Stone Circle Mr. Moonlight

The female was walking slow and steady through the trees, the cool breeze of the night was lightly brushing on her dark fur. Vespera wasn't watch what was in front of her, but only her large paws and where she would place them. Her injuries were doing much better after the chat she had with Valette. Vespera walked along the border of East Hollow, the female wasn't sure about what she was doing but her paws seemed to move without her command. The walk had taken her to an open area where it was easy to see the full moon as it shined across the blades of grass. The female stopped in her tracks as she slowly moved her head to look up at the light in the sky. Her mind could only wonder if her parents were up there, or if they were walking with her with each paw step, and with each breath she breathed. Vespera perked her ears forward, as her purple gaze shined and her body slowly moved into a sitting position as she looked up at the flickering stars in the sky. She then looked back down at her paws, the largeness of them showed her youth since she wasn't fully grown as her mind began to wonder as she began to stare into space.

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@Steph

OOOH I didn't see that you'd tagged someone. I can remove this if you want!!

Phyllis had rested for most of the day following her inception to the pack. That meant that when night fell, she was awake. It was very cold within the territory due to most of the terrain being exposed, and she knew she would have to find somewhere more concealed to bed for the night in the future - thankfully, there was enough ambient light for her to use tonight, and she began to explore the territory in the dark.

The snow that had fallen through the daylight hours wasn't so heavy, but it was still quite thick by the time she roused herself and began to wander; the snow reflected all the light of the stars, so it wasn't a vantablack nothingness around her. Phyllis could make out the shapes of the standing stones far-off, some trees, and maybe even the shape of a roaming figure -- ah, but her depth perception was not so great, so when she spotted the wolf wandering around, it wasn't clear until Phyllis had all but stumbled in to them.

She collided with the wolf and hit the dirt, feeling a sharp twang in her hips as she sprawled out in the snow. Ooph! She huffed, feeling a sense of righteous indignation swell in her breast, and it took a moment for her to calm herself enough to face the stranger - she wanted to rail against them for being in the way, but she knew she couldn't do that. Phyllis had to play nice if she was going to survive more than a day. So, using her age and weakness to her advantage, she struggled to her paws and took on the expression of a concerned elder (which is exactly what she was): Oh, dear me -- I'm sorry! My eyes just aren't what they used to be, are you alright?

It's completely fine! <3

Vespera's thoughts were completely interrupted when something hit her. The female's ears were up and alert when as she swung her body swiftly around to face the stranger. Vespera's gaze was was narrow and cold, the female was one to get annoyed easily especially when she is off in her own little world. "Good Lord, watch where you are going!" Vespera snapped but it was more of a growl, but the female's eyes adjusted to see who had bumped into her, a wolf who looked to be elderly. The female had apologized and asked if she was alright but Vespera could only scoff and roll her eyes, "of course, I'm not wailing in pain or bleeding to death," Vespera didn't shy away from the snark since she had no idea who this wolf was which only raised her suspicion. "Who are you anyway? A lone wolf? Trespasser?" The one thing she could remember that if she saw a stranger near the border, it was instinct to question them. However it wasn't the female's fault since Vespera had a dark coat of fur and with white on her chest and a purple gaze. Vespera was still young, and had a lot to learn but she was certain of how to deal with unknown wolves. The female's fluffy tail swished in annoyance and her large paws stood in one place as she glared at the female.

My, my, this girl sure had a mouth on her. Had Phyllis been any younger she'd have happily removed that tongue merely because this vile creature was breathing the same air as her - but to raise her voice, and to someone like her? It was beyond rude. As an elder she should've been more appreciated, even if she was new to the ranks. This version of Phyllis - this much older one, who had been made a part of this family merely hours before - knew that flying off the handle would not be well received by any witnesses. She drew back from the stranger's sharp voice and her ears folded back atop her head, but she kept a neutral expression on her face (even if she wanted to sink her teeth in to the yearling's stupid face).

No, I am no trespassing. Your lovely leader has given me permission to live here, with you. And you best learn some manners, girl, she wanted to tack on for good measure, but chose not to. Her face split in to a tight-lipped smile, by all accounts friendly and a touch apologetic, but no such emotion entered her gaze. Have you lived here long, miss? She chose to gloss over the rude behavior for now, but Phyllis was the type to collect her slights and build herself a vault of grudges, and this girl was the first to be placed upon that black list.

Vespera didn't feel amused at all, though her anger seemed to fume down, her annoyance only rose. Vespera has had past experiences with elders, and the more she saw them, the more she wanted to bite out their tongues. The female watched the elder's movements as she saw her ears pin back but gave a neutral expression, the young female rose and eye brow along with an unamused expression, you may talk sweet to me honey, but I know your games, you sweet talk young wolves such as myself to do your bidding, from my experiences I know that there is a vile creature underneath those weak joins and grey muzzles, so talk all you want, you won't see me take out your stupid ticks. Vespera resisted the urge to say that sentence coldly and as deadly as her mouth could spit, she sure as hell thought of it in her mind. The young female almost wanted to gag in disgust when the elder said with you, the dark colored female dug her claws into the ground, the last thing she wanted to do was do this females chores. "Oh really," Vespera had said with an high pitched interested tone, but the snark was there, "how lovely," the females tone turned blank and almost moody, the female had softened up her gaze a little bit but she still had doubts. The young female was a little more relaxed now that she knew that the elder was a member of East Hollow, "Eh, not long" Vespera simply stated, but she knew that Valette would want her to introduce herself to get a better attitude, "Vespera just so you know," she couldn't help but grit her teeth and say it with an awkward smile but her face cheeks were already beginning to hurt. "So, what bring you to East Hollow," she had sounded tired when she said that and a little disinterested but she didn't want to bother with Valette on her tail about giving attitude to a new member.

Phyllis was accustomed to dealing with people like this when she was younger; around the girl's age and a little older, she had been just like this. Full of vitriol for the older generation, finding little use for creatures with creaky joints and dimming minds. Had Phyllis been able to confront herself, old version to young version, it would've probably unfolded much like this conversation right now. She had learned to curtail her acidic tongue, and perhaps this girl — Vespera she called herself — perhaps she would learn similar lessons. For now she was abrasive for no good reason, and any wolf worth their salt knew that they had to be much better at managing their behavior if they were going to get anywhere.

What brings you to Easthollow? the girl queries, her tone clearly lacking, which makes it difficult for Phyllis to engage with her. Perhaps that's the point — the older wolf isn't about to be disuaded because of a child's bad manners. She ignores the tone of the question and comes up with a quick answer - a small chuckle, followed by her own sharp tongue: The same thing that brought you here, I presume. A need for a home. It was a pretty easy statement; any wolf who lived here would've probably said the same thing. She did not want to lead in to the true reason - that she was waiting for her life to end, and that maybe she wasn't ready yet, maybe she wanted to go out with a big bang and she chose the first available place to do that. No, that wouldn't amount to anything.

Vespera smiled a sort of cheeky smile when the elder gave her that answer. The young female had looked up at the moon, "nah, you're only half right, sure I came to find a new home, but honestly there is more to it, however it's not important," especially since I don't even know your name, the female wanted to snark that last line but she didn't feel the need. The young female looked down at her large paws, she didn't quite know what to say besides the burning remark that she wanted to make at the elder but she restrained herself. The moment of silence grew between the two since there was really nothing more that she could add, maybe she could try and be like Valette and ask how the elder would serve the pack but she figured that would be a waste of time, this wolf has maybe seen better days, I don't think she will be taking on any bison anytime soon. The young female tossed a glance at the elder for a short moment to get a good look at the female then looked down at her paws again.