Swiftcurrent Creek by jove

I miss you guys. ;-;

The thick smell of urine could be spotted from a half a mile away, if not more. It was there—the point at which Tomahawk first smelled it—that she stood. She expected failure, and yet she persevered. The clock was ticking closer and closer to spring, and she yearned for a companion to whisk her away. She had done the same thing last year with no results, and yet she'd gone right on through summer, fall, and winter seeking far and wide for her companion. He had to be out there somewhere.

Maybe, just maybe, this would be her saving grace. Hope would never die in the coyote wolf, and she would continue her quest until she found what she was looking for. Or until she was released from this prison of a body.

<3

With Scimitar rallying a group together to search one last time for Star, Kaskara doubled her patrols on the border. That meant that she circled Swiftcurrent four times a day now, which left little in the way of social interaction. She would hunt occasionally, if prey present itself, or talk with others along her route, but usually she didn't see another friendly face for hours at a time.

So when she happened upon the coyote, standing far from the border, Kaskara paused and studied the smaller creature with interest. She had never seen a coyote balk at a border before. They usually cared little for wolf territories and would barge in whenever they felt the need, and would be swiftly driven out accordingly. But this one was different.

After a long moment, Kaskara closed the distance between them, pausing along the scent border to give both of them plenty of space. She didn't want to frighten the animal into a frenzy, nor did she want to scare her away. Kas was intrigued, to say the least. Her two-toned eyes looked over the girl, for that's what the scent on the wind told her, and asked, "How can I help you?"

So often, when lingering near a pack's borders, Hawk had been chased off. When a stocky female wolf approached her, she prepared for the worst. And when, instead of immediately trying to bit her head off, the wolf asked her a question, Tomahawk's mind was damn near blown away. "Y–you don't want to just ch–chase me off?" she stuttered, clearly stunned by this new development. Then again, the wolf who had approached her yesterday had also been overly friendly. Maybe... maybe this place was somehow different. It was raising her hopes to new heights.

Tomahawk had, upon first seeing the other wolf, done what she had been taught to do. She had crouched low, making herself look even smaller. She had flattened her ears, pulled back her lips, and curled her tail beneath her. But the surprise had taken her once the question had been asked, and she now looked wide-eyed at the one who had asked, awaiting an answer to her own question.

The coyote crouched, tucking herself into the ground, making herself smaller. Kas blinked, astonished; she had never seen such behavior from a coyote before. The question that spilled forth from her slender muzzle was stuttered, but intelligible nonetheless. "Y–you don't want to just ch–chase me off?" The chocolate-colored warrior watched the smaller creature with a wary gaze, wondering if this was some sort of trick.

There was no other scent of coyote on the wind, so there was no ambush waiting. The coyote wasn't big enough to take Kas on her own, though she could try. She'd be fast, that was sure. Kaskara remained silent, letting her posture and demeanor answer that question instead of words, and awaited an answer to her own question. This was already turning into the most interesting sort of day.

Tomahawk was met with silence. But also a distinct lack of... well, chasing. Just like it had been with the wolf the day before, she found herself strangely at ease. And that frightened her to no end. Hawk assumed that the lady wolf wanted to hear the answer to her first question, so the wolf imposter did her best to reply.

“I belong with wolves,” she began, “but none will take me.” Her voice was not seeking pity. It wasn't filled with begging just yet. She merely stated facts. If this one asked her to leave, she would do so without a fight. If she told her to stay... well, that was something that Tomahawk had dreamed of since the day she had left home.

Though she had mixed experience with coyotes, Kas knew that some wolves mated with them and created hybrids. One of the packs she had come across while traveling from Dal Riata had a considerable amount of them, and it was that memory, coupled with the girl's distinct sheer look of desperation, that made her pause here.

"Why?" she asked simply. Whether that was in reply to the first or second part of the girl's explanation was left up to the coyote in question. Kaskara remained where she was, standing tall and proud as any beta should be, studying the deflated coyote in front of her. She said she belonged with wolves, but she looked to be entirely of coyote stock. What made her so sure of herself? She waited, neither hostile nor friendly, eyes locked upon the creature before her.

"Why?" One word. One syllable. One question. There was a lifetime of reasons to be explained, but Tomahawk did not believe that she had the time to discuss her life story at length. She had been born a coyote, but raised a wolf starting only a few days into this world. Her entire upbringing had taught her to be what she was not, and so she was no longer scavenger, no longer what she had been born. Tomahawk had been shaped and molded, perhaps unfairly, to believe she was something she was not. And she still believed, no matter what all those around her thought.

“I do not look like a wolf on the outside,” she replied, “but I have always been one on the inside.” It answered both "why" questions, hopefully. She was not accepted due to her appearance, and yet she belonged with them because she was one of them. Tomahawk remained poised to flee, should the need arise. Maybe, just maybe she would not be required to scamper away.

The coyote remained crouched low on the ground, which Kas found fascinating. Though she had mixed dealings with coyotes, she didn't hate them on sight like some wolves did. She wondered what Scimitar would think of this creature, especially considering she insisted she belonged with wolves. She was one on the inside, and Kaskara wasn't one to judge her for it. She knew what it felt like to feel different from how others viewed you.

"What's your name?" she asked softly, ears sliding forward to listen more carefully to the woman's answer. "Why do you feel you belong with wolves? You are not one physically." She paused for a moment, trying not to sound too harsh to the girl. "Why should I believe what you say is genuine? Coyotes are known to be sly and clever. You may be here to steal my food after gaining my trust."

"Tomahawk," she replied immediately and with no hint of hesitation. There were more questions to be answered, and her hope was beginning to dwindle. "I am not sly or clever, ma'am. I have always been a wolf. My mother and father were wolves. They found me when I was too young to be on my own; my other siblings were already dead." Tomahawk did not want pity, though. She wanted a place to belong.

"I can leave if you do not trust me." This was the truth. Tomahawk had little to gain from this wolf if she did not offer a place to make her home. But if she were able to integrate herself with the pack, she would do everything within her power to prove that she was just as good as any other wolf.

Kaskara's heart ached for the girl as she told her about her parents, about how she was adopted by wolves when her coyote mother and siblings perished. Though she felt for her, Kaskara betrayed no hint of that emotion on the outside, though her brows rose in interest. If she had been raised by wolves, then she would understand the wolf hierarchy, pack dynamics, and could be a useful asset.

She had no issues with coyotes, but she wasn't sure about the others. She wasn't even certain if Scimitar would allow it, but Kas thought Tomahawk would make a good addition to their pack. "I'm sorry for your circumstances, Tomahawk. I'm Kaskara, the beta of Swiftcurrent Creek." She gestured toward the pack lands behind her with the sweep of her muzzle. Turning back to her, Kas continued. "We are a large and prosperous pack, which makes us targets for hatred and envy. How would you contribute if allowed to live here?"

Tom paused, giving the question more thought. "I am small, so I do not make a good protector. My, ah, affliction means that I'm also terrible at being any kind of go-between for other packs, since they consider me a nuisance. My mother taught me the basics of caring for the sick and injured, and I am observant of the moon's turn and the seasons." Tomahawk knew she would likely never be given a proper position in the pack, but if she could just coexist with them, it would be enough for her.

Perhaps the fact that Swiftcurrent Creek was a "large and prosperous pack" would mean that Tomahawk would be protected here. She waited.

Kaskara felt sorry for the girl. She thought that being born a coyote made her an affliction, but in reality it was just who she was. Tomahawk thought she was a wolf, however, and therein lied the affliction. But it wasn't her place to say so, at least not yet. Kas listened to the girl's answer and let a small smile rise to her lips. "We are always in need of healers. And as far as naturalists go, I think we could use one more." Theirs had gone missing, but she wasn't ready to reveal that yet.

"I think you'd be allowed to remain in these lands, as our guest. I'm not sure what the others may think of you, but as far as the alpha and I are concerned, you are welcome." Kaskara's voice rose in a howl, letting everyone in the pack know that they were going to have a guest, and that anyone who had issues with that could talk to Kaskara. Then she turned back to the girl and invited her in. "I can show you where we keep our food, and introduce you to the healer. Perhaps you two could work together."

Last one for me!

“I would be most thankful, ma’am,” Tomahawk replied, wondering if this was all just a cruel dream. When would she wake cold, alone, and starving? Perhaps this was not life at all, and she had passed away in her sleep. If this was the afterlife, she would take it. Hawk was not sure where this life in the creek would take her, or even if the other wolves would accept her as one of her own, but she was willing to take the chance.

Silently, she tailed behind Kaskara, ready to be shown the way.

<3

Kaskara nodded, giving the girl a small smile, before moving inward and showing her what she promised. The creek and its smaller tributaries, the few caches she knew to be partly full, and finally the rendezvous site, where most of the action happened. Kas knew that not everyone would agree with her decision to let Tomahawk live within their borders, but that didn't matter when there was another pair of eyes and ears keeping a watch over them.

She left Tomahawk at one of the caches, promising to introduce her to Paarthurnax in a few days, and vowing to herself that she'd visit Tomahawk sooner than that. If she was to be part of the pack, then Kaskara needed to know her.