Greatwater Lake A careless wanderer

A cold breeze blew through the land, gray and white fur bristling some as the chilling breath of the the wind toyed with his pelt. The wolf's large, white paws carried him slowly through the terrain, his emotionless gaze wondering around at the land before him as he weaved his way through the towering trees. His cold sapphire stare looking toward the vast lake that dominanted most of the scenery before him. A low growl rumbled within his throat as he strolled his way into the open, gradually making his way toward the waters edge. The brute stopped and peered at his reflection in the still waters momentarily, till his pink tongue escaped his mouth as he lowered his head to drink from the large mass of water.

Droplets fell from his white beard as he slowly rose his head. Pink tongue licking at the few stray droplets of water that attempted to fall from his muzzle as he looked around him, sapphire eyes peering across the lake casually until his paws decided to move him onwards. The gray and white male slinking back into the shadows of the circling trees as he ventured on aimlessly with his journey. He didn't know where he was going, nor did the brute care.

Hi @Vandal! This looked a lil' lonely. I think it'll fit nicely in the timeline before she gets to RHC. :)

It happened, at long last: she felt a flicker of familiarity. Raven stared across the vast lake, squinting slightly as she tried to grasp at the fuzzy memory. She had been here with Wildfire, she was almost certain of it. When the recollection began to gel, her heart skipped a beat. If she knew this place, then that meant she was finally getting close to home and could hopefully find her way there soon. She just hoped her family still lived there and they might consider forgiving her and allowing her back into the fold.

Movement on the nearby shore scattered the yearling's thoughts. She turned, breath catching a little nervously as she watched a stranger striding along the water's edge, moving in this direction. He was larger than her, his pelt a mixture of grays and off-whites, and she could see his startlingly blue eyes from here. Raven wasn't the most social—in fact, she identified as an introvert—but it occurred to her that maybe she could ask for directions.

It took her a moment to build up the gumption to call, "Hello!"

Thank you :3

He'd been lost in his thought as the other called out to him in greeting, dark gray ears twitching as they registered the unexpected sound of a feminine voice, calling him over the gentle howl of the wind. Vandal paused for the moment, remaining still as his eyes stared ahead of him, cold sapphire gaze falling upon a wolf the color of night. Merely tilting his head to the side as he watched the female, Van gave a simple flick of his tail as he quietly observed her from afar.

”Hello?” He questioned, voice sounding into the air as he made his response loud enough for her to hear. It wasn't everyday a random wolf would call out to him, in fact; it usually was the complete opposite.

He stopped moving and seemed a little taken aback by her greeting. This made Raven feel awkward. She shuffled her feet, wondering if she was bothering him. Well, she could make this quick if he would rather be left alone to go on his way. She understood and respected the desire to be left alone to your own devices.

"Sorry to bother you," she called to him, respecting his space and making no move to come closer. "Would you happen to know the way to Redhawk Caldera?"

He turned gradually as the night colored female spoke, bringing his cold sapphire stare back to gaze at her once more. Shifting himself around to face her as he began observing her properly, his dark gray ears pivoted a little as he thought over her question, since she'd asked politely, he'd give her a little bit of his time. Licking his muzzle slowly for the moment, allowing the name of this place to repeat within his mind. It was also a place that was new to him; unknowing to the female whom had asked and was in search of it herself. Still, the brute stood quiet as he mapped out the terrains he'd visited in his head, leathery nose twitching as he scented the chilly winds, ”Never been there m'self..” He said casually, messily kept gray and white tail swaying behind him as he then added smoothly, ”Nor can I honestly say I've heard of it.” For it was the truth.

”Can't really say I'm from 'round these parts.” He offered her a wolfish grin, the large male lowering himself to sit upon his haunches, mud covered tail curling about his forepaws as he seated himself in front of the she-wolf, who he assumed; especially by her question, was lost.

Raven did her best to hide her disappointment when the stranger admitted he'd never seen nor heard of the caldera. Oh, well, she thought. She'd made it this far, surely she could figure out the home stretch. She offered the stranger a small, grateful smile nonetheless, her lips parting in slight surprise when he took a seat rather than walk away.

Oh, um... "That's okay," she said a little inanely. "I was born there," she added a little haltingly. It was probably readily apparent that she wasn't very good at making small talk with strangers. "I went away for a while and I'm just now getting back. My name's Raven, by the way. Raven Redhawk."

Vandal noted the surprised way her mouth remained ajar as he sat, the male's head slowly tilting to the side as he watched her smile at him. The male remained still, the only movement was that of his tail twitching upon the grass and the occasional flick of his ear as she spoke, elaborating on her story and reasons for seeking the place out. Dark gray ears arching forward instantly as she offered him her name. Van merely gave a simple nod of his head, a thoughtful expression befalling his face as he replied smoothly, ”I see.” Cold eyes remaining on her as he then continued, ”You were born there. And you can't find your way back?” The young wolf raising a brow some as he couldn't help himself but smile in slight amusement, ”A pleasure, Raven.” Dipping his head to her, his calm voice sounded once more, ”I'm Van.” A pearly smile displayed across his muzzle, shoulders giving a casual roll as his joints popped softly, relieving his aching body some.

So, you must've been gone from home a long time, especially to forget where it is.” Van giving Raven a questionable look, his stare trailing to the scenery around them before gazing back to her night hued form.

When he pointed out the absurdity of her situation, Raven's ears and cheeks burned with embarrassment and her eyes dropped. She could tell that he was only teasing, yet this was a tender issue for the young woman. She had never meant to wander so far or get so lost. She certainly hadn't planned on being gone for so long and essentially abandoning her entire family. It was a source of great regret and pain, though she didn't necessarily want to reveal that to a perfect stranger. That would be awkward.

"Yeah," she replied, forcing a quiet laugh. "It's stupid, isn't it?" She huffed another false-sounding laugh before sobering and trying to explain, "But I'd never left home before and I lost my way. I didn't realize I had no sense of direction until it was too late." Raven shrugged, still embarrassed and sad about what was probably the biggest mistake of her life. "I've been gone almost a year," she admitted.

Watching as her eyes dropped at his statement, Van couldn't help but feel a twisted sense of satisfaction spur deep down inside of him. The brute's eyes remaining emotionless as he noticed her facial expressions on the subject, these only confirming his suspicions of her guilt ridden conscience since the subject was mentioned. Though dark silver ears flicked forward as her voice sounded into the air once more, the brute tilting his head to the side as she spoke with a quiet laugh before speaking once again. Vandal had to admit that Raven's choice of words were somewhat amusing, getting lost was indeed a stupid thing. Especially if you never wanted to leave in the first place, but that probably wasn't the case the male thought.

As Raven went on to explain further, Vandal merely kept his gaze upon her black hued form as he listened, pink tongue briefly escaping his mouth as he licked at his muzzle. Pondering on her story for a second, the male cleared his throat and replied smoothly, ”Well, I'm sure they'll forgive you.” He smirked some and then continued, ”At least you've explored. And now you can tell them of your travels." Straightening his back some and added, "When you get home that is.” The brute's tail gave a casual flick as he rose himself on to all fours, ”I'm sure you're not as far from home as you think” He offered another smile as he then asked smoothly, ”Have you decided in which direction you're taking in your search?”

Of course, she hoped he was right about her family, yet there was no way of knowing, so she made no reply. Nor did Raven say anything when he brought up her travels. Truth be told, she didn't have anything to show for all her months away. She hadn't been off having adventures or doing anything particularly interesting otherwise. She had been wandering in circles for months, eking out a living but not doing much else of substance.

"I hope you're right," she said, which served as an answer to several of his remarks. Raven paused and pondered his final query, scanning across the lake. "Something tells me I should go north from here," she said, "which means I should most definitely go south." She laughed dryly again, this time with actual humor. "I should be on my way. It was nice to meet you, Van."

[ooc]Thank you for the thread :3

He merely looked to her as she replied, sapphire eyes remaining on her as she mentioned about his remark; hoping he was right. Van licked his muzzle for a moment, tail giving a flick behind him as he replied smoothly, ”One will only know when they get there.” A smile managed its way across his muzzle, ears twitching as she then went on to tell him which direction she would be taking, another smile was offered to her as she joked, the silver and white male giving her a pearly grin as she laughed.

With a simple nod of his head, Van turned himself to walk in the opposite direction, black lips parting as he gradually replied to Raven, ”It was nice to meet you. He smiled, ”Safe travels, Raven.” Sappire eyes taking one last look at her before looking away, white paws carrying him slwoly off, ”I hope you find home.” And with that the male slowly strolled away, tail swaying behind him; tips dragging across the grass covered ground.[/ooc]

With a final few well wishes, Vandal trotted away from the lake shore. Raven stayed put for a moment, yellow eyes lingering on his shrinking figure until the distance swallowed it entirely. She then faced out across the water and licked her lips as she deliberated for a few moments. She had only been joking a minute ago but Raven decided to go ahead and head south after all. Shifting her weight, she began to lope across a stagnant meadow, gasping and nearly stumbling over her own feet in her excitement when a familiar ugly shape materialized in the distance.