Otatso Wetlands Turn the sound of defeat into your battle cry

Danica looked down with distaste and skirted a particularly muggy patch of ground, her paws already soaked from traversing the wetlands upon which she now stood. Her reason for leaving the Glacier was a sound one... lately a loner had been hanging around and she was investigating the area. Though not an outrider, at the moment that didn't matter. Njal and Tuwawi were busy with a family and running a pack. Others needed to step in for the rest.

She had met most of her packmates and they got along fine, luckily. There were still a few she had not, and the matter of that new girl, Arabella. Only time would tell how that would end up. For the most part things were going smoothly, minus the lynx activity. They didn't need loners making threats on the borders. She'd been extra attentive to the boundaries of late, but had decided to be a bit more proactive this time.

It seemed she had gotten off the trail, though. Currently she was what some would say was dangerously close to her old home, but Danica wasn't too bothered. This was neutral ground, and while she didn't particularly want to run into her old packmates, there wasn't much they could say about her being there. She would need to turn around soon, though. It was quite a trip back and she didn't want to be gone for too long. She'd lost the stranger's scent ages ago, but something kept her going. Probably damnable curiosity. She had the urge to see how the Creek was faring since she left. Last vestiges of loyalty, perhaps. Not that she could get close enough to find out.

[size=x-small]Ooh this will be interesting![/size]

The mottled wolf trotted swiftly down the creek, head low to the ground but barely moving as she moved along. She was headed towards the wetlands, because she hadn't yet payed a visit to the location. Most wolves wouldn't be particularly excited about getting their paws unpleasantly warm and wet, but Falwasi hadn't thought of it, the feeling of water clinging to her legs habitual to her. The cream fur on her paws and legs would stick to her skin, making her legs look even taller and thinner than they were, especially with her thick winter coat growing in. She listened attentively to the soft rumble of the river gradually dying as she neared the wetlands.

As Falwasi reached a slightly damp area that marked the start of the wetlands, she caught a scent of a wolf that did not belong to Swiftcurrent Creek. She increased her pace, staying in trot but her legs stretching out in front of her, paws briefly touching the soft ground. She slowed a little as she spotted a figure ahead of her.

At first, the golden wolf thought she was dreaming as she walked towards the wolf. She thought she saw herself standing before her own eyes, but as she approached the she-wolf coming to a light stop before her, she noticed it was of a more average build and height, and of a slightly lighter coloring. 'Hello...' Falwasi said, eyeing the wolf as she waited for an explanation as to why the stranger was in Creek wolves' territory.

Huzzah! this shall.... Danica doesn't really know how to behave >=D

Well, it appeared as though she wasn't too far away for Bazi's cronies to find her after all. Tipping her head, she studied the girl before her. They could have been sisters, their coloring similar despite her darker hues. She was less lanky, though, and as usual found herself looking slightly up to meet the girl's eye before her gaze moved on once more.

"Hello." she responded. There had been a slight question behind the other wolf's tone but she ignored it, not feeling the need to explain herself. She had crossed no borders. "So, the Creek got some new blood, huh? That was quick." She could scent more than a few strangers upon the girl through the strong mark of the Creek. Bazi must have really stepped up recruitment, unsurprisingly since she lost so many to the Glacier.

"So, the Creek got some new blood, huh? That was quick." Danica said, no doubt referring to the pack's loss of members before Falwasi had arrived. "Yes, it does." the tawny wolf replied in an even-tempered tone, ignoring the last comment. The Creek did have new blood indeed. The she-wolf that stood before did not seem like she was on solid terms with her previous pack, and Falwasi wouldn't interfere with it. Of course, she knew who Danica was... but the knowledge was not mutual.

"I'm Falwasi. I joined Swiftcurrent Creek over a month ago now." She introduced, dipping her slim face a little in courtesy. She needn't ask Danica who she was, but she would most likely introduce herself. Falwasi would keep quiet, and let the honeyed wolf speak - as far as she was concerned, Falwasi didn't know shit.

"Indeed. Pray tell, how is Bazi nowadays?" She took a few steps, gaze traveling idly over the new girl as she spoke. Honestly she didn't care if Falwasi answered or not. She was in the mood to heckle. She made no move to introduce herself just as Falwasi seemingly had no intentions of asking.

She would have liked to have known how Galileo was, but she didn't ask. He had been one of her few friends when she was a part of the pack, and she imagined he was still in his role as advisor to the Alpha. If he was still there, then the Creek was probably still a decent place to make home.

"She's fine." Falwasi answered bluntly, no more information provided. She paused, adjusting her position by shuffling her paws slightly before sitting down in front of Danica, who had approached her by a few steps. The intelligent wolf inhaled, stopping short mid-breath as she turned her head to the side marginally.

"Pray tell; why have you come so close to Swiftcurrent Creek?" Falwasi asked, squinting slightly. Her tail flicked from side to side amiably - she was in no rush to get anywhere, and she was curious. Curious, but not desperate. Why had the she-wolf wandered precariously near her old home, especially after Bazi told her to leave?

Danica shrugged. "No reason. Sometimes it's nice to visit your old stomping grounds." It was true enough, though Danica wasn't a particularly nostalgic creature. "Don't worry. I don't intend to get closer." She wasn't looking to tempt fate.

"How are you liking the Creek thus far?" She asked, curious. She assumed Bazi still led and wondered if things had changed since she left. Obviously they were growing.

The honeyed wolf nodded as Danica explained why she had come near the border. It seemed simple and understandable enough - Falwasi herself would like to come back to her old land once the Creek wolves had claimed new territory. If they would even claim new territory. Most wolves seemed opposed to moving from their beloved home of rumbling waters, so Falwasi wasn't sure if the relocation was even a possibility.

The creamy hued wolf asked her how she was settling in, and honestly, Falwasi was settling in fine, though her two months here had been extremely eventful. "I like it here; it's very... dramatic. But different to what I'm used to." She said, pondering whether Swiftcurrent Creek had always been a handful.

Suddenly, Falwasi spoke, "And how is the Glacier?" she said in a casual tone. The revelation of what she just said slowly sunk in, and she froze as she realized she fucked up. She wasn't meant to know Danica was a member of Duskfire Glacier - and she wouldn't know by her smell anyways since she had never visited their pack. Trying to brush it off, she reverted to her placid and neutral position, hoping the she-wolf wouldn't notice her error.

Danica had to laugh at the mention of drama. "Still, eh? Figured that might have left with me, though guess not." Apparently, though some of it had followed her to the Glacier, some had been left behind as well. "Isn't life boring without a bit of drama, though?" She'd always preferred it to peace, though she could do without the more painful varieties.

"The glacier is good. A bit quiet for my liking but we are relatively isolated up there. Lots of ice." She shrugged. There wasn't much to say that she could tell an outsider.

The creamy hued wolf had taken no notice to Falwasi's mistake, and Falwasi was somewhat relieved, somewhat indifferent about it. "That's the reason why I came to the Creek," the mottled wolf replied without returning Danica's chuckle, though this was a statement she convinced herself was true... But only a marginal amount of it was. Swiftcurrent Creek had been full of drama, more than she had expected.

Falwasi nodded quietly as the she-wolf ran through the main keys of the Glacier — isolation and ice. The independent wolf had been prepping for her trip North; she was fully prepared except her coat, which hadn't grown that much.

"I am actually heading up there in a week's time with Kaskara, another member of the Creek," Falwasi said, speaking up a little. "Maybe I'll see you there?" she added with a small tilt of her head and her eyebrows raised. Unless the female chose to stick around the central part of the Wilds for a little while, she was sure she would see Danica there. If she didn't... well, Falwasi had always been a slightly apathetic wolf when it came to chit-chat.

We might have skipped ahead a bit in the timeline XD since this is set even before Larus was taken. but it's all good!

Danica nodded. It was a solid enough reason, for she'd done her share of drama-chasing in the past. It certainly helped to keep the boredom away, though eventually drama too took on a bit of a monotonous feel. Desensitization, perhaps?

"Perhaps," she responded, her own apathy matching the other's. Danica wasn't one to make friends with packmates on a whim, let alone strangers, so she didn't care one way or the other if they did happen to run into each other again. She assumed that she would be present unless she was out of the territory, though. She tended to hound the borders nowadays.

She didn't ask why they were coming, though she probably should have. She assumed Bazi was sending them on a trip to learn how the pack was doing. She'd inform Tuwawi if she hadn't forgotten by then (the likely outcome being that she would).

[size=x-small]Oops! Exit Fal. Thanks for the thread <3[/size]

"Perhaps," Falwasi said, repeating the same words the creamy female had spoken. Copper eyes lingered over Danica's own for a moment, speaking her goodbye. Then she turned around, following the prints she had left in the soft grounds when she first trudged into the wetlands, on her way back to her beloved Creek.

Falwasi couldn't make her mind up about Danica yet. She was an interesting wolf; sarcastic, but there was more to it. Sarcasm was one thing the golden hued she-wolf endured, but Danica's sort wasn't as provoking, as far as Falwasi could tell. Maybe Danica was having a day, and her personality traits were dulled. However, she could be wrong.

Anytime! Perhaps when I bring Manauia in we can have another one sometime :)

Danica watched her go, indifferent to the lack of any sort of farewell on either of their parts. They weren't friends so such things were hardly necessary and Danica wasn't one for manners anyway. She was indifferent to this meeting as it had not really given her any new information about, well, anything. Except that, for some reason, some of the Creek wolves would be paying the Glacier a visit. To see how they were doing perhaps? Or to see the children?

Whatever the reason, it surely wasn't hostile so she had no reason to care overly much. It was likely she'd avoid the group should they approach though. She didn't much want to run into a certain someone if she had decided to pay her old friends a visit.