Heron Lake Plateau Down in the Valley
Ghost
I still don't get it right sometimes · I just don't get it as wrong
692 Posts
Ooc — Starrlight
Mediator
Offline
#1
another! Bc why not

He'd found the trail of a fox and was bowing down it, hoping to find the bugger and nab it.  Fin's new pups were old enough where it might not be a problem, but no use taking chances, and he didn't much like foxes regardless.  Shifty little shits.

He followed the trail to the lake and around near its edge before it disappeared in a thicket if brush.  He stood looking at it a moment, then shrugged and began nosing to shove his head in.  It might not still be there, but if it was, he was a-comin for it.
Sun Mote Copse
Master
4,956 Posts
Ooc — Kat
Master Guardian
Master Tactician
Master Warrior
Offline
#2
She had stepped on something during her patrol. Towhee hadn't thought much of it at the time but as she sprawled on the shore of her little islet, trailing her paw in the cool waters, she saw a puncture wound in the leathery flesh on the underside of her foot. It was swelling a bit. She swirled it around in the shallows, which soothed the slight ache of it and hopefully cleaned it too. If it was still bothering her by the time she set out again, Towhee would find Raven first and have her take a look at it.

With a sigh, she let her head sink down to her outstretched forelegs, only to jerk it up again less than a minute later when someone appeared on the main shore. Towhee's orange eyes dimmed a little when she recognized Colt. So he's back. She didn't know what to make of him. He'd fought with them in the war and meant a lot to Finley and the kids. But he'd attacked her quite personally. And apparently he hated X. Honestly, that rankled worse than his prejudices against her deafness.

There was no real desire to engage, so Towhee simply watched quietly from her little island, idly wondering what he was hunting.
-Signing.- | "Speaking." | -"Signing & speaking."- | "Mouthing (inaudible)." | Thoughts.

I archive threads if my partner goes inactive and/or there are no new replies for several weeks. I'm more than happy to continue an archived thread if you're interested. Just revive it (via maintenance) and tag me in your next reply. :)
Ghost
I still don't get it right sometimes · I just don't get it as wrong
692 Posts
Ooc — Starrlight
Mediator
Offline
#3
He got his head a bit in, but wasn't able to see much - the thick weeds were too much for even his rangy frame.  He pulled his head back and glanced around, pausing when he noticed he had an audience.

He couldn't avoid her forever, and didn't really care to.  If they were gonna be packmates then he wanted to like her.  So while part of him was tempted to ignore her like an ass and walk away, he didn't.

 He was about to yell, then remembered.  She wouldn't even likely be able to read his lips.  Just as that thought crossed his mind, a rusty shape shot from the tangle behind him.

He wheeled and shot after it instead.  Too bad Towhee was on the other side, he wouldn't have minded an assist.
Sun Mote Copse
Master
4,956 Posts
Ooc — Kat
Master Guardian
Master Tactician
Master Warrior
Offline
#4
When he noticed her, Towhee stiffened and sat up slightly straighter but otherwise didn't react. It didn't matter much because, a split second later, his prey showed itself. She still didn't move as Colt suddenly turned and galloped after the fleeing fox. Even had she wanted to assist (which she didn't), he would surely catch up to and dispatch his quarry before she even finished crossing the water.

He probably wouldn't return. Towhee inspected her throbbing paw, removing it from the water and pushing upward into a sit. She would wait and see, then head to the island's center to rest in the privacy of the shady trees.
-Signing.- | "Speaking." | -"Signing & speaking."- | "Mouthing (inaudible)." | Thoughts.

I archive threads if my partner goes inactive and/or there are no new replies for several weeks. I'm more than happy to continue an archived thread if you're interested. Just revive it (via maintenance) and tag me in your next reply. :)
Ghost
I still don't get it right sometimes · I just don't get it as wrong
692 Posts
Ooc — Starrlight
Mediator
Offline
#5
The fox had a bit of a head start, but fortunately for Colt, it seemed to be injured.  He was able to catch it quickly, only a small distance away, and distpatched it swiftly.  A single leap, a single snap.

His sides heaved a bit from the sprint, and he picked up the newly killed critter before glancing back.  He could leave.... would it be weird to go back?  He didn't want to apologize - he wouldn't apologize, not for the main part of the argument.  But he needed to make nice in some way, and maybe this would help.  Might as well get this over with now and stop worrying about it.

He jogged back to the edge of the pond, then entered the water and began to swim over, still carrying the fox as he did so.  She was still there, so that was good.  Least he knew she wasn't into the avoidance thing either.
Sun Mote Copse
Master
4,956 Posts
Ooc — Kat
Master Guardian
Master Tactician
Master Warrior
Offline
#6
Color her surprised when Colt trotted back into view, the fox stuffed in his jaws. Her eyebrows lifted nearly off her face when he began to swim toward her. She could see the fresh blood threading pink through the water as he came closer. She took a step back, not to avoid him but to make space on the small strip of shoreline.

This had the distinct feeling of a peace offering, though Towhee couldn't be sure. That was her primary feeling regarding Colt: uncertainty. She sort of hated him for being so awful about her disability, even if his concerns had had some merit. And it really riled her that he hated X, at least according to Quixote.

Feeling the need to be at least a little difficult given their history, Towhee signed, -What's this? A peace offering?- knowing full well Colt wouldn't understand.
-Signing.- | "Speaking." | -"Signing & speaking."- | "Mouthing (inaudible)." | Thoughts.

I archive threads if my partner goes inactive and/or there are no new replies for several weeks. I'm more than happy to continue an archived thread if you're interested. Just revive it (via maintenance) and tag me in your next reply. :)
Ghost
I still don't get it right sometimes · I just don't get it as wrong
692 Posts
Ooc — Starrlight
Mediator
Offline
#7
Colt had never quite figured out that the gestures Towhee used in conjunction with the rest of the fam actually meant something.  But I'm imagining when she asked the question, it at some point involved a gesture at the fox, and he took it as (somewhat) the question she'd asked.  He nodded, dropping it.

"Figured we should talk.  And you can have this, if you want it."  She couldn't hear tone anyway, but his was friendly, if a little wary.  They were feeling each other out, it seemed, figuring out where exactly they stood.  He paused again after that, to see if she was interested.  He hadn't thought a whole lot about what he'd say, honestly, but he imagined there was a chance this one might go better than the last.
Sun Mote Copse
Master
4,956 Posts
Ooc — Kat
Master Guardian
Master Tactician
Master Warrior
Offline
#8
She paused when he nodded, wondering if he might've understood after all. Towhee made no move to nab the fox. Instead, she glanced at it before her orange eyes tracked upward to Colt's face. She peered at him for a beat, face remaining rather devoid of expression even as she read his lips.

"I'm not hungry," Towhee replied, "but I'm sure X would appreciate it." Her head tilted ever so slightly. She wondered if he would renege his offer on those grounds. "What do you want to talk about?"
-Signing.- | "Speaking." | -"Signing & speaking."- | "Mouthing (inaudible)." | Thoughts.

I archive threads if my partner goes inactive and/or there are no new replies for several weeks. I'm more than happy to continue an archived thread if you're interested. Just revive it (via maintenance) and tag me in your next reply. :)
Ghost
I still don't get it right sometimes · I just don't get it as wrong
692 Posts
Ooc — Starrlight
Mediator
Offline
#9
He didn't respond to her statement that she would give it to her bird; though he was split on it, it was a gift, and she could really do with it what she wanted.  Sides, he got it; the bird did her favors, made sense she'd return on that somehow.

"Hear you stepped down," he said, taking a step back and sitting down. "Just wanted to make sure you knew... that wasn't my intention.  Much as I might've sucked at sayin what I meant."  He wasn't sure how she'd react to this, but he needed to clear the air, and this time he was going to try to say it better.  "I know you said it was a partnership, but in every situation, it seemed like Frog and Elwood had other priorities.  I just wanted confirmation that someone else was making the pack number one."  He snorted.  "Guess it doesn't really matter now.  But just in case that was twisted last time.  From where I stand, we got no issue."
Sun Mote Copse
Master
4,956 Posts
Ooc — Kat
Master Guardian
Master Tactician
Master Warrior
Offline
#10
She listened (in her way), appreciating his attempt to explain his perspective despite the impulse to stonewall him. It was his acknowledgement of this—that he hadn't communicated any of this properly last time—that prompted her to bob her head in acknowledgement. Towhee frowned thoughtfully at the mention of her godparents but didn't deign to speak until he was done.

"This pack has always been my priority," she rejoined, a slightly defensive gleam in her eye, "and that's why I did what I did. I think Raven and Quixote are more suited to it and that it just makes sense, since they're paired off and making babies now. I never asked to be Alpha anyway, you know." Most likely, he didn't know. But it felt good to put it out there.

Her paw throbbed and she looked down at it absently before her attention shifted back to Colt. "I never had a problem with you in the first place," she said frankly. There was nothing to clear up on her end. She still didn't like him but she didn't hate him or his presence here. Towhee knew there were several wolves who would be happy to have him back.

Speaking of which... "Have you had a chance to speak to Clo yet? Quixote mentioned she seemed particularly upset at your departure."
-Signing.- | "Speaking." | -"Signing & speaking."- | "Mouthing (inaudible)." | Thoughts.

I archive threads if my partner goes inactive and/or there are no new replies for several weeks. I'm more than happy to continue an archived thread if you're interested. Just revive it (via maintenance) and tag me in your next reply. :)
Ghost
I still don't get it right sometimes · I just don't get it as wrong
692 Posts
Ooc — Starrlight
Mediator
Offline
#11
He fought the urge to heave a frustrated that's what I just said when she defended her view of the pack, but held his own tongue as well in a rare show of self control.  Seemed they were on the same page, and she'd stepped down for her own reasons, not anyone else's.  He wouldn't say her tone said she took his words well (did it ever? Fuck that bothered him) but she wasn't yelling, so he'd call this a success.

"I've tried, I'll catch her soon," he responded (unless that thread I started happens before idk guess not now).  "She was upset but hopefully didn't take it too hard."  It was a bit of an evasion, but he didn't want to spill her drama to Towhee of all people.  If he talked with anyone about it, it would be Fin, and that convo hadn't happened yet.  "She's got you all here, not sure why she was so set on havin me around."  Bit of a lie, but also true.  The minds of teen girls were a mystery to him.

"Where's your bird?" He asked, not seeing him and curious.  Now that it was obviously back in Towhee's good graces, he hadn't expected to see them apart.  Sides that, it was a good subject changer.
Sun Mote Copse
Master
4,956 Posts
Ooc — Kat
Master Guardian
Master Tactician
Master Warrior
Offline
#12
He hadn't seen Clover yet, though it sounded like he planned to seek her out soon. Towhee made no reply to his self-deprecating remark. She didn't really see what was so special about Colt, either, but knew better than to say that out loud.

His query earned a squint from her. "I don't know. He comes and goes as he pleases. He doesn't belong to me." Towhee paused for a beat, then couldn't help but ask, "Why do you ask? You hate him."
-Signing.- | "Speaking." | -"Signing & speaking."- | "Mouthing (inaudible)." | Thoughts.

I archive threads if my partner goes inactive and/or there are no new replies for several weeks. I'm more than happy to continue an archived thread if you're interested. Just revive it (via maintenance) and tag me in your next reply. :)
Ghost
I still don't get it right sometimes · I just don't get it as wrong
692 Posts
Ooc — Starrlight
Mediator
Offline
#13
Why did she have to get so god damn defensive about everything? Either he misread her tone as per usual, or she thought he was a dumbass for even asking.

"Why would I hate him? He's a bird." He said, genuinely surprised by the comment.  "He's not a wolf, so I don't trust him.  But I don't care if you find him useful."  Had he liked needing to rely on the bird to relay messages to Towhee? No.  But now that he could call Qui or Raven when there was trouble, he didn't care one bit if the hawk relayed the messages to Towhee also.
Sun Mote Copse
Master
4,956 Posts
Ooc — Kat
Master Guardian
Master Tactician
Master Warrior
Offline
#14
Her words were as toneless as always, though Towhee did feel defensive of X, even more so than herself. Colt looked genuinely taken aback by the question and his clarification didn't exactly go over well with her. She supposed it was his prerogative not to trust the hawk the way she did, yet that didn't mean the Beta couldn't resent the sentiment.

"I don't know. Your attitude toward him—and me—hasn't exactly indicated otherwise," Towhee answered. "And Quixote told me that you really hated him," she added, which was a direct quote from the conversation she'd had with the Alpha a few nights prior.

She reminded herself that Colt's opinion of X really didn't matter. She still took it personally, though she dismissed it by saying, "But it's whatever. He's off doing his own thing right now but he'll be back soon and I'm sure he'll appreciate the food."
-Signing.- | "Speaking." | -"Signing & speaking."- | "Mouthing (inaudible)." | Thoughts.

I archive threads if my partner goes inactive and/or there are no new replies for several weeks. I'm more than happy to continue an archived thread if you're interested. Just revive it (via maintenance) and tag me in your next reply. :)
Ghost
I still don't get it right sometimes · I just don't get it as wrong
692 Posts
Ooc — Starrlight
Mediator
Offline
#15
Did he now?  Colt had been super careful up to this point to not involve his friend in any of the conversation with this whole mess, and it bothered him a bit to hear that Qui had been talking like that with Towhee.  But he knew what it was like to shoot the shit, and sometimes things got taken outta context.  He had cursed the bird a lot around him, mainly because he'd hated the amount the pack was forced to interact and depend on it previously.

"Just take everything I say as a damn joke and we'll get along," he said, a little exasperated himself.  "D'you even realize how hard you are to shoot the shit with for a guy like me?"  Probably not.  She was surrounded by packmates who had grown up with her, who knew her from day one and could read whatever the fuck cues she did give off.  Without tone, without humor, he was completely in the dark as to how she was feeling about a conversation any given moment.  It was disconcerting, it blew, and he was seriously glad she wasn't the one he'd have to go to anymore for the serious convos.  Better if she just read everything he said as meaning nothing - then she might not seem so damn offended every time he opened his mouth.

"Hope he does.  For what it's worth, that's not sarcastic."  He said, with a small smile, and shook his head.  Their dynamic was probably never not going to be fucked, but maybe they could at least coexist here.
Sun Mote Copse
Master
4,956 Posts
Ooc — Kat
Master Guardian
Master Tactician
Master Warrior
Offline
#16
Towhee squinted, his words triggering her own defensiveness after all. She felt a bolt of hot anger blast through her, though she waited for it to simmer before thinking of what to say in response. Maybe she should just do what he asked and never take him seriously. But there was something about the way he phrased it that the Beta felt he needed a swift kick in the pants.

"Fine," she replied steadily enough, "I'll keep that in mind, as long as you do something for me. " She paused, orange eyes bright as they bored into his face. "You keep feeling the need to let me know how much my disability is some sort of personal inconvenience to you. If my birth defect is such an issue for you, either learn how to communicate more effectively—would it kill you to learn some ptero?—or just avoid me altogether. I really don't care which option you choose, I'm just getting really sick of you whining at me about the way I was born."
-Signing.- | "Speaking." | -"Signing & speaking."- | "Mouthing (inaudible)." | Thoughts.

I archive threads if my partner goes inactive and/or there are no new replies for several weeks. I'm more than happy to continue an archived thread if you're interested. Just revive it (via maintenance) and tag me in your next reply. :)
Ghost
I still don't get it right sometimes · I just don't get it as wrong
692 Posts
Ooc — Starrlight
Mediator
Offline
#17
Holy shit, where the hell did this come from? Once again, she was taking every damn word that came from his mouth as a personal insult, and he was starting to get fed up as well.  "I didn't fucking mean it like that, but alright.  Obviously my being honest doesn't fly well with you, and I'm not gonna lie to your face.  So I won't bother you."  He shrugged... okay.  It was a load off then to know that was how she wanted it.  If she didn't expect anything from him, then he wasn't gonna bother trying.

He'd been trying to explain, to say that he knew it was partially his fault.  But once again, communication broke down, and her tone was enough to shut down any desire in him to push the issue.  He was done for now, and since he didn't know what the fuck the word she'd just said meant (Terro? The shit was that?) avoiding her was probably his best bet.  "Good luck with any new faces if this is how you deal with people who aren't used to you.  It's not a one way street you know."  That was the last thing he'd say before he turned away to leave.
Sun Mote Copse
Master
4,956 Posts
Ooc — Kat
Master Guardian
Master Tactician
Master Warrior
Offline
#18
Towhee suddenly wished she hadn't bothered smoothing out the edges of her own anger before speaking, since Colt definitely didn't bother trying at all. He took her words in the worst possible way before declaring he would go with the latter option. There was a small part of her that was disappointed at the lost opportunity, though mostly she was disgusted as he felt the need to throw in a childish jab at the end.

As he turned to leave, the Beta thought of a hundred different insults to throw after him. It would be even better grabbing the fox carcass and chucking it at the back of his head. Instead, Towhee waited for him to ford back across the water and disappear before withdrawing into the copse. And though it came with a great deal of shame, she threw herself to the forest floor and—everyone's disapproval and nastiness toward her evidently having hit critical mass—pressed her face into her inner leg to muffle the sound as she sobbed her heart out.
-Signing.- | "Speaking." | -"Signing & speaking."- | "Mouthing (inaudible)." | Thoughts.

I archive threads if my partner goes inactive and/or there are no new replies for several weeks. I'm more than happy to continue an archived thread if you're interested. Just revive it (via maintenance) and tag me in your next reply. :)