Redtail Rise Ashes, ashes, we all fall down

With a greater confidence in the blooming spring than she had shown during her disastrous winter, Diane began branching out further and further on each trip she took beyond Porcupine Ridge. She told herself she would always return, and so far she'd had no inkling that she wouldn't, but the she-wolf was afraid of using such definitive phrasing. After all, the ocean would never destroy her life— she had loved it more than anything!— and yet it had.

So she moved forward, having the presence of mind not to think much about the things transpiring in her life. She was more content than she ever felt she deserved, being the sole survivor of her birthplace, and the native seawolf took her happiness and held on to it tightly. She wore it like a badge, her face as bright and interested as the sun looked, peeking from behind thin places in the grayed sky. While Diane didn't necessarily understand what was causing her anxious giddiness, she knew it was coming from somewhere inside her. Somewhere hidden and just as unexplored as her violent streak— perhaps even less so.

The young wolf, for the first time feeling the amorous motions of spring, bounced curiously along. She slowed only when the scenery abruptly changed from white and peeking green to charred black.

@Reek

No clue where this will fit into my timeline, but whateves :P

Having set up camp so close to Redtail Rise, Reek found himself wandering to the peak that he once called home at regular intervals. Sometimes to reminisce on happy memories; sometimes to break down into a heap, tears flowing down his cheeks in the wake of everything he had lost— either way, it always provoked a strong emotional reaction from the has-been alpha male of the pack that once inhabited Redtail Rise.

Despite his willingness to return, however, Reek typically kept to the areas that hadn't been touched so hard by the blaze that forced them to relocate, but as Reek walked on, he pushed into the colossal wreck that once stood pristine. With the snow melting away, the charred earth was all that remained. The emotions Reek had tried to bury started to bubble their way to the surface, beginning with a single tear that streamed down his cheek.

A dark figure began to stand out among the bleak surroundings. Diane was moving slowly, so his features came to her just as slow, but there was no mistaking the defeat in the set of his body as she approached. Her gaze lingered on his face. It was a direct reflection of the present area, and the tearful shine of his muddy eyes drew her in instinctively. The young wolf wanted to embrace the stranger, envelop him in a bubble of protectiveness from the things that creased his emotions. But that was not appropriate, and she was even surprised at herself for having that thought. She hadn't felt such a pull since... since back in the Cove.

She realized then that she had been spending so much time recovering and discovering elements to her personality that simply hadn't existed before, that she had surely forgotten who she was at her core. A caregiver. A loving, sweet wolf, who never wanted to see anyone hurt. A whine hitched in her throat when she was close enough for him to hear it, and if he already hadn't been watching her too, he would realize her there now.

Keeping back several feet, she breathed evenly and watched the bedraggled wolf compassionately. "Hi," she said, barely over a whisper. "How can I help?"

He rarely allowed himself to cry. Typically, he found it easiest to break when he was alone. With Tavi away at the Maplewood and no one around to recruit, Reek no longer had to hide his emotions away. Like tar, they bubbled to the surface. More tears began to fall as he sniffled silently amidst a field of black. Tiny droplets fell against the charred remains of what was once his home, as he thought only of the marriage and the bridges he had left burnt and broken, much like his bleak surroundings.

A whine caught Reek's attention. With one final sniffle, Reek fell silent and still. He craned his neck, catching a stranger with the corner of his eye. "I'm fine," he returned weakly, knowing full and well the other wolf would know it was a lie. "I just need a moment."

He lied, which saddened Diane deeply, but she'd had zero actual expectation for him to genuinely answer her either, so the disappointment was short-lived. "Take as long as you need," she murmured, turning her face away, respectfully (or bashfully) peering in another direction as he sought to hide or eradicate the evidence of his tears. She breathed to herself, her body coursing with gentle attentiveness to the despair of the other. She wanted badly to mend him, as she had been mended by her packmates, but this was something that would obviously take time— and the mere kindness of a stranger could not heal what all had been broken with the dark-furred wolf.

"We.. we don't have to talk or— or anything, sir. Maybe we could go for a hunt, instead? It could distract you... somewhat..."

She didn't push the issue, and for that, Reek was grateful. Perhaps talking about what he had done to someone without a personal stake in what had happened would be a cathartic experiance, but Reek couldn't find the words within himself to accurately depict the guilt and loss that he so desperately tried to stow away in the deepest recesses of his soul. Instead, there was silence. In this silence, Diane allowed Reek the time to compose himelf. Despite his puffy, bloodshot eyes, Reek regained a modest level of composure.

"A hunt," he murmered, looking toward the stranger. "That would be nice." A distraction was just what he needed.

The corners of her mouth lifted in encouragement, her tail rushing back and forth as he assented to her proposition. "Come," she bid him gently towards less decimated pastures; "we'll have better pickings this way." Traveling in the direction from which she had come, she moved at a pace set by the emotionally wounded male, and kept herself from looking at him too closely, aware that he might still feel a little embarrassed. "I crossed some rabbit tracks a ways back. Maybe we can find their warren, hm?" she spoke conversationally, rhetorically, careful to avoid the pressing questions that buzzed in the space behind her eyeballs.

She kept her face and body language to a softly chipper tune, hoping he would feel just a bit better in her "happy-to-be-alive" vibe. She was also aware that this could backfire, and make him feel even more self-conscious, but thus was the importance of this hunt, so that he could lose himself in instinct rather than in thought. "I'm Diane," she said softly into the air, almost a whisper. As if she weren't sure she wanted him to hear her or not, but was too polite not to introduce herself anyway.

While the soft speaking stranger kept to an easy pace for Reek to follow, he found himself unable to keep up with her chipper attitude. Bogged down by his own emotional baggage, Reek struggled to send a smile in her direction. It was a toothy, but broken thing. The happy mask he typically hid behind on recruitment runs was now far out of reach. Once the emotions he had worked so hard to suppress worked their way out of their box, there was no way to shove them back in. The other wolf's efforts, however, were greatly appreciated.

"Okay," he said hoarsely, bordering on a whisper. Following in tow and waiting for his distraction, Reek could already feel his emotional state begin to repair itself as they reached greener pastures. With the scarring left by the fire behind them, Reek let himself go on autopilot. Nose pressed to the ground, he searched for the warren's scent. Her softspoken introduction distracted Reek for a brief moment. Tearing away from his scent search, he looked up toward her and said "Reek," even softer than she.

Diane's spirits kept a level high to combat her partner's effervescent sadness— and though she had zero idea of what had caused it, she found that immersing oneself in a natural activity, could free the mind of troubles, at least temporarily. Swimming or fishing used to be Diane's relief, but since witnessing the ocean's slaughter of her family, she'd been forced to find other outlets for her mounting worries. Mostly she felt glad he was immersing rather than hanging back. It made her feel better knowing she wasn't the only wolf out there who felt like crying, and she was even more happy to actually help someone in that position.

She let the silence hang between them, comfortable in it herself, as hunting left little room for chatting in the midst of it. She surmised that he was grateful for this, and would talk when he was good and ready. Her muzzle passed over a fresher trail then, and she motioned for Reek to start giving the area a wide girth. Once they located the exact position of their quarry, one of them would be able to chase it right into the jaws of the other.

Sorry for the wait!

A silence fell between them. For that, Reek was grateful, as he didn't much feel like talking. He felt as if he could shove his feeling away, ignore them until they disappeared, that would be best. Of course, it would only set him up for emotional breakdown later down the line, but Reek didn't know that. Instead, he was content to occupy his mind elsewhere though activity. He continued forward with his nose pressed to the ground, but from the corner of his eye, he could see Diane had found a stronger trail than he. Turning towards her, Reek followed.

And for a while, he didn't feel so bad.

Nodding to her motion to branch off, Reek took a wide ark around and gave Diane some space. With every step he took, the stronger the scent of a rabbit warren became. Eventually he came across a small hole in the ground. Bingo. He brought his gaze to Diane's level and motioned downward. Here.

Sorry to end so abruptly, love! But I thought you should have at least 10 replies here in case you wanted to use this for a trade or something <3

With Reek in place at the mouth of the burrow, Diane circled back, seeking to scare up some hares in his direction. Certainly their first instinct would be to flee to the safety of their home, where her hunting companion lie eagerly in wait for their arrival. The plan was highly successful, two rabbits getting caught in the confusion of the trap. The temporary hunting team lay with their spoils, and ate in a comfortable silence until politely parting ways. Diane's mind and her heart hung back with the sad, sad male, but her body had to return home without any knowledge of his woes. She thought she might like to meet him again... know more about what had made him cry among the ashes that day.