Leaving his warriors to monitor the borders, Raheerah had followed the notion to familiarize himself with his pack's surrounding territories. While his wife was well acquainted with the lands neighboring the Vale, the dragon had paid little attention to the wilds since settling down im the valley. He was certain that he hadn't even left the Vale for the first month since the monk claimed it. But now that the valley was under his rule, he found himself adopting the responsibilities of true leadership. And while Raheerah's agenda was one of malice, it always helped to wield neutral knowledge, especially of the places and wolves around his home.
The beast had taken to the western coast, where the air grew heavy with salt and he could hear the roar of the ocean from the forest. He had never seen the ocean before, but the beast held no desire to. It was only out of necessity for information that he had pursued the sound. His tail wavered high behind him and now, Raheerah loped through the trees, making a mental note of how vast this thick and shaded forest was. Oily grey fur bled into the shadows of the forest, though he would just as quickly illuminate in patches of warm gold sunlight. His nose raised to the air and he breathed in, frowning at the salt on his tongue. He disliked the coast.
After one too many twists and turns through the dense forestry cost her any advantage, her hunt was finally deemed a failure and thus, was abandoned. Reluctantly, she slowed up her chase, panting and with her disheveled fur prickled with an occasional piece of forest debris. She growled lowly to herself, biting back frustration as she cooled down to a loose, bouncy trot.
It was then that she heard something else moving through the woods -- something much larger than her quarry had been, which prompted a vague flicker of disappointment. Her ears quivered forward and she breathed deep to catch a distinctly wolf scent, and evidently one from the inland packs. Amekaze was vaguely curious, so loomed closer through the trees to get a better look.
He was a wolf only a few scarce shades lighter than herself. Large, and cutting an imposing figure, she was leery and quiet to see if he would react to her presence.
![[Image: 5ifpFkc.png?1]](http://i.imgur.com/5ifpFkc.png?1)
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」
He had allowed his mind to wander, frequenting on how greatly he disliked the coast, to wondering how alike the wolves belonging to the nearby pack would be to the western shore. And then to any similarity they may share with those he had encountered thus far. The beast held noted dislike for the Creek wolves, and though his malice towards the Plateau had subsided for now, he still wasn't particularly fond of them, either. In traveling between pools of sunlight, the beast had not noticed when the sun escaped him, leaving him to slide along in the cool darkness of a cluster of trees.
But so too did a shadow emerge there, manifesting among the gloom of the forest. He noticed her after she had smelled and identified him, caught in his curious thoughts. Raheerah ceased his pace almost immediately, holding no response in his posture besides the slow waving of his tail at level with his spine. Just as hope burned in him that this was one of the fabled coastal wolves, he realized she was bound by no such pack; it was only her scent that clung to her fur, telling that she was alone.
Where the beast easily could have dismissed her in favor of his current mission, he found himself intrigued. Creatures of such solitude always presented some kind of opportunity. He coiled around himself, maneuvering so that he would face her head-on. "Moove on, dooggg. I've nno prriiize foorr yoou to scaaveeennnge." He snorted and held his gaze, cocking his head slightly to hold her fully within the sights of his single eye.
Albeit not strictly a creature of the shoreline, there were days and weeks where she represented them more strongly. It was normal that she would touched subtly by the tang of salty winds, making it perhaps one of the more distinct scents she would wear (considering her absence of pack fellows). Yet the coast's hold on her was not firm and absolute. She traveled with the waterways, both great and small, and scaled the mountain slopes, but there was something about the coast that inevitably drew her back.. eventually.
Amekaze's ears quivered with a touch of anxiousness spurned by his quick reaction that manifested as soon as realization became clear on him. She steeled promptly, and wore her impassive face, watching the wave of his tail and the motions his body made to bring him face to face with her. It was then that she got a good, thorough look at his face and his lack of one eye. The scars on his head, too, were noted quickly.
Her tail stiffened although remained low and she sharpened her green eyes disdainfully; to think of her as a mere dog was a lowly remark. Ah, well good thing I did not expect to gain anything from you,
she quipped, sniffing at his direction plainly then. Wolves of the more inland scent are infrequent visitors, to my knowledge, so excuse my finding you somewhat out of place.
Considering that he had come to face her, she stayed put with her paws squared neatly, ignoring his suggestion to move along. He could carry on himself if she was truly that undesirable.
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」
The dragon could not contain an entertained sneer from sliding onto his lips. His head tilted slightly, looking her over before a slough of low and amused words tumbled from his jaw. "A wiiise expectaationn." He commented with a swish of his tail. She spoke something that would suggest she lived around these parts, which he drew to be peculiar. But then again, he was judging. He held distaste for the salt in the air here, and the constant sound of the water surging against the shoreline nearby, and he simply couldn't justify making a home here. Not to mention she did not share the stench of the coastal pack, or any pack at all. For what reason would a packless wolf constrain themselves to one region? They had all the freedom in the world, why stay in one place?
Perhaps, Raheerah simply lacked that sentiment. Where one would find comfort in a familiar place, a home; he simply viewed it as a resource. He would keep to his home, if only because of his companions. If they chose to leave the Vale, Raheerah would obediently follow, as he held no earthly ties to that place. Or any place. "Iii aam moost aalways oout of plaace. Iif yoou shaall fiind me cuuurious, iiit shaall not bee because I aam not froommm heere." He spoke, glancing away from her as he ran his tongue over his yellowed teeth and smacked his lips dismissively.
Solely in expectation for some kind of response, he did return his sight to her, twisting one ear aside.
Licking the backs of her teeth thoughtfully, she then nodded stiffly. Wise, indeed. If she were not, she would be long dead by now. It was not luck alone that kept her alive.
Tilting her head ever so slightly, she lingered on his words -- the way they spanned differently than much of what she heard. Still, his message was clear. Hm, I see..
she chuffed. Perhaps it was not a stretch to say she agreed. In a sense, or her own way of it, because there were many times amongst the company of too many others that she felt out of place. So contradictory to her nature as a wolf, the feeling unsettled deep, deep down at times. But this was different to her. More akin to an ink-spot on otherwise untarnished parchment was how he stood out in these landscapes, so contrary to their energies with his own.
Straightening her ears, she continued. True, that is only the start of it. Your purpose here also leaves me curious, among other matters.
She squinted at him. There were many other questions on the edge of her thoughts, however more inconsequential. Instead she focused on him. I doubt you come to admire the sights,
and neither did he look to be in need of a hunt.
The fact that he was humoring her at all was not cause to relax yet. Something about him advised her against it, and trusting her gut had yet to fail her..
She only stayed a while longer in his company. Eventually there was nothing to gain and she slipped away from the dark wolf. She went in a different direction than he did, of course.
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」