Hoshor Plains don't let your fears win

@Regipre @Reek

She was slowly starting to acquaint herself with the world outside. Every now and then she'd step outside and challenge herself to step just a little bit further than the last time. She side-stepped, taking one quick hop to her left, before she let out a giggle and ran back into the shadows of the den. This was starting to be fun. Starting to be. If the wind rustled the wrong way she'd shriek and run back inside. Either way, she wasn't out for very long.

This time, she was going to explore. Kind of. She poked her nose outside of the den and sat there for as long as she could. The sun beat down on her. She squinted her eyes until her head hurt and then the wind blew and she couldn't decide if she was hot or cold. She shivered anyway and her front legs gave out on her. She flopped to her stomach and rolled, flip-flopping this way and that until she somehow ended up standing again.

She sat down again, flipping her head around as she stared back towards the den. A butterfly flew by then, flitting beneath her nose then up and over behind her. She followed it with her gaze, toppled over, and giggled again.

She watched her sister playing from a distance, eyes sharp and expression blank. Occasionally, she glanced away to study something or other on the dry summer plains, yet always her pale blue gaze found its way back to the giggling, frolicsome Sart. The two of them couldn't have been more different. Reggie found her litter mate's behavior silly, even stupid, though she still felt an ineffable bond with the other little girl, as she did with their brother as well. She was keeping watch, lest something come along and attack Sart while she was busy losing her head... like the black wraith that had slain their father.

She hadn't really known he was their father, nor did Regipre particularly care about his fate, just like she didn't really concern herself with the wolves that had disappeared. Tomahawk and her pups were scratching out a fair existence on the lonesome plains and Reggie just kept learning and growing. She wasn't very childlike at all and spoke one word for every five hundred Sart and Papref babbled, though the little gift was nonetheless very intuitive, not to mention particularly observant and perceptive for one so young.

The little coyote thought she heard footfalls further out on the plain and her fawn head turned that way, ears twisting to better capture the sound. One of them then bent backward, toward Sart, even as she remained vigilant. The moment she sensed any sort of threat, Regipre would raise the alarm. She knew her jumpy sister would be quick to take cover, leaving Reggie to determine whether she was facing friend, foe or nothing at all.

He rose long before the sun. Bidding his sleeping mate farewell with a gentle kiss, Reek pulled himself from his stream-side den and began the long journey south of the Sunspire mountains, but this time, he left without a concrete goal in mind. Part of him wished to branch out and recruit new members for the pack, new life. While the forest wolves weren't dwindling in numbers, an extra body was an extra body. But more than the urge to strengthen the pack was the fervor for travel that had been reignite within Reek. There was nothing like the thrill of exploration.

He passed the mountains and made his descent into the plains by midday. Upon his descent, the first thing Reek noticed was the lingering damage from the same storm that had destroyed the Rise he had once called home. It's reach was seemingly unlimited. The once tall grass growing on the northern end of the plain stood stunted and charred, a temporary reminder of the destruction that had been wrought.

Continuing to push forward through the charred remains of the plain, Reek eventually found himself in an area that the fire had not touched. He paused to take in the near idyllic scenery (at least, in comparison to what he had just seen) and took in a deep breath of fresh air. He caught the scent of the coyote pups first, however, he was unable to discern the scent from wolf. He pushed on toward the scent, hoping to recruit the source into his fold. Nevertheless, upon nearing the source, Reek noticed the two coyote pups alone by their den. Keeping his distance, he studied them inquisitively and wondered where their mother was.

The butterfly flitted in and out of her view. Fascinated by the way it bobbed and weave through the air, Sart chased after it, hopping and pawing at it here and there as it winged its way around their home. She took after it in one direction. It switched it's path and she bounded after the butterfly. With playful yips and pounces, she slowly forgot her fears of being too far from the den's entrance and eventually became more comfortable with being outside. As the butterfly flew too far away, she found herself exhausted and plopped herself down in the shade of the tall grasses.

Her sister was wide eyed and alert. With Regipre on the lookout, Sart knew she had little to nothing to fear. She entertained herself with a long stalk of grass. Her tiny teeth nommed upon it, chewing upon it as the blade split and filled her mouth with grass juices. She released the grass, licking her chops as she tried to rid herself of the taste in her mouth before she decided that she liked it. She barked once to her sister as she rolled, paws up in the patch of grass before she nibbled on another blade. Come try this...

Sart was oblivious to any onlookers. Lost in her own little world, she did not notice the scraggly shadow of a wolf who lingered nearby. She was content to play and eat grass and a number of other silly things her sister would no doubt frown upon, but things that were fun to her none the less.

When nothing and no one appeared, Regipre's gaze found its way back to her sister. Sart was now eating grass. She barked to invite Reggie to have a taste. The slightly older pup ignored her litter mate completely. She began scanning the plains again, sure that someone or something was out there. Her hackles lifted slightly, as did her lip, as if to tell off any unseen, unknown dangers.

The coyote whelp jerked ever so slightly when movement caught her eye from an unexpected direction: near the den. She turned again, watching expressionlessly as Tomahawk exited the den, briefly eyeballed her daughters, then trotted away. She probably wouldn't come home empty-handed. Reggie's mouth watered at the thought of some pre-chewed meat, though she reminded herself to focus.

Bored with watching her sister, she nonetheless began to walk toward Sart. Halfway there, she froze. Her head lifted and her tail stiffened. "Wolf." The word popped out of her mouth quietly. She caught Sart's gaze, then turned and squinted at the long grasses of the plain, trying to discern the origin of the scent blustering into her small nose.

Reek watched in silence for several minutes, he especially watched the playful one who frolicked from place to place while chasing butterflies and munching on grass. Her temperament reminded Reek of himself when he was a child; somehow she maintained a youthful energy even in the face of difficulty. He smiled. The little stoic one however, not so much. He figured his identification with her stopped at being, 'he was a child once.'  Her stiff natured inclination reminded him so much of Citali.  Either way, they were both adorable.

His first question was answered as their mother slipped away from their den.  Her structure was rawboned and thin.  How could she take care of two pups alone when she could barely take care of herself? Unfit— Reek judged her condition almost instantly. Without divine intervention, the pups were destined to die of starvation once winter approached.  But thankfully for them, Reek had a massive God-complex.

Slowly, he made his approach.  Reek took great care to make his body language as non-threatening as possible.  He dawned a warm smile and let his tail wag idly behind him.  "Hello!" he called out warmly. Still some distance away, he continued his slow and steady beeline toward the coyotes.

Regipre ignored her, but that was fine. She was content to paw at and nibble upon the grass for an unforeseeable amount of time. She found that if she chomped on the tall stalks just right, she could wrinkle the blades beneath her teeth. She laughed. Now the grass was all bent and funny looking. Eww. And now she had a funny taste in her mouth.

She stuck her tongue out, letting it hang to the open wind as she tried to figure out what to do with that taste. It'd been alright the first time she'd munched and now it was simply too much. She pranced around until she found a rock and licked it. There. Much better. She licked it again and again until the taste was gone, but her sister uttered a word that made her freeze altogether.

"Wolf." Where? She lifted her head, sniffing the air instinctively, but she was too inexperienced to make heads or toes of the smells. Instead, she turned her gaze in the same direction of Regipre's and found a black wolf headed straight towards them. Sart yipped in alarm as she turned to run, was met with a face full of tall grass, then spun in circles and barked in panic as she couldn't quite decide where to flee to.

She didn't have to search long. The wolf revealed itself, then made a slow approach while calling out in an amiable tone. Reggie stiffened and partially crouched, though she did not flee as Sart did. In fact, her sister's reaction was met with a low, rumbling growl. Although Sart may have been reacting instinctively, she had been taught better than that.

"Wolf," she repeated, speaking in a hiss out of the corner of her mouth. "Bow." Even as that word slipped past her lips, she lowered her head and allowed her tail to go limp behind her. She kept her blue gaze fixed on the wolf's strange, homely face. Reggie carefully avoided his eyes. Though she was socially programmed to treat wolves like kings and queens, that didn't mean she trusted them implicitly. She took after her father that way.

Continuing forward with his eyes locked on the coyotes, Reek could finally gauge their reaction to him as he came into view.  The playful one, she acted predictably and scurried herself into a corner in fear.  The other, her reaction was more— confusing. Closing in on the pair, Reek heard the little one spit 'bow' to her sister, meanwhile, she assumed a subservient position. A stark contrast to Reek's typical indignant nature.  Obviously, this sort of behavior was drilled into the pups from a young age.  Strike two for mother.

Reek lowered his head to bring himself to the pups level. Smiling warmly, he crooned, "You don't have to be afraid of me." I'm only going to take you far, far away. He left out that detail for now, but it was for their own good. How could he in good conscious let two pups, no matter the species, die of starvation? Besides— they would be an investment. Bodies were bodies. "Up you go," he beamed, nosing at Regipre for her to find her feet.

"Are you two hungry?" asked Reek with a friendly grin. Nevertheless, an answer was unnecessary. A single parent couldn't provide for their basic needs, not permanently. Especially a scavenger like their mother.

She ran in circles and barked in panic until Regipre reminded her what she was supposed to do. Oh right. Bow. Sart stopped suddenly and lowered her chin to the ground. Her front paws rose, covering her nose and eyes as she kept her rump up in the air. It was a bow. A scared bow, but a bow, none the less. She still trembled. Her tail was tucked tightly beneath her as she lifted a paw to peek at the dark wolf who padded towards them and covered her eyes once more.

It took her a few moments to realize she was off to herself. Exposed. Realizing this, she hopped, skipped, and jumped over to where her sister also bowed and resumed the position. It didn't seem to help much. The stranger moved closer, putting himself and his teeth on their level. Sart yipped and broke her bow to hide behind Regi. She confused his words in thinking he was hungry. "Dunna eat us!" Then amended. "See's fatter!"

When Sart didn't calm down but instead ran in circles while barking like a fool, Reggie growled again, louder this time. "Stop it," she hissed quietly, even as the wolf closed in on them with cheery reassurances. Her ears fell back as his grizzled snout reached out toward her. She was torn between deference and self-preservation. She grimaced and whispered, "No touch." She hoped she wouldn't be punished.

When Sart screamed again, Regipre finally tore her eyes away from the wolf to bare her teeth and make a snipping motion in her sister's direction. "Be quiet," she warned quietly, then slowly returned her stonewashed gaze to the wolf. She had understood the question. The gift pondered a moment, then mutely bobbed her head.

"Mother hunts," she added lowly, glancing back at the lair. She saw Papref peek his little head out, then immediately retreat back into the den. Ignoring him, she returned her gaze to the black wolf and said to him, "Regipre." She dipped her snout toward her chest in a sort of formal curtsy, then pointed it toward her foolish sibling. "Sart."

God, Reek is such a creep.

Sart's little quip almost made Reek double over in exasperated laughter, but due to her obvious fear of the stranger, Reek held it in.  Instead, his smile broadened as he turned his attention to the more fearful of the two once she rounded to the stoic one's side, who quickly responded with a snap. "You've got nothing to worry about little one, both of you," he genuinely consoled.  Nevertheless, he figured his kind words would carry little effect. Fear was a funny thing. It's grip wasn't something so easily broken, especially at such a young age— Reek knew that first hand.  

Regipre, conversely had maintained her composure. Nevertheless, it was still obvious she was unnerved by the situation. Reek pulled away as soon as she vocalized her apprehensions with contact.  The more she spoke, the more she reminded him of a tiny Citali. "Okay," he conceded, pulling himself back a few feet while slumping lazily on the floor in front of them.

She went on to explain that their mother hunts for them. Obviously. "But, is it enough?" he inquired, carefully maintaining his silk like tone. Now on to the selling speech. "I'm Reek Redtail, the Alpha of Phoenix Maplewood. Winter's coming soon... I don't think what she provides will prove to be enough— but, there's a land of plenty up north. Sanctuary. I could take you there."

Things were happening that she didn't quite understand. Something was telling her it would be a better idea to turn tail and head back into the den, but Regi was barking orders at her to bow and stay quiet and it was all terribly confusing. She settled for doing nothing at all and instead stared back at the stranger who wasn't leaving. He was saying things, but they were all going over her head and she looked to her sister to be the voice of reason.

That was, until he spoke more and asked about things she definitely didn't understand. "You tail be black," she piped up, knowing those colors well enough to know he did not have a red tail. She also wasn't sure what an alpha was. Or a Phoenix. Or a maplewood. Her life was filled with mostly golden grass and the occasional buffalo.

By the time he got to the end of his chat her mind was bursting with questions and she couldn't keep her silence any longer. "What's a winter?" she asked, poking her head around her growly-grr sister. She had no idea what that season was. Likewise... "What's a sanc-poo-berry? Can you eat it?"

His question made Regipre freeze thoughtfully. She remained still as a statue as he delivered a grand speech about his home, complete with an offer to take them there. She didn't know the word sanctuary any more than silly Sart did, though she could gather its meaning from contextual clues. Her lips pursed and she blinked, processing this information. Obviously, she didn't want to go off with some stranger... but if the wolf insisted, she wouldn't have a choice in the matter.

Sart's whimsical questions earned a look of reproof from the elder whelp, though she refrained from insulting her sister's childish questions. Instead, she asked one of her own. "Mother and Papref come too?" Of course, she would want them to come along too. Although Reggie wasn't a demonstrative type, she loved each of her family members and wanted to stay with them. However, if this Reek insisted on only taking her and Sart, she knew she would do as she was told.

The little fearful one was quick to fire off a barrage of questions for Reek to answer.  Starting from the beginning, Reek planned on addressing them all.  A little context would help them come to the decision to leave with him themselves— after all, he wasn't looking to force them.  "Winter," he began, "Is a really cold time. There isn't much food to go around. I was alone last winter and I almost died."  If they didn't follow him back, they would surely share that same fate.  But, not wishing to make the conversation too morbid, Reek left that teensy detail implied.

"A sanctuary," he continued on, "Is a safe place... where nothing can hurt you.  That's what the Maplewood is."  It may have been a gross exaggeration, but the protection of an entire pack definitely won out against a single mother.  

Reek's heart clenched as soon as little Reggie piped up about about bringing her mother and the mystery Paprif along. He briefly thought of his own mother and the bond they shared. It was a terrible thing to separate such a thing, but it was for the greater good. Reek shifted his gaze to little Reggie and bit his lip in contemplation. Personally, he would have no problem letting the whole kit-and-kaboodle crash at the maplewood, but the rest of the pack would surely frown on bringing a whole gaggle back. Pups could be explained, a full grown 'yote on the other hand was another story... and a drain on valuable resources. "No," he stated sadly with a somber shake of his head. "But, if you're coming back with me, we should leave soon."

It was very evident by now that Sart hadn't the slightest idea as to what was actually going on. It was very fortunate for both of them that Regipre's cognitive skills were significantly more developed in that she was able to comprehend the situation. Sart was still back at square one with trying to wrap her mind around what "winter" was. Considering she was a summertime baby, she didn't have much understanding of the word "cold". At her age, she also didn't really understand the concept of life or death, so that one went over her head too.

He elaborated as to what a sanctuary was. It wasn't edible. It was a place. That seemed significantly less fun than what she was hoping for and then it seemed significantly more real. The pieces of the puzzle were slowly coming together as Regipre asked if their mother and brother could come along. Her eyes stole back towards the den, but their brother must have been still hiding in the shadows. Wait. Were they going somewhere? With this wolf?

She tucked herself behind her sister and waited for Regipre to sort things out.

I figure we can fade this here if that works! Then we can have another... somewhere? Maybe back at PHX? :)

She understood his words on a logical level, yet like Sart she couldn't truly comprehend such abstract concepts as winter, starvation or death. Her taupe fur prickled slightly as she pondered the last one. Although she couldn't quite grasp it, she nonetheless feared it instinctively. Regipre was nothing if not pragmatic. More important than staying with her family—hell, even more important than obeying her superiors, the wolves—was survival. After all, nothing else mattered if you were dead.

Reek wasn't insisting, not in the direct sense of the word, but Reggie interpreted that he very much desired for them to go with him. She could not think of an argument beyond wanting to stay with her mother and brother. But if this was for the best... she and Sart must go. She didn't know what would happen to Tomahawk and Papref, though she couldn't get caught up in her concern. If Sart hadn't been there with her, Reggie would have left her behind too, if it meant simultaneously obeying this wolf's wishes and giving herself a better chance at life.

"OK," the older, wiser of the two pups said decisively after a long moment. Her pale blue eyes shifted to the den's mouth one more time. She didn't see Papref and there was no sign of Tomahawk's return. "We go with Reek," she said aloud for Sart's benefit, then made ready to follow after him. Regipre would not look back.

Awesome, I'll tack on an ending here! I'll start up a thread in PHX as soon as possible!

The smaller of the two instantly differed to the other once push came to shove and a decision had to be made. Surprisingly, Reggie agreed.  Reek shuffled from his prone position and found his feet.  "Off we go then," he said, shifting his gaze northward toward the Sunspire Mountains.  With that, and two coyote pups at his heels they began the long journey back to their new home.

It hadn't been the sort of recruitment Reek had in mind, but in due time, Reek figured these two would be as valuable as any.  Now, there was only to see if his wife felt the same way.