Kintla Flatlands black widow

Part of the search for Junior. Set on the Whitefish River near BDP.

Kaskara's heart was heavy. They had been searching for Junior for nearly twelve hours and neither hide nor hair of her was to be seen anywhere. Kaskara knew that the other wolves, Atticus and Kisu and Dante, had the plateau covered, so she ventured outward, following the water into the flatlands. There were creeks and lakes she could have gone to, islands of sand and debris littering the creek bed, which she inspected carefully along the way.

The dark she-wolf felt useless. There was a feeling of hopelessness that dwelled inside her, as if she hadn't been good enough to keep an eye on little Osprey to keep this from happening. Though it was irrational, Kas felt it was her fault that Junior had gone missing. There was another thought, a darker, more sinister thought, that invaded her mind. She pushed it away before it could fully form, shaking her head slightly. She needed to focus on the task of finding Junior, not placing blame on others for her disappearance.

As she moved forward, Kas promised herself one thing: when she found Osprey, she would become the pupkeeper and would never let her out of her sight again.

Pura was obsessed with patrolling, and it delighted him that the entire pack was now partaking in his favourite pastime with a level of intensity that left him pleasantly exhausted at day’s end. Wolves worked in shifts, scouring the plateau and surrounding areas with their noses pressed to the ground, working until their shoulders and lungs ached. Pura Virtúte copied, and loved every moment.

He was distantly aware of Junior’s absence, but was more annoyed by it than upset. She was his most robust playmate, and it irritated him that she wasn’t doing what everyone else was doing. The boy’s concept of time was a little off, and he could never recall the last time he had seen Peregrine’s rowdy princess - but it must have been recently.

Somehow, he had secured permission to venture somewhat further afield. Kaskara had been assigned the outer perimeter, and Pura had forced his father to escort his son there, too - almost without the aid of words. For someone whose ability to read body language was so poor, he was at least able to make himself understood with it.

When they were safely within sight of the dark brown female, Pura was permitted to cross the short distance between the two adults unassisted. En route, he tried to recall facts about Kaskara beyond her name and the fact that one of her eyes was a bit wrong, having learned that some wolves expected an exchange of pleasantries at the start of an interaction. His efforts fell short, and ‘hello’ ended up being a low, gruff woof instead.

Her efforts were aided by the presence of Pura and Kisu, though the latter was keeping to himself a little further behind, which was fine with her. Kaskara turned toward the small wolf, glad for once she didn't have to reply with words. She returned his woof with one of her own, swinging her muzzle toward her, inviting him closer, if he wanted. She was simply searching the area, using her nose, eyes, and ears to find any trace of Osprey that might be left.

Kaskara hadn't seen her much since that day of their first meeting. They met again the night of the story telling, and of course they had seen each other here and there at the plateau, but nothing worth noting. Nothing that made Kaskara think the girl might run off, or someone might be out to hurt her. Junior knew her way around the plateau, so she couldn't be lost. Could she swim? Kas didn't know the answer to that, but she hoped all the pups could. If they couldn't, she'd teach them as soon as possible.

She turned back toward the young boy and gave him a small smile, hoping it was slightly uplifting instead of horribly depressing, like she currently felt inside. "How are you holding up?"

Kaskara returned his greeting, and that was the end of that - or not. No sooner had Pura chosen a spot to begin the search (by now, he understood that it was Junior's scent they were after) than the dark female paused her work to engage him in conversation. The ash-grey boy flashed her an uneasy look, considered his options for a moment, and then replied with a slow, carefully enunciated "OK. I l-like.. pat..patrol."

Adults seemed to have a lot more going on in their heads, like walking pots of boiling water whose thoughts spilled out of their mouths with every step. Pura's head was simple and, when everyone was good and silent, it was also clear. He liked to patrol and smell things, and whilst Junior's knack for stumbling into adventures had facilitated these things happening, he was perfectly capable of managing without her.

His response left nothing for Kaskara to respond to. Pura folded one ear back, looked around for inspiration, and eventually asked her: ".. You..hold..up?"

Mind if I join?

Opeth had been wandering all morning from area to area. He was bored, but found amusement in the little things he'd come across. He'd chew on small plants, sniff the flowers, and roll in dirt, then shake off the debris. The dark male stopped and sniffed at the ground scenting two others nearby. He kept his nose planted to the ground as he trotted briskly towards their scents. He soon found himself closing in on the pair.

Hello

He woofed out a greeting with a wagging tail, and lowered his ears with a lolling tongue. He stood a safe distance offering a playful wag, and gaze. Could this be the end of his boredom? He desired to make new friends, and was hoping the bigger wolf wouldn't chase him off.

Sorry its short... meh..

That's fine! I've been slow this weekend. :\

Kas had always found that pups were comfortable around her, usually because she wasn't one of the adults that felt the need to constantly force them to talk or asked them too many questions, which ended up confusing them. Kaskara was generally a wolf of few words, which most pups, especially of a certain age, appreciated. Pura answered her carefully and then, after a few moments of studying his surroundings, finally replied with a studious question of his own. Kas smiled. "I'm doing okay. I just hope Junior is alright so we can get her home safe and sound."

They walked in silence for a few minutes more, looking, listening, and smelling for any trace of the dark-haired lost girl, when another came forth with a friendly greeting. Kaskara stopped, putting one leg in front of Pura (defensively, instinctively), wondering where his father had gone off to, though watching this male with heightened awareness. He seemed friendly enough, but Kas wasn't about to put yet another of the plateau's pup's lives in danger. "Hello," she replied cordially, not warm or cold, but polite nonetheless.

"I'm doing okay. I just hope Junior is alright so we can get her home safe and sound."

Pura smiled stiffly back, until Kaskara gave a non-verbal cue to move on. I hope Junior's alright. The boy repeated the sentence in the privacy of his own mind a few times, feeling the weight of the words. The logical side of his brain knew that this was an anxious time. He wasn't slow, despite what his dire need for speech therapy - just.. not perceptive in the emotional arena. There was an entire world of colour that he could not see, and its absence made Pura's world very quiet, and very calm.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sudden arrival of a strange, black wolf. Pura had never seen a non-Plateau wolf before, and stared unabashedly at the new arrival. He looked normal enough, smelled a little strange - stale, or salty. Kaskara stopped, blocking the pup's path with a limb; a clear sign, Pura had learned, that things were not as they should be. The grey boy came to a dutiful halt, but said nothing.

I'm just going to assume the wolf walked away. Want to wrap this up? Sorry this has taken me so long.

Something must have scared or called the wolf off, because not long after she said hello, he turned and left. He didn't seem angry or upset, so Kaskara felt confident the pair of searchers could continue their work. She stepped away from Pura, looking down at him with a shrug, as if to say, That was weird. She then whined, motioning forward with her muzzle. "Keep looking?"

Sure! :)

Pura met Kaskara's look when the stranger suddenly bounded off without a word, mimicked her shrug, and nodded - yes,they would keep looking. Patrolling did not end until The Job was complete, and in in this instance their job was to make sure that Junior was nowhere to be found in this area of the flat-lands. Pura put his nose to the ground and began to sniff, weaving a crooked line north.

Pura agreed that they should keep looking, so the pair of wolves moved onward, ever searching. Kaskara wasn't sure when their search would ever stop, if their quest would ever end; though she didn't want to think it, Junior may have suffered an injury or even death.

Perhaps she had been kidnapped by someone looking to seek revenge on Peregrine or the Plateau pack in general. Kaskara didn't know enough about this pack to know if it was possible, so she kept her mouth shut, walking next to the dark furred Pura in search of his lost, loud-mouthed sister.