeing as he was in his sad, mopey, self-pitying teenager phase. He didn't recognize this one by sight, but he caught her scent as she came near. That he did recognize from all of his trips around the borders. Apparently this was who it belonged to.

He knew he should be friendly, so he made his tail wag softly and his face smile faintly. He tried to say hello, but nothing really came. So, he merely nodded his head at her and watched her, his eyes curious.

He didn't really reply, which made her look around awkwardly.  Was he busy or something?  Umm, Sorry.  I'm just surprised to see someone from home here!  Which is.... pretty silly, yeah, since it's so close.  she shrugged, then gave a dismissive smile.  This was going great.

I'm Maia?  I mean, I know I'm Maia.  But what's your name?  If a wolf could face palm, she'd be doing it.  These last few weeks it was like she'd never met a new wolf in her life.  What was wrong with her?

He noted quickly that he had made her uncomfortable with his lack of verbal acknowledgement. His ears slipped back with guilt, but he suppressed it and set his intention to doing better. He shook his head and offered a slightly stronger smile than before, though he was quiet as he listened to her speak--or maybe ramble was the better word? Gosh, he'd really flubbed this.

"Figment," he answered, a genuine smile finally lighting his face as he chuckled over the way she'd introduced herself. He relaxed in that moment, allowing his troubles to slip to the back of his mind for the time being. "You can call me Fig, though. Most people do," he added.

"D'you know this area?" he asked, trying to drive conversation forward, "I've never been. Is there a waterfall nearby? The flow of the river here seems to suggest there is. I was going to go upstream and search for it. Thought it might be cool." He gave a non-committal shrug as though he didn't care one way or the other.

Fig?  I like it, short and sweet.  She cracked a grin at her own little (dumb) joke, relaxing as he laughed a bit over her ridiculous introduction. So he was nice, cool!

Maybe?  I mean, I feel like I've been here, but I always feel like I've been a lot of places and eventually they all look the same.  She confessed, then added with a little laugh.  I get lost a lot.

Wait, she... didn't want him to think that she was totally incompetent.  A lot for a scout, that is.  But practice makes perfect!! she backpedalled, then dropped that.  A waterfall would be pretty cool! What about the river flow makes you think that?  She didn't have an inch of naturalist ability to her, so definitely had never considered that you could find a waterfall via river tells.

Fig shrugged humbly at her comment, smiling. He might've made a that's me! joke, except he wasn't exactly short and he'd never really considered himself to be sweet (though he totally is).

He glanced upstream again thoughtfully as she replied, his tail wagging a bit to show his amusement at her confession. Fig didn't judge her for her navigational skills (or lack thereof). He certainly didn't have very much of his own to go off of. "It's moving quickly," he answered, turning his gaze down at the water that rushed by, "Faster than it was a mile or so that way. I think I can hear it too."

He paused, lifting his chin to try and listen. They weren't quite near enough for him to be too confident in his ascertion, so he shrugged once again and looked at his packmate. "Wanna go check it out?" he asked hopefully.

Um, yeah!!  Waterfalls are way interesting.  If it's a little one you can even ride it down.  Maybe meet the river spirit who lives there, she replied with a smile.  She'd slid down a few for fun here and there, though the optimal rock and water layout was hard to find.  They were at least pretty if nothing else.

Who taught you that trick? Watchin the water and all.  It's good.  It would have never occurred to her to check the current's speed to find a fall, though now it seemed pretty obvious!

Part of him had hoped she would say no. He hadn't really come out of his melancholy enough for this much socializing, in spite of the invitation he'd given. Of course, she didn't reject him though. He hadn't really expected her to. After all, waterfalls were way interesting. He couldn't fault her for wanting to check it out.

So, Fig took a deep breath and put on a smile. His troubles could wait for another day. He quirked a brow, holding back his opinion of the idea of riding down even the littlest of waterfalls. "No one really taught me," he commented as he began to walk, leading the way upstream, "I just... I dunno, I just noticed it at some point." He really couldn't explain it any better than that.

"What was that you said before," he asked then, peering curiously over at her, "About a river spirit?"

Huh.  That's pretty cool.  She wasn't that attentive, and now she wondered how many things others had 'just noticed' that she just walked by.  She made a mental note to 'notice more', but it was one she'd forget as soon as he switched to one of her favorite subjects.  Trying to tell herself to 'notice more' would have been about as useful as telling herself to 'just know the way' to places.  AKA, not at all useful.

Well, everyone knows that the bottom of waterfalls is a favorite spot for river spirits to live.  They don't mind visitors, so long as you are polite and tell good jokes.  She answered, fully serious.  You tell good jokes, yeah?

Fig was filled with curiosity over what she said. He'd grown up hearing stories about the stars, but not so many about other things. Spirits were something foreign to him, so naturally they took his attention. He didn't know that he really believed in such things, but it was interesting.

"Jokes?" he repeated thoughtfully, "I'm... no." Fig smiled. He didn't think he even knew any jokes. "I am very polite, though," he added honestly.

Maia shook her head.  Well that won't do it.  Not for a sprite.  They only like rude wolves and jokes, because if you can't make them laugh, then they tend to play pranks on you to get a laugh anyway.  And I don't know if you can imagine some pranks a water spirit would play, but they don't tend to be much fun! Unless you are a fish...  She giggled at her own joke.

I think I can manage to get a laugh if need be! So we should be fine.  Obviously she would be invaluable to this waterfall finding mission, despite not being able to locate the thing herself like he could.  She waited, wondering if he'd ask more questions about sprites or lead the way.  Either one seemed equally as fine... come to think of it, did she have any good sprite stories?

Well, if not, maybe it was time she thought one up.

It seemed his inability to tell good jokes would be a disadvantage. He didn't really believe they were going to be spending time with any spirits, so he didn't mind too much. Besides, as he laughed softly in response to Maia's commentary, he didn't think they would be in too much trouble anyway.

"Yeah, I don't know much about them but I feel like I might be okay with you on my team," he answered with a wag of his tail, artfully navigating the terrain as it grew rockier, more fractured from what had likely been decades of pressure from the swiftly flowing river. "If worse comes to worse, I'll find a stick to trip over," he added with a smile, then paused, "I hope I won't have to fall into the river, though. D'you think they'd help me back out if I did it to make them happy?"

I mean, maybe!  Or they'd drown you, but hopefully we won't have to even chance it.  She was pretty good at telling jokes and entertaining, after all.  Her jokes might not be as good as her stories, but she made him laugh, so it was a good start!

Woah, she said softly, slowing down as the way got rougher. She could manage alright, but she was sizeable wolf and didn't have the best of balance to her.  Figment seemed to have a little easier time with it.  Now this is the perfect place for an ambush, she said, smiling as she looked around.  It was so easy to feel transported in places like these.

Maia seemed pretty comfortable voicing the idea that Fig might get himself drowned by the sprites. He could've been bothered, but he'd been quick to pick up an understanding of her sense of humor, so he simply shot her a smile. He might not be the overly imaginitive jester himself, but he could appreciate those qualities in others.

Fig was content to continue pressing forward, especially since he was starting to see something in the distance that looked like the falls they were looking for, but he slowed at Maia's soft exclamation. He turned to look back at her, canting his head a little and then looking around. An ambush? He looked thoughtfully at their surroundings for a moment before giving a nod. "That's true," he commented nonchalantly, sending a smile her way, "Let me know if you get grabbed. I think I see the falls ahead." Maybe he was a bit of a jester. Just a small one though. He turned back and started forward again.

She did laugh, both at the joke and out of surprise hearing it.  It came out louder than she wanted (as usual), so a moment later she stifled it, grinning.

Will do, Captain.  She said, giving him the title as he navigated.  Hey, and I guess that makes me the Skipper on this journey.  She added, delighted.  Every trip was a game to her, some new adventure to be turned into an escapade.  

The falls were gorgeous.  She stopped as they reached them, staring down at the water as it cascaded over the rocks. Wow.....

Fig smiled, quite pleased with himself that he'd successfully made her laugh. He wanted to follow it up by making her laugh more, but he knew his limits. Nothing clever came to his mind at her reply, so he merely glanced back at her and gave a nod of her acceptance. Skipper was a good name for her--he'd have to remember to call her that sometime.

"Yeah..." was all he could say for a minute or so when they finally reached the falls. It was a beautiful sight. He'd always had an appreciation for things like this, though it wasn't so typical of him to wander away from home in order to see them. He took in a deep breath to fill his lungs with the scent of water, rock, breeze and earth. He held it for a moment, analyzing it, committing it to memory. Then, finally, he looked over at Maia and quirked a brow. "So.. where are your friends?" he asked, a smile lifting the corner of his lips.

Well, at the bottom, of course, she answered, smiling back.  Up here it'd be way too much work, living in the water.  Even for magical creatures like them.  They are lazy.  She was pulling all of this out of absolutely nowhere, but it made sense.  Who would want to fight that current all day?

So you only gotta worry if you go for a swim down there.  She looked again, and took a breath.  Her own was pure enjoyment... there was nothing analytical about her.  These were the types of places she lived for as she traveled, spots that looked like they were plucked straight from stories.  She almost could imagine a horde of nymphs rising from the spray and mist, wings sparkling, ready to pull them over for a laugh.

Maia, of course, had an answer. Fig's smiled broadened as she replied, though he resisted the urge to shake his head. He looked back towards the waterfall as she spoke, considering. He still didn't believe in sprites or mythical creatures of any kind, but he liked that she found a way to make excuses for them as though they were real. It made them that much more life like, though again--he knew they weren't.

"I'll have to remember that," he commented before taking a few steps forward, coming closer to the edge of the water. He angled himself to get a better view of the falls, wanted to see as much as he could. But he held back, not wanting to get so close he risked slipping and falling in. And maybe, a weeeeeeeee teensy bit of a maybe, not wanting to get nabbed by a nymph.

you wanna fade/close up here? I need to clear out some threads and make wolfing more manageable again while work eats me alive ;_;

wrapping because I'm AWFUL <3 but also this was a good place to fade LOL

Well, c'mon then!  Let's see if we can find a way down!  He might be content to peek over from the edge, but not her, oh no!  If there were nymphs to be met, she intended to seek them at their source... she had a few new jokes to test and they were the best of judges, as she'd so astutely made up only moments before.

She led him sideways, but likely it was Figment who found the path down (if one was to be had).  For all of her scouting so far, Maia had little luck at times finding what it was she was looking for.