Dawnlark Plains somebody catch my breath

@Reek

After encountering Saena and being, more or less, chased out of the Maplewood - Tavi was too discombobulated to know where she was going. Her eyes were blurred by tears, and blood flowed freely from the tear in her neck. Where once a pelt of salt and pepper dominated, there were fresh streaks of crimson spanning across the back of her neck, her shoulder, and the side of her throat. It was likely the fur wasn't going to grow back there; but for now, she cared little about her appearance. All Tavi wanted was to find Reek, and get the hell out of dodge. Her path led her around a cluster of maple trees, veered towards the singular tree upon the edge of the plains where she was meant to meet him, and then beyond - she didn't stop, just kept running, running, running, regardless of if Reek stood waiting or not. A sob broke free of her, bubbling up like a wave of fresh blood, and she pushed on - away away away.

As the sunlight faded away and gave way to a faint moonlit glow, Reek returned to the tree where he had dug his temporary shelter and lied in wait for Tavi's eventual return. A long day of recruitment left him tired, yet strangely satisfied with his handiwork. Perhaps if the day was longer, he would have pushed himself longer to wrangle more followers. It would be a long process of course, but allowing himself to focus on the lofty goal of establishing a new pack helped distract him from the heartbreak that he desperately tried to ignore.

Hours trickled away and Tavi had yet to return. Reek began to grow worried about her condition. Saena was the vengeful sort— there was no telling what she would do, but Reek knew whatever his ex-mate did, it would probably spell trouble for both of them.

Reek stretched his bony forelimbs inside his temporary den; a yawn escaped his widely parted jaws. He tried to think of other things to distract himself from certain grim realities. Soon, his headspace was occupied by the logistics of what it would take to establish his own pack from scratch. Nevertheless, as he thought about recruitment, the faint scent of Tavi in the air caught his attention. As she promised, she came back. But, noticing her scent was awash with the smell of blood, Reek's stomach lurched.

He poked his head out of his shelter to see her mangled and running away— past him and into the distance. "Tav!" he shouted, hoping it would draw her attention and bring her back to him.

Something had overtaken the girl when she had been made to flee, and now the urge to run was difficult to control. If she couldn't be in the Maplewood, she would try to get out of it, and away from the outlying territories - but she needed Reek, she had promised to find him. Tavi stumbled to a halt only after Reek had risen from his hiding place to seek her out; not even his shouting could stop her. The figure of her friend within the growing grayness looked foreign, but only because Tavi's sight was discolored by her utter failure. The sadness she felt upon losing her friend - or rather, destroying her friend - welled up across her eyes. The pain in her neck was suddenly quite apparent, and the running, well.. The running made the blood leak from her at a faster rate. Tavi swayed where she stood, and slumped in to a heap before Reek.

She hastily blinked to clear her tears, but they were already running down her face. It didn't work, she drawled dumbly, looking through the dark for him. Made it worse, I think... Stupid. Tavi shook her head, but the sensation spanning across her neck where Saena had ripped away a piece of her was too much. Tavi winced and stopped, freezing in place. All m'fault...

In the wake of Reek's shout, Tavi stopped and diverted her course— eventually, coming to collapse before Reek's forelimbs. She was a sorry sight to behold; mangled and bloody, and it was all Reek's fault. He had brought this upon solely her with his mistakes. Not only did he destroy his family, but seeing the wolf he had come to know as his best friend be physically broken hung a heavy weight on Reek's heart. He inched closer, quiet like a church mouse, until he he was close enough that he could reach out and touch her.

Her pelt was thick with the scent of blood, cloying at Reek's nostrils. He sighed, "It's my fault Tavi." He could have stopped her— hell, he should have made her stay with him on the plains. He knew this would be Saena's reaction, but there had still been the naive hope that Tavi could fix things by talking to Saena whereas Reek could not.

"I need to clean your wounds," he said, rounding her side. Reek peered at the wound inflicted by teeth of his ex-mate on Tavi's neck. A fair chunk had been torn away. With no herbs to work with, Reek could only do so much, however, he wasted no time and began to run his tongue over the wound to clean it as best he could.

A soft whimper passed through her lips with every touch of Reek's tongue, but she did not protest. Tavi had no knowledge of medicine, and was lucky to have him aiding her. His words made her shake her head softly, but she didn't say anything - just let him tend to her in silence.

Eventually they'd have to get moving. Tavi was already incredibly antsy, shifting her weight every so often, trying to get up and move while Reek tried to clean the blood off of her. A part of her wanted to sit still and be fixed, obviously, but the urge to run and find a safe place was winning out.

We can't.. Stay here. Of course, he likely knew that. We gotta keep going. Moving. Tavi turned to look at Reek, pinching her wound enough to make her squint. She swallowed painfully and watched him. Help me stand -- With or without his help, she lurched up, trying to get on her feet.

Reek's work was meticulous and careful; one didn't earn the reputation of being one of the best medics in the Wilds for no reason. Though he had little to work with, Reek was sure to cover every inch— cleaning every spot his tongue landed. He could see she was restless. Of course, after running so long, he knew it would be difficult for her to turn her legs off, but what she needed most of all was rest. For that, Reek needed her to remain still.

When he had finished cleaning, Reek drew back. When she spoke, Reek knew Tavi had a point. Their rendezvous spot in the plains was meant to be temporary. They needed shelter before the night was over and the hole Reek had dug by the tree wasn't enough for two bodies. "There's a grotto north of here," he said. "While you were gone, I did some scouting... It'll be a good spot to stay and rest." And claim.

Tavi stirred and Reek offered his flank for support. Soon, she was on her wobbly feet. "We can start over there... The two of us. I've already spoken to a wolf who'd be willing to follow us."

Rest, yes. That's what she needed. Tavi nodded slowly as he spoke, and struggled to her feet. When he braced her from one side, she leaned happily against him - but upon hearing the rest of his statement, Tavi's pace slowed. Follow us?

She had no intention of ever being a leader. Becoming the beta of the Maplewood was bizarre - but she had accepted that fluke, even coveted her position. Lorded it over others. Thinking about being the head-honcho in a pack was unsettling indeed. You think anyone would do that? She started walking again, using Reek as support.

With his body acting as a crutch, together they made the short trek northward. It was a short distance to the Larksong Grotto, but at their slow pace it would take a fair amount of time before they arrived, especially when it came to traversing the rocky ground that lies around the grotto. "Follow us," Reek repeated, certain. Despite his bumbling approach to leadership, he felt he did alright. Also, Reek felt Tavi did well enough during her short week as beta.

"I know they would... Like I said, we already have one, and he's already out recruiting." Reek offered Tavi a light smile as they walked. After a quick pause, he continued speaking. "I mean, you don't have to lead if you don't want to— but, I'd rather you lead with me as the alpha female." While he felt he could, Reek didn't want to lead on his own. Tavi seemed to be the perfect candidate.

Fade? :o

She remembered the grotto. It had been of little interest to her before, but Tavi had been pulled towards the glacier beyond it. That was when she had talked to Thuringwethil - but she let that thought slide away. It wasn't important. Tavi moved carefully, listening to Reek, and contemplating as much as she could while attempting to ignore her pain. As much as she wanted to resist the offer, refuse it outright maybe, she knew it was only natural for her to be the leader beside him.

I'll think about it. She drawled, but remained noncommittal. Maybe someone better suited would arrive and help them. Or, thinking of what Saena had said — maybe by the time they'd established a claim, Reek's attention would be drifting elsewhere. She trusted in him to a degree, but... Tavi was not so attached to him, even now. Their relationship had been casual and she was determined to keep it that way, now that she'd seen the damage they caused together. Maybe ruling a pack together would be just as foolish?

Tavi sighed, tasting blood, and swallowed her doubts for now.

I'll go ahead and archive, or you can post again if you want! Either way!

Her answer remained neither here nor there, but Reek didn't feel it an important topic to pursue at the moment. Now, the only thought on Reek's mind was getting Tavi to safety and laying her down to rest deep within the protection of the grotto. They could talk about the logistics of running the pack together later, in fact, they had all the time in the world. "Okay," he said, accepting the answer she provided.

For the rest of the way, they continued in silence. Moving slowly though rough terrain, Reek led Tavi into the rocky embrace of the grotto. There, they collapsed into a heap and slept the rest of the night away.