Lake Rodney bikini season in the southern hemisphere

Restlessness drove Behati south. 

Though many had prayed it would stay in bed a little longer, autumn was 100% happening - and announcing the fact in bright and happy colours. Behati wondered if it was for the benefit of those that would die in the winter months. One last glorious spectacle of nature before end.

She made it all the way to Lake Rodney before stopping. She had skirted the Caldera's claim, noting their very particular scent before cutting west towards the vast, dark lake. It was midday by the time she reached it, and Behati's stomach was rumbling. If she couldn't find a mentally challenged fish, she might have to dig for worms or frogs again. Her refusal to partake of the pack's caches was quickly becoming a problem.

As soon as his latest wounds knit, Peregrine intended to go right back to harassing the squatters in Haunted Wood. He wouldn't rest until he drove them away. He knew his mate and the rest of the pack felt similarly. They hadn't come away from their various altercations unscathed but the Alpha remained confident that they would wear down and eventually exterminate the pests next door.

Presently, he roamed toward the caldera's western borders. With much of their concentration on the woods, they had neglected this side of their claim somewhat. Peregrine moved in stops and starts, hiking a leg here and rubbing the scent glands on his feet there. The views were particularly incredible here, what with the colorful forest to the north and the lake due west. He found himself idly wondering why they didn't extend their range further in this direction.

Before he could dwell on that thought much, he spotted a figure moving along the shore. The wolf was far enough away that Peregrine didn't feel threatened, though his black hackles bristled nonetheless. He didn't have much patience these days. He began to trot toward the stranger, picking up her scent en route. She was easy on the eyes eye, yet that didn't soften his approach.

He came to a stop perhaps a dozen feet away, posture rigid but mostly neutral. Peregrine squinted his jade eyes, his tail twitching. He didn't need to speak, for his body language spoke for him: Who are you and what are you doing here?

Behati was partaking of lake water when Peregrine arrived in her vicinity, and was deaf to his approach. Noisy slurping became desperate coughs when he entered the corner of her eye and a gulp of water took an unfortunate trip down the wrong pipe. Like Peregrine, Behatei reacted by bristling, covering her throat and assuming an arched, side-on posture. With a couple of crab-like side-steps away from the looming mass of the Caldera, she communicated her lack of interest in invading his pack - or even his space. This was an older gent, and a wolf did not earn his grey hairs by acting all #YOLO around strangers.

"Going north," she told him, casting a look at the distant Bramblepoint. Internally, she was screaming. Leaving one's back open to attack was a rookie mistake.

Peregrine remained motionless as she reacted to his presence. She not only indicated the north, she answered verbally as well. Some of the tension eased from his muscles as his ears fanned backward, then settled into a curious prick atop his head. He remained standing, though he shifted his weight into a slightly less threatening, more casual posture.

"Heading home?" he asked. "Or looking for one?" he ventured to add. The Firebirds would ascend soon but there was space for another adult or two besides. Especially with a small-scale war on their hands, Peregrine could possibly use some more able bodies.

Behati was very tempted to lie. She was curious about this wolf and his bowl of a mountain, and this was not the first time she had sworn her allegiance to a pack with no intention of staying. Well - technically, it would be her first solo attempt. 

Luckily, Behati did not succumb to stupidity that day. Peregrine's stance softened and hers followed suit, ears swivelling to face their darker comrades. "Heading home," she echoed, studying the Alpha intently. She could not help but wonder if he had a mate and pups at home, and what they looked like. "I joined.. um.." Blacktail Deer Plateau!".. Saltgrass Plains. Do you know it? It's really far away from here," she hastened to add, putting as much distance between Peregrine's claim and her own imaginary packlands as possible. Inter-pack relations were the exact opposite of Behati's speciality, but she assumed that doling out information about one's claim was a big no-no. What was that word? Diplomacy? Perhaps it meant to 'to protect'.

He hadn't heard of said pack, nor did he recall Wildfire ever mentioning it when regaling him with tales of her adventures. Peregrine didn't even remotely suspect a fib, however his interest in her immediately waned. He cared very little for other packs these days (unless they insisted on setting up camp in his backyard, of course) and there was probably very little window of opportunity to try swaying her loyalty toward his own squad.

"No," he replied after a lengthy pause, only after realizing he hadn't answered. "But as long as you don't somehow try to claim the lake, I couldn't care less," Peregrine announced. He didn't move, though. He would probably linger in the area and keep an eye on her until she left, as the Master Warden within him demanded.

Behati glanced at the lake that was now behind her. "No plans," she confirmed, eyes wandering down the path Peregrine had presumably taken to get there. Having yet to fully commit her life and soul to Blacktail Deer Plateau, she was not as disinterested in the lives of strange wolves as he was. They still represented the possibility of adventure rather than trouble. "Are you moving, or something?" she asked, licking her lips.

"No plans," she assured him. Peregrine said nothing. He didn't particularly care to continue the conversation. However, she had another question for him. It earned a blank stare. He didn't understand what had prompted the question. Then it occurred to him: maybe she thought he was trying to lay claim to the lake shore. It had crossed his mind to broaden his range but there was nothing more to it yet.

"I live at the caldera there," Peregrine said, motioning toward the squat smokestack of a mountain with his black muzzle. "We have no plans to move," he added succinctly, then glanced northward in silent expectation for her to be on her way.

It took a few tries, but Behati eventually got Peregrine's message. She held no interest for him, and would likely turn tail and go within the next thirty seconds if she did not make a move first. She followed his look north, thankful that she had picked a location for her fake pack that wouldn't require a detour to get home.

Behati wasn't accustomed to being dismissed. Her youth, looks, and the far-reaching reputation of her father had always made her feel like the important one in any encounter with a stranger. No such luck here. At best, Peregrine saw her as an irritation. She was half-tempted to go back on her pledge to Blacktail Deer Plateau just to make herself seem interesting.

"Well, good luck," she told him instead, flashing the Caldera a curious look before turning in the direction he had indicated.

She wished him luck. Peregrine blinked, then nodded to acknowledge the words without making a reply. He turned his head sideways to keep his good eye on her back as she retreated. He stood sentinel until her figure literally vanished into the distance. His jade gaze then swept the nearby shore and he once again wondered to himself why they had never thought about staking a claim on it. His head then emptied of all thought as he pivoted and mechanically resumed his interrupted patrol.