Hushed Willows Exploring the "Dogtooth Caverns"

@Reverie @Reina @Everett @Minnow Anyone is welcome to join!

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Tuft had wanted to explore the Dogtooth Caverns ever since he’d heard about them. There was just something so exciting about exploring someplace new! So when Minnow had accepted his offer to delve into the new cave system, he couldn’t help but literally leap with joy.

“Let me just let everyone else know that we are heading over to the cave system.” He told Minnow. He knew that Reverie had wanted to explore the caves as well, so lifting his head up to the sky, he gave a loud bellowing howl. It was an oddly beautiful howl. In the howl, he let the other members of the pack and anyone near them know that they were welcome to join them and let them know where they were going. 

“Alright let’s go!” Tuft said, and started walking away.

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Let me know if you need anything changed, I made some assumptions that can definitely be amended!

He had been with Hearthwood for over a week now, and slowly, he warmed up to the idea of being in a pack again. The space was open, not too crowded, but not too empty, either. Not unlike Sweetharbour - but instead of ocean, mountains surrounded them. He wasn't sure which one he liked better, but there was something about living with water all around him that had made him feel... calm.

But Sweetharbour was gone. At least, the family who had made the Isle home, and these wolves would become his kinsmen now. So when a howl lit the air, he dropped the trail of the hare he'd been tracking and made his way towards the source - the man, Tuft, he'd only known in passing, and a woman he wasn't sure he'd ever met.

I'm in, if you wouldn't mind my company, Everett said to the duo, attention shifting between them both, I'm Everett, by the way, he offered, mostly to the woman, and then to both, I've been curious about the caves since I first saw them, but they seemed better explored with more company than one or two. Harder to get lost, if the tunnels led anywhere than the lake he had glimpsed by glancing in.

She followed him to wherever he led. Thankfully it was in the territory and her need to wander would be satisfied for the time being. He howled for others in his pack and another male showed up. She offered him a soft smile. “Hello, nice to meet you I’m Minnow.” The woman had never explored the caves before so she was interested to see them. “I’ve never been in these before.” Minnow didn’t even know they existed but she had been nothing but a pup last time she was in the territory.

@Reina We're in the cave now!

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When everyone that wanted to go to the cave showed up, Tuft put on his brave face and started walking over to the Dogtooth Caverns. He hadn’t met with Everett, the newest wolf welcomed to the pack. He trusted Reverie and Boone, so Tuft tried to be inviting and welcoming to Everett. The scent of Reina could be smelled off of Everett. Was Reina hanging out with this new guy? He honestly didn’t know how to feel that. “The next time that I see Reina, I’ll have to ask her about him.” Tuft thought to himself.

“Looks like we’re here!” Tuft said when they arrived at the entrance. The entrance wasn’t anything spectacular to look at. It was pretty much just a 10 ft. hole carved into the side of the mountain. Tuft stepped inside, amazed at what he saw before him. He had figured that it was going to be a tight space, the passageway only big enough for one or two wolves side by side. Instead, it immediately opened up into a vast cavern. All around the cavern there were huge pointy spires on the ground and on the ceiling. In the middle lay a gigantic lake, about the same size as the “Fisherman’s Keep” that was outside. All along the cavern walls were different entrances just waiting to be explored!

While Tuft had stood there gawking at the surrounding area, he began to hear a distant melodic howl echoing off the walls. He couldn't make out the words that were being sung, but he walked over to where the song originated from, finding the red woman, Reina, laying down watching the lake. Tuft yelled out “Reina? Is that you? What are you doing here?”.

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As soon as she had laid her head on her paws, a voice broke through the silence. The echoes of her singing must have drawn them her way. The owner of the voice came into view as she peered over the rock’s edge.

And her cheeks instantly reddened. She hadn’t seen or spoken to Tuft since the Healer and her entourage arrived; not only that, but she had also let loose her plans that she may leave the pack for some time to learn the art of healing. She could remember the way Tuft looked at her and the sadness she had felt then returned anew.

“Oh, Tuft! H-hi, I’m sorry, I didn’t know anyone else was here! I assume you heard me…I’m so embarrassed!” A nervous giggle bubbled up in her throat. She did not sing in front of others, only the birds of home knew her songs.

She will acknowledge the others after they post!

When they arrived she was astounded by how big the cave actually was and wondered how she hadn’t found this as a pup but she wasn’t in the territory for very long before everything had happened. 

She walked inside and heard tuft call out to the woman who was already in there. She remembered her briefly from one of kukutux’s lessons.

It seemed at least two of them would be new to this excursion; Minnow confessed like ignorance to the caves, leaving only Tuft as their guide, provided his silence on the matter only meant he had knowledge of their depths, or at least had faced their first storey before.

As it was, Everett was sure they could handle the caverns well enough, even if Tuft hadn't been inside them, either. Reina had spoken well of the caves, and if she found solace in them, he reckoned there wasn't much to fear and no real way to get lost, so long as they were careful.

... he was overthinking things again, wasn't here?

They ducked into the caves together, and most certainly, he was. Whatever he thought the caverns would be vanished in a blink as sunlight shafted through from the entrance to cast the giant bunker in a dusty glow. Water pooled at the base of the cavern, rocks jutting up and around and above, just like the fangs of its namesake.

It's incredible, he hushed, How did this even get -- Tuft? he had been speaking to empty air; the man departed without a word,  leaving he and Minnow gawking - but it was only a second before he heard the voice the man must have been following. Obscured words of an echoed song. Everett have Minnow a quick glance to make sure they were of the same mind, and he followed with her down and after their friend's departing trail.

He had guessed the voice before he'd seen her. Now, he ember fur pulled into sight, perched high upon a taller rock. Bashful.  Embarrassed. Everett offered a quick smile to reassure her, don't worry, Reina. We were far enough away I think the stalagmites and stalagtites were still your only audience, so your song is safe with them. Though he was a little jealous they didn't get to hear it, too. If, ah... you'd like to keep singing, we can always leave and come back later. Or perhaps, if you wish, you could join us, of course - you know, we'd love to have you, we're exploring the cavern, and the more is always the merrier. But we'd understand,  too, if you had other plans...

Another quick smile, a quick glance at the ground and back again. Overthinking and rambling, too! He was not off to a great start today.

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Tuft looked at Reina with a look of surprise. "What do you mean? That was beautiful!"

He walked over and laid down next to her to see the lake from her perspective. "Have you ever been to this place before? It's incredible!" Tuft said, voice echoing off the cavern walls. 

For a moment he was afraid of what Reina would think of Minnow and him. He hadn't yet told her that he fell in love with Minnow, but now was not the time for such things. 

"Everett, Minnow and I are going to check out the rest of the cave to see if there's anything to report back to Reverie. Wanna come with?"

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She smiled, a blush staining her cheeks, as she watched Tuft bound up next to her. Having not spoken to him since their last encounter, his nearness made her nervous. It worsened when she noticed the others. 

A female, Minnow, one of wolves that came with Kukutux, appeared through the passage and bringing up the rear was Everett. Reina casted a smile in their direction as Tuft invited her to join them. “Sure! I’d love to!” 

Almost in the same instance, Everett spoke. She couldn’t help the cackle that escaped her; the inside joke between them had caught her off guard, she didn’t think he would remember. He encouraged her to continue, offering for them all to leave her be so she could do so, but she found herself wanting to leave with them.

It was an interesting dynamic, both her crushes in her vicinity. How she managed to keep herself from melting into a puddle was beyond her. 

“No, no, I’ll go. It’ll give me a chance to explore deeper into the Cavern—I haven’t gone past this lake, I’m a little afraid to venture alone.” She bumped shoulders with Tuft and dropped down from the rock, padding over to Everett and Minnow. 

“Hi, Minnow. Happy to see you exploring Hearthwood. I hope the guys have been behaving?”