Swiftcurrent Creek okkervil river

This is for any/all of these folks: @Star @Leaf @Shadow. Feel free to join in at any time, but please respect posting order. :)

Fox settled onto her haunches beside the creek, feeling weary. She would need at least another week of rest before she returned to The Sunspire (which she fully intended to do). She was slightly surprised that nobody had chased her back or attempted to breach Swiftcurrent's borders, but perhaps they knew that doing so would result in injuries much worse than either of them had received during her last visit.

New scents had come to the creek, no doubt the work of Bazi. Njal, of course, had relinquished his place at the top to provide for his family. It did not anger Fox in the least, though she was glad that Bazi remained alongside her in leadership. Perhaps once Bazi took a mate, he would become the Beta male. And whoever decided to give Fox children would certainly become the Alpha.

With her thoughts on the newcomers, Fox lifted her two-tone muzzle to the sky and called for her newest brethren.

Star's ears perked as soon as she heard the call. A wolf she didn't know. Either a wolf from her new pack or an intruder on the territory. All intruders should be chased out or told to leave. It could possibly be a summoning. Besides, it was most likely it was a member of Swiftcurrent Creek. She had been lying in the soft meadow grass, but she got up. The grass was flat where she had lied. She headed toward the howl. She soon could see the wolf. She could tell she was female by her eyes. She was small for a wolf. Why am I to think that? I look like a puppy. She had reddish fur. Star didn't know how to approach her. "Hello?" She called out softly. She wasn't going to chase away every wolf she saw. This could be her pack mate.

Leaf was busy burying yet another small rabbit for the pack's cache when she heard the Alpha's call. Though the two had never met, it was unmistakably her. No one else had such authority in their voice. Deciding it was best to bring the rabbit as a gift, the little red wolf chomped down on the soft, limp body and raced to the creek. It was not too far where she had been, but she was still not the first. The first newcomer was a puppy--or no, it was a female wolf maybe a few months younger than her. Her fur was as white as a rabbit's bottom. "Hello," Leaf greeted with a nod. The other wolf was small and rust-colored and looked exactly like herself. "Oh!" she said. Dropping the rabbit in surprise, the little red wolf yelped. Maybe this was her future self come to tell her crucial news. You know, the kind where she was saved from making a fatal error. She could hardly believe it. Her, an Alpha! Dropping onto her own bottom, the little red wolf continued to stare until she realized her place. Hastily, she nearly tossed the rabbit at the true Alpha before lowering her head in submission.

Thanks for joining, you two! Shadow, feel free to hop in whenever you'd like.

Fox waited patiently, eyeballing the horizon for any signs of life that might come her way. Only a few minutes passed before the first one arrived, although Fox wasn't entirely sure what she was looking at. The thing looked like a tiny cloud that had been transplanted to the ground and had been given eyeballs, legs, and a tail. It She spoke, and Fox gawked. Before she could sputter anything at all, an equally gawk-worthy female appeared. Only this time, Fox could have sworn she was looking directly at her reflection. The only difference was that her reflection only appeared when she looked at water in the daytime.

The yearling had scarcely noticed the rabbit until it was flung at her, which finally broke her gawking and she resumed a more neutral expression. “Well,” she said after a long pause. “This is awkward.” Fox was never much for words, but the silence that crept in between words was too much, even for her. “So you’re a cloud, and you’re my double. I wonder what the third one will be.” If Fox had believed in such things, she would have thought this was some kind of omen.

thanks you two, for comparing me to a rabbit bottom and a cloud with eyeballs. Thank you sincerely.

Star noticed the wolf staring at her. Only moments later a look alike of the first arrived carring a rabbit. Star felt frustrated. Even though she didn't know the wolf, she was insulted to be called a cloud. "Well, are you two from Swiftcurrent? Are you sisters?" Star asked. She honestly didn't know what the first wolf was talking about a third. And she couldn't tell them to leave if they were Swiftcurrent. The sisters might also be loners. If so, Star would ask them to leave. If they didn't, she would chase them out. What chasing could you do? You look like a tiny bunny.

Lol, Star the sarcasm.

Shadow dipped his muzzle into the creek when he heard the Alpha's howl. He had never truly met her but it was obvious it was hers. Quickly he sat up and followed the sound until he saw three she-wolves. Obviously one of them was Fox. One looked like a weird fluffy tiny puppy, the other looked like Fox, almost like her twin.

He crept forward, lowering himself in submission, his eyes narrowed to look at the weird fluffy thing again but never meeting Fox's eyes.

Leaf glanced at the other newcomer. Cottonball would be more accurate, but she dared not speak such thoughts aloud. Uncertain what was happening, the little red wolf waited for her twin to speak--but nothing came. It was only through stilted silence that words managed to jumble out sentence by sentence. Already feeling awkward and a bit stunned herself, she did not mind. At least the attention was not on her. It was when the third wolf came that she finally broke out of her own self-consciousness. "Oh, you're delightfully normal," she said with what must have been a smile or maybe a grimace. His eyes reminded her of piercing steel swords, though, but she decided this was something she could overlook. Once more, she returned her attention to the Alpha. Maybe they weren't entirely alike. She seemed prettier than her...

The little white one spoke first, and Fox glanced at her double with a crooked grin. “I think it’s safe to say we’re all of Swiftcurrent,” she replied, “Or I’d be chasing you far, far away from here. And as far as I know, this isn't my sister, but I wouldn’t be surprised to learn I had a long-lost one.” The girl looked so strikingly similar, it was a wonder they weren't related in one way or another. Truth be told, it was a bit off-putting for Fox, but she brushed the thought aside when the "third" that she had spoken of made himself known.

“Ahem,” Fox began, “I would be Fox. And your names?” The Alpha was terrible at remembering the names that were given to her, especially when Bazi would occasionally stop by to inform her of newcomers. Without a face to the name, how was she to pair them together?

"Fox!" Star gasped in surprise. She dipped her head and lowered her tail. This was the alpha! "I'm Star, juvenile." Star stated, staring at her paws. "I was accepted by Bazi a few days ago." she said.
She hoped Fox would not be disappointed of Star's tiny size. She hoped she could make some kind of difference.

"I'm Shadow. he said, keeping his head and body low. "Hopefully you'll remember my name, Fox." though the words were playful, they were also laced with respect. Shadow turned to Cottonball/ Star and Fox's look alike and smirked though a moment later that too vanished and his expressions was expressionless once more.

Could he get up now? This was tiring.

Nodding her head in agreement, the little red wolf confirmed that she had no biological relations with the Alpha--at least, none that she was presently aware of. For as long as she had remembered, it had only been her little brother and her. Finding each wolf's name rather amusing--it seemed all had been named after something found in nature--the small red wolf politely bowed as she introduced herself. "My name is Leaf." A smile. "Did you found this pack?" she ventured to ask. She did not realize that the question touched on a rather sensitive history, but it had been asked innocently enough.

Star, Shadow, and Leaf. Fox grinned, finding the trend of naming things by nature rather appealing. She, of course, was named after the creature she looked like, as was tradition where she had come from. Fox fully intended on naming her own children the same way. Idly, she wondered if they would one day run out of names... but she supposed there was no harm in reusing a name once its first user was long dead and gone.

“Make yourself memorable, and I won’t have a problem,” she jested lightly to Shadow. To Leaf's question, her ears swiveled backward, thinking of Lethe. The question came up often, though Fox was always happy to answer it.

“Not really,” she replied, “Lethe, the first lady to claim the creek, threw herself into its rushing waters not a month after its inception. I took up the reins, and nobody opposed.” Not even Jinx, who probably should have. The road from then to now had been a rocky one, but Fox felt she hadn't screwed it up too horribly.

Star listened as Fox explained that they were not related. Each wolf introduced themselves. Somewhere in the back of her mind the thought popped up, that they were all named of natural things. Star would at first have trouble remembering names. She matched each name to a wolf with something about them. Fox- easy, she looks almost just like one. Shadow- greyish like a shadow. Leaf- hmm. She's the other one like fox. But how will I differ them? There ought to be a difference somewhere.
Star listened as well as Fox explained Lethe, who committed suicide. "If it does not hurt you to answer, do you know why she killed herself?" Star said. Why would a wolf ever do that if they had gotten so high as to found a pack? If Star founded a pack, she would make her life last as long as it could, not kill herself within a month.

Wait. Hold on. It seems that they were all named after natural things. Fox, Leaf and Star. Easy, he had always had a better memory than other wolves. The conversation escalated quickly after Leaf asked about the founding of the pack. So Lethe.... wait.... if he remembered correctly there was a something that his father taught him about.... Oh right, Lethe was the river of forgetfulness.

Although the three other wolves seemed to be thinking about the wolf Lethe, Shadow couldn't help but notice how ironic it was for a wolf to be named after a river to die in a river.

"Not to be offensive but isn't it ironic that a wolf to be named after a river died in a river, or the smaller version of the river. And she was named after the river of forgetfulness, did she want to forget something? You don't have to answer." He averted his eyes.

Leaf gaped. To think! that the founder of the pack had thrown herself into the creek. Remembering her own entrance into claimed territories--Bazi had saved her from the creek's treacherous waters, and she had later promised her loyalty in payment--she could not help but shiver to think that she easily could have joined Lethe. It was not hard to believe that the founder could have died in such a manner, but what was mysterious was the reason behind her death--and the lack of opposition from the rest of the pack with Fox's sudden coronation. Unless it was not so unexpected as one would think. Unsurprisingly, the other two newcomers were quick to ask the first question, but it was the second question that begged an answer. Still, the little red wolf was not so naive to not know that it was a rather intrusive question. Licking her lips, she decided to wait and fixated her attention on the creek's waters instead.

“I think she was just a bit crazy,” Fox replied first to Star. That was the only explanation she could think of. “Perhaps diseased in some way.” Nothing else could explain why a seemingly healthy wolf would toss herself into a river without a thought for her own life or those of her followers. Surely something had been wrong with her to drive her to do such a thing. Lethe had seemed normal, from what Fox remembered, and she didn't think there was any reason for the founder to go and do such a thing.

“I didn’t know her name had a meaning,” Fox confessed when Shadow explained that she was named after some river of forgetfulness. “And to be honest, I really don’t know why she did it. Perhaps the pressure of leading a pack was too great.” Her grey eyes turned to Leaf, but it seemed her twin didn't have any other questions to add to the mix.

"Okay." Star replied simply. Shadow asked a question about some river of forgetfulness. Star waited for the clone to ask something, but she said nothing. Star enjoyed meeting more wolves in the pack as it made her feel like she would begin to fit in. You'll never fit in with fluffy fur and puppy eyes. Star ignored the voice in her head and reassured herself that she would become friend to many wolves. She was off to a good start.

"Alright." Shadow nodded slowly. It made sense for Lethe to be crazy after all who would willingly suicide leading a pack? Shadow had led a small one before and true, it was hard work but he also enjoyed it. Perhaps Lethe couldn't handle the pressure that came with leading a pack.

"So," he smirked, "Let's get off this depressing topic."

As Fox explained the situation further, Leaf's initial horror turned into something of suspicion. Though she did not know the circumstances surrounding Lethe's suicide, she could not help but wonder if maybe there had been foul play. Feeling guilty about the thought, knowing she ought not think about other wolves that way, let alone wolves in her pack, she jumped a little as her leader's eyes landed on her. "I hope that never happens to you, Leader," she said with sincerity though some nervousness. Though it was true she did not know Fox well, she did know the leader had offered her a family as well as food and shelter. It was more than one could hope for! "Whether by the creek or otherwise." She knew that leading a pack was a responsibility that often put one's own well-being if not life at stake. "Miss Bazi actually saved me from those waters. They'e dangerous," as if no one knew that already, "and I am indebted to her and you for saving me and t-taking care of me." True, she might have appeared to be a bit of a brown-noser, but she did not care. Her sentiments were pure.

I'll probably fade out next round, if that's cool. :) Going to go ahead and fade out here, since I'm trying to wrap up some of these old threads.

“I don’t plan on tossing my life away any time soon,” Fox replied to Leaf's quip that she ought not commit suicide. Her lips curled into a pleased smile when her twin went on to explain that Bazi had saved her from the creek's waters. It was a shame the blue-eyed girl hadn't been around when Lethe had jumped into the stream.

“I only ask that you help your comrades in whatever way possible,” Fox said, glancing to both Shadow and Star to include them as part of the "you." “Do that, and you’ll never have to worry about a thing.” Satisfied that they understood her motives, Fox excused herself and went about her day.