walkaway joe

Hellooo~

Juniper catches wind of the pack borders long before her paws carry her into danger, but she does not hesitate in turning towards the unmistakable scent and finishing off her step with a soft tipp sound as her pads sink into the rain-damp dirt. Her ears swivel forward as she regards the woods around her with a bit of trepidation; they smell of wolves, but also of a queer sweetness that she can't seem to place. It bothers her that she doesn't know the source, and her disturbance is doubled with just how unfamiliar the wolves living within are. She can't merely walk up and ask; that would be a massive breach of etiquette.

But something deep down tells her she can't keep wandering forever, especially with the chill of winter beginning to creep further down from the mountain heights each night. Her stomach rumbles loudly as if to highlight the point her mind is trying to make: your soul-searching is less important than food, idiot, and good luck fending for yourself when the snows set in. She cringes and looks back the way she came, considering, for half a second, turning around and returning to the loving arms of her family. But she doesn't.

She turns to face the woodland fully now and trots closer, and closer; until the smell is nearly overwhelming, and the red-flags are shooting up like fireworks in her brain. Her limbs tremble as she roots herself to the spot and throws a howl into the sky, announcing her presence to the pack within and praying to the Gods they find her worthy of their time.

They'd had a lot of callers of late. Saena wasn't ungrateful, but she would be lying if the frequent visits to their borderlands weren't grating on both her nerves and her injuries. With assurance that the bear was no longer in the vicinity of their pack, the alpha had finally heeded Citali's advice and attempted to rest, but between the persistent itching under her coat and the need to attend every caller personally, she hadn't had much time for that.

The lead bitch, however injured she was, refused to let others handle her responsibilities for her. Reek could've easily done all of it, but she stubbornly refused that, too, and so she was heading for the borders once more at a hobble, grumbling and whining all the way.

When she finally walked into the cloud of Juniper's scent, she did her best to smooth her features into an implacable mask. It was imperfect. Tension still pinched the corners of her eyes and the bridge of her nose and her eyes were wild with pain. Her shoulder twitched as an itch began there but she had to ignore it, for rounding the next maple tree revealed the summoner.

She was a lanky, tall creature wrapped in a blonde coat. She was the first blonde wolf Saena had seen in a very long time. That alone made her memorable. If that wasn't enough, then the dual-toned eyes, a reminder of Junior in a way, certainly were. Juniper could be sure she wouldn't soon be forgotten, whether good or bad.

Unable to lift her absent tail, the alpha pitched her ears forward at an angle that was more sharp and commanding than usual (to make up for said missing tail), and she lifted a brow expectantly. The ball was in Juniper's court, and all Saena had to do was fight off the urge to roll on the ground to relieve her intensely itchy back.

It wasn't long before an eerie shape began to materialize from the dusky shadows of the forest. Her first glance, and breath, told her that this was a female and also wrong somehow; from the hobble, to the soft whines, and the complete lack of something... it only became clear when Saena fully revealed herself, standing tall and pricking those odd russet ears forward. The shadows beneath her eyes weren't shadows at all, but the same vibrant color as her ears. But, more importantly, this woman was clearly ailing from a few serious wounds. She was missing her entire TAIL for God's sake!

Juniper sucked in another breath and, "Holy hell." She blinked rapidly, immediately flattened her ears and lowered her head in a typically submissive stance, "Gods above, sorry, I don't know what--er." She whined for lack of anything better to say or do until she could find her voice again. "I'm sorry, I just was... surprised, is all, uh. Do you need help?" She settles on, only to realize just how pretentious that sounded. She ziped her lips with a soft click of teeth against teeth.

When Juniper swore and ducked her head, Saena turned her own to look past her own shoulder with a pang of anxiety. She half-expected to see Morran flying out of the woods at her, but there was nothing there, and only then did the leading bitch realize it was her that Juniper was shocked about. "What?" she asked flatly even as the blonde wolf stammered out a sort of apology. "Never seen a war veteran before?" She let that hang in the air a few moments, then snorted with something akin to mirth in her eyes.

"I'm kidding. I've never been in a war. A bear just couldn't get enough of my ass. I can't blame it," she tried to joke, though it fell flat at the end, as if it was still a little too painful to make light of. Well, at least she tried. "And nah, no help needed here, unless you can sew on a new tail by any chance." That was ridiculous, of course, so in other words, Juniper couldn't help her. But, "I can help you, though, right? You called for us?"

Man, going from active to passive voice is haaard after so many months. .___.

Juniper might have flinched. Just a small flicker of skin on her shoulder at the even retort; a reflection of her inner anxieties. She worried about overstepping her bounds, even insulting the other female, but thankfully the statement was revealed to be nothing but a half-hearted joke. A smile brimmed on the fringes of her Serious Pack Stuff Face™. The russet-eared leader seemed to have a good enough heart, and it allowed Juniper to relax a bit; she wasn't about to be run off like some... uh, lone wolf. Not rogue. No, don't think about--

"I mean, if you want a pine brush tail. Might be a bit, uh, pokey for tender--" She interrupted herself before her train of thought veered off into talking about personal lady bits and swished her tail with a mild chuff to dispel the previous thread of conversation. "Yes! Or, I guess I was hoping to help you, too. Mutual assistance; I need a home, and a pack, and others to spend time with. I'm not cut from the loner cloth and this whole situation has become," Juniper inhaled and squeaked out on the exhale, "Really overwhelming? It wasn't supposed to be permanent..."

"Sorry, I'm saying a lot without saying a lot. I do that, uh, when I'm nervous sometimes." She chuckled.

I have a hard time writing in active voice but I kind of want to try it someday, I feel it'd be easier to focus on the character's current actions rather than their thoughts. >_> Personally I don't mind at all if you do it! I know some people don't like reading it though, although I'm not too sure why that is! I think it reads beautifully.

Saena laughed, a deep in-your-belly laugh. If it was possible, she would've taken a pine brush tail over no tail, even if it meant using sensitive bits as a holder for her "tail", but it was too ludicrous to even imagine. She had almost conjured up something to say in response, almost certainly something hopefully-witty-but-actually-just-really-awkward, but Juniper saved her from embarrassing herself when she explained her own situation.

She wanted to ask what made Juniper leave her home pack in the first place. She wanted to ask how loner life was overwhelming, or more specifically, if there was something making it overwhelming. Having been a pack wolf for about 99% of her life, Saena had no idea herself how stressful it could be and she was genuinely curious. Yet she sensed from Juniper's anxious tone and her closing admission that it probably wasn't something to talk about yet, and so the alpha tried to focus on something else.

Of course, since she immensely enjoyed this female's company and wasn't likely to turn her away even if she had no skills whatsoever (they sort of needed her as much as Juniper needed the maplewood pack), she didn't say anything business-like yet. Instead, she raised a brow, failing to look suave at all when her ear twitched three times against an irritating itch, and asked, "d'you like sugary sap?"

It's definitely weird; you literally have to be like "character is doing this right now." I flip-flop tenses a lot, on accident of course but still. I like how it reads but passive is much easier to write for once you get back into the swing of it. :P

Considering how she read like an open book 99.9% of the time, Juniper would have gladly divulged all of the key points that led her from being excited about travelling to holy-Hera-NO-THANK-YOU within a few weeks. Mostly involving a highly sheltered, but thoroughly informed childhood with no detail left upturned that would likely bore most listeners to tears. Nope, in the here and now, it wasn't nearly as important as making a good impression on the russet-tinged woman.

She was, however, insanely pleased that the woman enjoyed her peculiar brand of humor. Bonus points!

One of those aforementioned russet tips twitched three times in rapid succession before a reply was offered. Juniper tore her eyes away from the motion of Saena's ear, cocked her head, and then looked around. "I was... kind of wondering what that smell was," She remarked thoughtfully. "But no, I've, well--it never occurred to me to try licking tree juice, if that's what you're asking." She laughs; a hearty, deep-seated one similar to Saena's own not a few moments ago. It is quite telling of her personality, even when faced with circumstances like this one.

She snorted, rolled her eyes, and said, "what, never compelled to lick tree juice? What kind of wolf are you?" Of course, the joke was that no sane wolf went around licking tree juice. It was actually Oliver who had first discovered the maple trees and how sweet they were. Admittedly, Saena had yet to lick one of them, but the smell was poignantly sweet everywhere in the forest. Probably sickening to some, but she enjoyed their unique aroma, and the colours bursting forth in the canopies were definitely worth enduring the maple sap.

"I think it's edible but I haven't tried it either. But if the sweet smell doesn't bother you, this is a lovely place to live." She tried to flick her tail, realized it wasn't there, and promptly sat down to avoid feeling like a total idiot. By now, Juniper probably thought she had the jitters, and she wasn't far off. Saena was miserable lately.

"I'm Saena, by the way," she introduced, doing her best to ignore the compulsion to twist her head around and gnaw at her shoulder. Talk about annoying. "This is Phoenix Maplewood. We're a small pack, but pretty tightly knit if I do say so myself." Would she have liked a larger pack? Hell yes. But Saena didn't get to choose. She only had to do her best, and that's what she tended to do, even if she was a little inexperienced and sometimes made poor choices. "So if small and close is your thing, well, we'd be happy to have you as long as you're not, y'know, a total mooch." She stuck her tongue out jokingly, though she was a little bit serious.

Juniper snickers and says, "Not a very good one, apparently." She had to admit, though. The smell was wonderful; if she'd been a human, it would have brought her a great deal of nostalgia. Warm pancakes in autumn. But sadly, as a wolf, she had nothing in her memory banks to compare it to. It didn't invoke any great feelings in her other than she wouldn't mind seeing more of this sugary woodland.

When Saena sat, Juniper casually mirrored her. She'd taken notice of the little twitches and flicks that seemed to be quite excessive for normal wolf communication, but didn't have a great need to point it out. Perhaps she had allergies? Or maybe she was just a nervous creature. Her tone of voice and overall demeanor didn't suggest anything of the sort, but she'd learned in the past that some are better at hiding more of themselves than others.

So came the introductions, the brief overview of the pack, and finally the offer. Juniper grinned. "It's nice to meet you, and I can't say I'd be bothered by small and tight-knit. Really, I'd feel a bit lost in a bigger pack. I like to get to know my fellow members, not just memorize faces and names." She admits with what amounts to a shrug. "I'm Juniper and a Certified Anti-Moocher. Scratch my back, and I'll scratch yours; ask me to jump, and I'll ask how high."

"And if I ask you to to go pick me exactly fifteen blackberries?" Saena asked, but her bright grin showed no serious intent to do that at all. She had no interest in blackberries and she preferred to let newcomers settle themselves. Sometimes she would put their skills to the test, and other times, like now, she would take them at face value. Juniper had a spirit that Saena liked, so testing her skills seemed a moot point. She'd made a fantastic addition to the maplewood even if she was completely useless, which the alpha female sincerely doubted. No wolf was completely useless.

"C'mon in, then," she said with a sweeping play bow. "Welcome to the kingdom of sugar and sweets!" And Reek and his coyote babies, but that was something Saena would like to completely forget about, and not mentioning it at all seemed like a good way to do that. "Hey, speaking of scratching backs... you don't happen to know a good cure for fleas, do you?" As if anticipating the golden she-wolf's potential reaction to this news, the alpha stepped back and insisted, "I'm not gonna touch you with 'em! Someone gave them to me, I think outside the pack 'cause I think I'm the only one, and it's killing me."

"I mean, sure!" She chirped, "Mountain or lowland blackberries?" Her follow-up question was punctuated with a knowing wink. But there was relief evident in the loosening muscles down her back and shoulders. Joining a pack was, well, monumental, and a great first step in rediscovery. Here, without the influence of her parents, she could sink her teeth into the pack life and make some new connections. Maybe even make a new life for herself, should this situation prove itself more than mutually beneficial.

When Saena swept into a mischievous bow, Juniper sprang after her and smacked the ground with her forelegs, tail beating against her hocks. She crept forward, and made to kiss at the Alpha Female's chin, but stopped short when the woman presented an interesting question. Her eyes widened in alarm at the mention of fleas, but she didn't shy away from Saena. That'd be rude! "You know," She begins slowly, "I've seen wild horses roll in dust, and that keeps flies away. Maybe it'll choke the fleas out? Maybe not though." She shrugs. "A wild guess, don't quote me on it."

"Hmm," she intoned, straightening from the bow. Not that she didn't fancy the idea of playing with Juniper—she ordinarily would've obliged the other female's romping approach—but she didn't want to go spreading her affliction to the pack's newest member. What a terrible welcome that would be!

"Maybe I'll have to try that," she mused, and then her eyes widened as a figurative light-bulb went off. "D'you think rolling in mud would have the same effect? We have a mud puddle pretty close to the maplewood."

Juniper grins as Saena rattles off an even better idea. "That sounds crazy enough to work! If they can't move, they can't bite; if they can't bite, they can't eat. So they'll just..." She makes a goofy raspberry sound with her tongue and at the end tacks on a: "Die!" Really, the young Alpha was bringing out the best in Juniper. She hadn't felt so at ease in quite a few months.

"That's brilliant!" Saena exclaimed, not once questioning Juniper's logic. If she was a scientist, she would've had such questions as, how do we know fleas eat by biting, and what if fleas can breathe underwater, but she was a wolf and, though once a naturalist, she wasn't very good at natural sciences any longer.

She began marching off toward the mud puddle, though she stopped long enough to say, "if you want to mess around, you can come, too, or you can head on in and say hi to anyone you meet. Reek might be around—my mate," she clarified with a grin, "though he does kinda sound like a swamp monster, huh? Maybe I'll cover him in mud when I get back." Chuckling at the thought of Reek living up to his name, the young alpha shook her head and began stepping slowly in the direction of Feller's Pond to give Juniper ample time to decide what she wanted to do.

The fun-loving she-wolf didn't seem like one to give up a chance for shenanigans, though, so Saena ended up racing Juniper (at a safe distance) to the pond, where they covered themselves in mud (albeit Saena was hesitant to touch it).