Whitefish River that's a lot of fish

Summer was truly entering its prime. Finally.

Although she fancied the cold and dreaded the heat, there was no denying just how plentiful the warmth could be. The days had only grown longer and the temperatures, harsher. But with such strong weather came fresh berries, plump prey, and new life. It was a tolerable trade. Whether or not it was fair depended on who you asked, but Lenina was quite content with how the seasons had progressed thus far.

Footsteps were mere taps across the ground, strides long as she carried herself towards the nearby river. Her dry throat longed for a sip of water, eyes latched onto the view ahead as if narrowing in on a meal. Thankfully she had arrived within minutes, dipping her head without hesitation and quenching her thirst.

Searching for fish among the rippling waves was not a priority. But perhaps a quick snack to accompany her drink was also an option if the opportunity presented itself. Regardless, she was satisfied for now, tongue catching any droplets falling from her chin as she looked on with a sigh.

Although Lenina had rarely felt loneliness, she could sense it creeping up after months alone during her journey back to Teekons.

Was there ever a day the young girl had gone without feeling like she was missing something?

Pretend as she might, but Yukimi still had yet to adjust in this place that wasn't home. The valley of stars was not here anymore, and even if they weren't treated like much it was still home. She was greatful to have found a friend in @Ashkova, who's willingness to travel with the snowbird gave her relief that she won't be doing it alone. Yet homesickness latched firmly against her back no matter how hard she tried to stay optimistic.

Yuki would find them again....wouldn't she?

The scent trail of another made her thoughts come to a halt, a black nose twitching curiously at the air. A coyote -- or was it a wolf.....both? No, that can't be right. So she went to investigate for herself, black paws tapping through the open grass path until the song of the streams graced her ears -- and finally, a picture came into view. 

A strawberry blonde coat -- like the summer that came down upon them. The woman drank from the stream quietly, only rising her head to look ahead -- though Yuki thought it was because of her for a second. 

Hi! 

Her head peaked at the woman through a thicket of bushes, while her tassle swayed behind her like a pendulum. "Who was this? She's pretty!", the little snowbird thought to herself.

Consumed by her thoughts, Lenina had hardly noticed the incoming stranger until already face to face. Up ahead stood an unusually dainty figure, pale in color all except for a head engulfed in black.

Although it was always best to remain cautious, it seemed unlikely a tussle would occur based on the relatively relaxed atmosphere. Even if one did, the woman assumed she'd have a decent chance of winning such a confrontation. But, until any danger was noted, her stance remained calm and friendly, a slight sway in her tail and lips lifted upwards.

Lightly dipping her head as a nod in acknowledgement of the greeting, she responded with one of her own.

"Hello, there."

Yuki's glee ignited -- a shared smile, just for her! It seemed that the wolves on this island....land? Whatever this place was -- weren't so bad after all. Everyone -- at least all she'd encountered so far, seemed freindly enought to match her own speed.

Slowly shuffling out the bushes, the snowbird slunk her way closer to the woman who, now that she looked closer, appeared a bit older than her -- but not terribly so. 

Hi, completely ignoring the fact that she already said hi, Yuki continued, You're really pretty. Your fur kind of reminds me of cherry blossoms, have you ever seen them before? there was a short pause, when the young girl turned to look back and lash her tail, clearing out a couple of leaves that got stuck in its hairs, before turning back to the blonde fae.

Oh, and my name's Yuki. What's yours?

He slowly padded one large paw ahead of the other, quietly and rather unworried in his posture. Ram's eyes were half closed to accommodate the bright sun, and his ears were relaxed atop his wide head. Though quiet and lonely, he was satisfied with the stillness of the area and its residents. He had managed to slip by territories without attracting attention and frankly, wasn't in the mood for it. Ram's depressive mood made him feel lonely and want to remain alone-- A behavior a little unlike the standard for whence he came and who he normally was. It was nice to disengage his guard once in a while.

     As the rusty male approached the bank of the river, the tall grasses parting way to expose him, he hesitated to enjoy the breeze. Oh... Ram inhaled repeatedly, tasting a slight scent that drifted in on the air. I suppose my solitude was bound to be interrupted eventually... His rusty red fur stood on end at the thought. However, whoever they were, they seemed to be ahead of him a little way, upstream. At least he retained the opportunity to skirt by unnoticed if he chose to. After a moment of being lost in recollection of prior rivalries with other males whom he had known, his bristles relaxed, and he stared back at the cool water lapping at his toes. Ironic. he thought, as he should be lapping at it. 

     As he finished his drink, Ram investigated the river, traveling the way toward the stranger but only cautiously, more focused on what morsel he could rip from the waves. He was still hungry. Fortunate enough to find small bites frequently in the bountiful summertime, but nothing substantial. If he were honest, fish probably wouldn't be satisfactory either. He hadn't tasted red blood in a some time. Venison or some other hoofed animal. He enjoyed those the most. Ram shrugged. Not likely as a loner. He waded through the current focused on what was in front of him, slowly glancing intently.

It seemed the wolf standing before her was rather excitable. And although the woman couldn't quite match such energy, she tried nonetheless to aid in brightening the air. Considering this was the first face she'd seen since arriving back in Teekons, it was well worth the effort.

It appeared no scuffle would occur between the two, so Lenina shifted her posture and simply took a seat.

As for the compliments, well, admittedly they were not expected but still appreciated. She had never been outright called "pretty" before, and although a bit strange, it was nice to hear.

Smile widening, she shook her head in response to the question.

"I can't say I have, though they must be quite beautiful."

There was the slightest moment of hesitation, unsure whether it was a smart move to give her name freely. But the thought was fleeting. "As for my name, it is Lenina."

Unbeknownst to her, another wolf would soon approach, one who she hadn't sensed coming.

Ah, they are! Yuki practically beamed at what she'd assumed was the woman's curiosity, waving her tassle happily. Perhaps it wasn't even curiosity, or the woman never asked in the first place; the snowbird took it as an opportunity to expand on it regardless.

They are these large, sweet smelling trees from my home. she explained thoughtfully During the springtime, thousands of tiny pink flowers bloom. Most of them fall and cover the floors -- its my favorite part about spring. The girl subconsciously found herself on her own haunches the moment the other did. A recollection of the past came to her mind -- of times where her and her family would find themselves outside the dens just to enjoy the colors the season introduced.

Wandering, ice-peirced eyes that were once on the sky now came back to the summer fae. A humorous grin lace her lips. You aren't pink like a flower, persay, but similar.  In a way that reminds me of spring! -- and her name was Lenina, and equally pretty name! In truth, her looks drew her in the most because she reminded her of her mother, who had blonde fur in comparison to most of her family's looks. Not that Yuki would mention that -- she didn't want to seem like a weirdo.

Lenina~ She cooed. Do you live he-

But her attention was quickly drawn away by the sound of splashing nearby, turning a head over her shoulder to look -- caught off guard.

It hadn't occurred to him that he had drifted as close to these strangers as to overhear them until the last couple of sentences. He kept an ear out toward them while his eyes still glassed the water. Something about flowers, all too cheerful. At least unintimidating. Ram scoffed under his breath but paused when he realized they had ceased their chatter. In the silence-- save for the babbling of the river-- he felt their gazes on him. Ram returned the stare. 

     The rusty male eyed one up and down, then the other. Young females, so blissfully naive. Sleek fur and graceful frames, like they might have never known hardship; far different in appearance to the females of Ram's origin. And of course, he, himself, quite larger than the pair. An advantage of his sex and breed. He stood there, his posture unchanged. His tail hung from his haunches and his head was a little above level to his shoulders. 

     He hadn't really anything to say, either. He had done well to avoid most strangers over the last year or so, but he supposed his mind was a little bored with himself and it didn't make great efforts to remain solitaire as it had since. Of course, it was also undecided in if the situation of company was a positive or if Ram still wasn't ready for the interactions. He contemplated simply turning tail and skirting back to isolation, but his curiosity had him stay. So he remained, staring and silent, curious over possible interactions or perhaps some way to exploit the situation, he wasn't even sure, himself.

Lenina found herself unable to restrict her smile from growing, lips turning upwards as she absorbed the new information. It certainly helped that her new acquaintance was quite enthusiastic with her description. Although the woman was unsure if she'd ever see such flowers, it now became a hope for the future

Swept away in imagination, she had nearly missed Yukimi's sudden pause. Following the other wolf's glacier gaze, her ears stood on alert as her eyes narrowed in on the source.

Faced with another stranger, this time covered in rusty fur she likened to autumn leaves. It seemed no words would be exchanged for the moment, and so Lenina simply maintained her stare, legs ready to spring up in the case it were needed to run or fight.

let me know if this isn't welcome!

There were strangers at the river. The outlaw felt a pang of outrage, spotting them from afar. Calahan had no concrete claim on the area, but was unreasonable enough to feel spiteful. And to see not only one, but three interlopers...he wouldn't stand for it.

The sepia cloaked man approached the others, his tail raised to a confident level. "Alright folks, party's over. Move along, all o' yew." He sorely hoped this wouldn't lead to conflict, but he was up for it, if need be. Morons.

Mature for Language

OOC: Insert "blinking white guy meme" for Ram's face XD

     At the tone of yet another wolf, one clearly not nearly as virginal as the young females, Ram's posture immediately straightened up. He closed his eyes as he gave a disgruntled inhale, raised his hackles to full fluff and turned around, bending an outward-curved tail at the base. He reiterated the unfriendly tone with his own in a sturdy growl and a roll of his shoulders. 

     "Who the fuck says this is your river? " The sheer audacity for a random male to think he owned this whole damn river... So much for having a casual day. Though Ram wasn't in the mood to deal with conflict, it ironically shortened his temper when it came around, and he couldn't stifle his habit of letting his aggression take the lead on a situation that proposed no neutrality. The rusty male was mostly in his own business, he believed he was being un-disturbing to others, and he had not scented heavy claim by any over this property. 

     He called "Bullshit." and took a step forward. Even if it was true that this area had belonged to this male, he probably would have called so anyway.  Ram's insecurity sparked illogical reasoning in his thoughts that this male simply came to shoo Ram off, as he is another male-- As if these females were Ram's brood; and he knew that doing as this starving, bearish-looking creature demanded, he might as well additionally lie belly up and lick the male's loins before fleeing.

Yukimi didn't know how things hit the fan so fast.

In the beginning, Yuki had approached a woman, complementing her pelt and talking about the flora from her home. Simple, right? Yet within the span of a couple minutes, there were four of them – and it wasn't on a positive note, either.

The autumn hued man who stood within the banks said nothing; only staring and assessing the two women. His sharp, citrine gaze slightly intimidated her, and Yuki subconsciously made the effort to avoid it. First, looking at Lenina, silently questioning if she knew who this was – and judging by her reaction, she didn't. The snowbird's brows furrowed anxiously, with the lack of knowledge of exactly what was going on – but decided to go with the flow to help calm the situation. 

She turned to the man, smiled and greeted him……well, she was about to greet him, until player four joined the field.

Made of sand and red clay, and speaking in a strange accent she couldn't pinpoint. He was large and stocky like his red counterpoint, and he was also….telling them to leave?

Well, that wasn't very nice. What happened to hello? How are you?

More importantly though, what had she put herself in the middle of?

H-Hey, wait!

When the man within the stream finally spoke, his words were heated with a feral anger that surprised Yuki. The yearling sensed some kind of conflict here, maybe even a fight, and couldn't help but try to step in between the space of the two. She was unsure of what she could say to stop it, but she never knew unless she tried – right? 

Yet just because she didn't want a fight to happen, didn't mean the man's words didn't rub her the wrong way. So she turned to him – With all due respect sir, she began, I'm also confused on why we have to leave, I don't smell a claim here at all.

It seemed things had gone downhill. Fast.

Remaining seated, Lenina simply observed as the scene played out. Eyes scanning each individual — the new stranger most of all. Tempted to tilt her chin up and leave this pettiness behind, she couldn't quite bring herself to abandon Yukimi, especially not when tensions were so high.

Besides, the woman wasn't the type to just leave if told to. If she were to continue her travels, it'd be her own choice. Though, as far as confrontation was concerned, it would not be her first pick.

Releasing an exhausted sigh before rising to her paws, perhaps it'd indeed be best to move onwards.

"Alright, I'll leave, if it pleases you. There is no need to be ill-mannered."

They weren't wrong. He had no concrete claim on the river, no official scent markings. That mere fact didn't instill any apologies in the outlaw. To the winter patterned woman, he offered an irritated scoff. Smartass. "Yeah, real clever. Now hit the trail, yer interruptin' my sulking." 

With an angered glare, he turned to the red wolf. Who the hell did he think he was, damn him. As far as Calahan was concerned, this was his spot, his river, his temporary camp. And to hell with anyone who didn't like it. "What was that, yew sonofabitch?"

Mature for Language

Ram's ear twitched back when the strawberry she-wolf spoke, appeasing the other male. Don't give him what he wants, you empty-headed female... Ram thought to himself. He wondered just a little if she was a pushover. A wolf never knew if allowing another to act this way to them would come back to bite them hard in the ass. Next time she might run into this one, he might not warn her to leave, and the bite will be literal. Or worse if he knows she will just 'belly up' to him.

"What was that, yew sonofabitch?" barked the other. Ram offered another throaty growl in response and closed the gap between them a little more, testing the male, then obliged him in repeating his words.

"BULL. FUCKING. SHIT." taking care to enunciate well. "Now walk on before you don't have legs left to walk with, 'big man.'" Ram curled his lip to flash his fangs and his tail began to sway. He could feel his blood stinging his face as it flushed with adrenaline. It had been quite some time since he'd tussled with another wolf. Maybe he kind of missed this. Of course, he was forgetting the times he had been sorely beaten for acting out of line. Ram was never good at knowing when to let things go.

.....Are you serious? Her voice nearly trailed off in disbelief. 

The response to her questioning was met with pure, hard-headed ignorance, and the teen furrowed her bows in annoyance. Yuki was trying to come to some kind of understanding, yet she was immediately shut out and basically told to fuck off, which she did not appreciate at all. What was wrong with this man -- did maturity and age not corolate from whatever bush he jumped out of?

The snowbird breathed -- an attempt to keep her from calling this man 57 synonyms of the word "stupid" -- because she'd be just as stupid if she thought he could be reasoned with at this point. You know what? Keep your river. You act like a pup and this argument is pointless. She said, --but im not leaving without the ones I came here with. She said as her path found her way towards Lenina, moving to stand beside the woman. Truthfully they did not come together, and while they'd just met (literal minutes ago), she couldn't just up and leave.

Thankfully, the blonde she-wolf had came to a aimilar conclusion, but there was still one left from the equation. This isn't worth it, lets just leave! She called out to the red man, but didn't know if her voice would even reach him, as the situation only continued to escalate. What was Yuki to do? The girl was still healing and she'd be foolish if she thought getting in between two grown men wouldn't break even more bones.

Anxiousness wrung her insides into a knot.

This is hilarious the way things went from 0 to 100. Right now, Calahan embodies: "My mother said I could be anything. So I chose to be a problem."

It seemed she was right to get a head-start leaving the scene. Things were only heating up, and she definitely wasn't going to spoil her day by sticking around to add fuel to the fire. Perhaps a different time, but for this moment, it simply wasn't worth her already depleting energy.

The rust-furred stranger was not helping in the slightest, though, Lenina couldn't have cared less about any unsavory opinions he may hold against her. Picking her battles was not a weakness, and the woman would rather save her strength for a real fight.

As for Yukimi... it appeared she wouldn't be getting rid of her new acquaintance any time soon. It wasn't bothersome, just moreso unexpected. If she could provide some level or comfort or safety for the younger she-wolf, it was no problem. Besides, it'd be best for them to both leave this shit show.

"Leave him. If he wants to risk dying, then he'll risk dying. Don't waste your breath."

If they planned on leaving, why couldn't they just leave without the theatrics? Calahan was asking them to talk about departing, he was telling them to skedaddle. "Don't come back 'ere! Ya've been warned." He flicked his tail at the two women, before turning his attention to the terracotta aggressor. 

"What's yer damn problem, hm? Yer leavin', one way or another." Dead or alive, that was the real question. A skirmish in the water wasn't ideal, Calahan aimed to harass him into moving a distance away from the riverbank.

"You know what? Keep your river. You act like a pup and this argument is pointless." The silver coated female proclaimed. In addition, her friend rose to her paws to depart with her, instantly withdrawing the confidence from Ram against the other male. He held his composure, but he could feel his tense tail wanting to fall and his ears to drop to the sides in retraction of his defiance. 

"This isn't worth it, let's just leave! " At the silver female's next words, Ram ceased his growling and turned slightly to view her. Now he was a little confused. In what way was this not worth it? What bout pride? What about backbone? What about putting this rogue in his place before he puts you in yours? ...Ram's thumping heart and red-hot anger sure made it feel worth it.

"Leave him. If he wants to risk dying, then he'll risk dying. Don't waste your breath." Ram's eyes shifted between the girls and the rogue for a moment. Not that the red male had expected back up, per se, but he was left so solitary against an aggressor with no support. Ram was just a pack animal, after all. When the mood shifted from a group all against one to, you're on your own, he couldn't help feeling so vulnerable. Especially if this tawny male thought they were a trio, it would look like a weakness if Ram's "pack" was abandoning him. The nervous thought of exposure made him panic inside a little and he continued his snarl with narrowed eyes against the provoker in an effort to remain unphased.

"What's yer damn problem, hm? Yer leavin', one way or another." Whilst the rogue was initiating further conflict, he hadn't come at Ram yet. If he really intended to hurt Ram from the beginning, he wouldn't have hesitated with all this "get off mah turf, scram!" talk. Maybe he was just bluffing? Yeah, maybe... The idea gave Ram a boost in his assurance again.

Ram wasn't sure how to respond verbally, but he could feel his paws directing his response physically. He turned in the direction of the young females, as if to follow. If the crowd was leaving, he couldn't be left behind, similarly to the deserted cow of an elk herd: In relative isolation, one becomes prey. He allowed a wide berth between himself and the other male to keep out of reach should he lunge as Ram moved, slowly.  Whilst he kept a cold stare on him, seeming to give in to the eviction, he made it to the bank. He paused, then nosed the ground, and promptly lifted his hind leg.

Yes, blatantly disrespecting this man's "turf," not even allowing a blink to break his glare. If Ram was submitting to the demands, he wasn't going to do so quietly. After the swift marking, he quickly moved forward and aggressively scraped the dirt with his hind legs, flinging the scornful fragrance in the direction of the rogue, then began to trot off to follow the other two. ...Perhaps a little in likeness to a juvenile, himself, pouting after a tantrum....