Sun Mote Copse Giants shifting in their graves
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"You have to see this!" Wraen told Maia, as she led her sister towards the place, where the avalanche from the mountains above had crashed in the river below. The experience had been scary, but seeing, what the force of nature was capable off, had been something spectacular. And after she had shared the story about her and Finbar being witnesses to the show, she persuaded her adventure loving sister to come along.

"Do you recall the story about giants fighting Olympian gods all those hundreds years ago?" she asked her sister, referring to Gigantomachy. "That's exactly, what it sounded like. As if giants were throwing rocks and ice-blocks and what-not around," she went on and Maia was saved from yet another repetition of the same story (what time was it - the second, the third?), because they were at the place. 

There were rocks and various sized ice blocks scattered around, the ice cap of the river had been broken on the points of impact and here and there the water had seeped upwards and then frozen again in the low temperatures, keeping all the items of the avalanche/rock-slide in place. It was almost like a piece of art now, inviting to be explored. 

"What do you think?" Wraen asked.
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When Wraen has told Maia she wanted to show her something, she'd come eagerly enough! The sleeping space they shared was a good warm (once someone was in it to warm it) nook, so there was a little hesitation.  But laziness would not show her the place, and she wanted to see the place!

Oh yeah.  Cori used to get scared when we were little because Dad said the giants were still under us. She said, smiling as she remembered teasing him over it.  All in good fun, he'd gotten over that story scarediness when they were very young.  Maybe one of them got bored and wanted to see a little snow slide?

Woah.  Or a lot of snow slide.  She stared at the sight, her mouth open.  That is so.  COOL.  Oh man can we climb it? She asked eagerly.
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"Or they got in a massive fight about something and began to throw rocks and ice, and snow around. I would have loved to see them fighting," Wraen offered her far-fetched version of what had occurred here and looked at Maia eyes alight with excitement. The sight of them two (or maybe three or more) engaging in a fight would have been cooler than being in the receiving end of their brawl. 

When her sister asked, if they should go and explore them, Wraen's face became very serious and solemn (only the naughty glint in her eyes gave away the rouse) and said: "There is an angel on my shoulder saying that we better not. But... a little demon on the other says - yes, yes, YES! Beat you to it!" She slammed her hip against her sister's and then set off, eager to be the first in the massive playground nature had created.
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Oh wow heck yeah that woulda been so cool!! She could imagine it too, huge towers hurling earth and stone at each other.  I bet that's it! That sounded way cooler so had to be it instead.  

Oh no sister you were not going to go sensible on her now.  She watched hopefully as Wraen began to say no, and then with a playful shove revoked it and took off.  Hey, cheater, no fair! She called after with mock offense, something that was kinda ruined by the fact that she started laughing as she took off after her.

Wraen definitely reached it first, but by the time she got over there, Maia had forgotten the race anyway.  She stared up at the ice above with awe, then looked down and spotted a series of smaller runoff that had formed almost a cascade of debris.  Perfect! She'd scrabble up on that and see what she could see!
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"Good girls go to Heaven, Bad ones go, wherever they want," Wraen called over her shoulder and sped up, reaching the tower of snow, debris and ice and unable to stop just there, climbed it up to the first place, where the footing was somewhat solid. 

"You look so small from here," she teased Maia, who was very interested in doing some excavation work at the foot of the mountain. "And... oh, crap," she did not manage to say the rest of, what was on her mind, because a step on the wrong place, and she found herself being swept downwards along with snow and some earth. She landed on her back and lied there laughing at the silliness of the situation.
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She began to climb up the shale, awkwardly, and was not managing well.  She definitely wasn't built to be a mountain climber but she was having a blast trying, and eventually she managed to pull herself onto the first ledge.  And you look small up there! she yelled back, laughing.  Her laughter, however, soon turned to a shout as Wraen slid down, and she bounded to the edge to peer down, her heart in her throat.

Luckily, she immediately heard Wraen's laughter, and she heaved a huge sigh of relief.  I don't think sliding was what the giants had in mind, she said, managing a laugh too.  Hoo boy that scared her.  She looked up at the next level, now kinda wondering if she should try.  Well, Wraen had, and she couldn't let her show her up!  She was gonna go up a couple more levels and enjoy the view.  And hopefully not fall.  That was a biggie.
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"You don't?" Wraen asked, while she tried to dislodge a piece of twig that had was poking inside her ear. Not an easy task, if you have unhandy forepaws to work with and even less suitable hind-paws for the task. "Oh, God bless you!" she exclaimed and made a little bounce, when the offending appendage of the tree had freed the auricle and she could wiggle it freely. Back to the topic then.

"I think that might be the reason they actually threw all this stuff down. Who knows, maybe there is a giant under all this debris," she called to her sister, making her way up again, this time choosing the path Maia had, because it had been able to hold her sister's weight. "And then it will start stirring and - booom-wagga-booom - this lot will start to move too. Fun, huh?" with this said, she leaned down to inspect a very interesting block of ice - within it's frozen grasp was a frog.

"Hey, Maia!" she called out to her sister again. "I think I found a Prince Charming for you to kiss!" she grinned cheekily. "If only you can free him first," she beckoned to her finding.
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If you didn't think about all of the potential crushing (which, why would you in a hypothetical?) Wraen's idea did sound pretty fun!  Just one big giant slide.  She laughed breathlessly as she pulled herself up another level, feeling winded for sure trying to get her... bulky... self up.

OH, what?  Maia peered down, her eyes widening as her paws slipped briefly on a patch of ice, but her claws caught hold.  Whew.  She poked her head over the edge and looked at what Wraen was looking at, but she couldn't make out more than a blob.  She pulled a face anyway.  Ewww, no thanks.  Besides, she added, a little smug teasing in her voice.  I already found a prince, no frog required.  Once a whole lot cuter than that one.  She giggled, pulling back without elaborating and pushing a small amount of snow off to hopefully land on her sister below.
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"Well, that is a story I have not heard yet," Wraen told Maia in a somewhat friendly-accusing manner, leaving the frozen Prince Charming for someone else to free and kiss, and making her way up. The snow in the eyes did not help much, she blinked few times, shook her head and sneezed: "You are a jerk, you know that!" She insulted her - again in a playful manner, because she would have done the same thing were their roles reversed.

"Okay," she said, when she had reached the same level Maia was, and sat down. "There is some fish for us to sort. I remember distinctly someone instructing me about having a boyfriend cool enough, but how is it so that you forgot to tell me that someone had blown you off your feet already?" she cocked her head to the side. "I want to hear every word, every detail. Go on!"
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Maia's laugh in response showed that she definitely knew that she was a jerk and definitely didn't mind being called out on it. She'd caught her sister with that one though - she knew it would make a good story when he'd told her!

Maia tried to smile nonchalantly when Wraen made it up with her and asked her questions, but it didn't really work out.  He had been awfully cute, after all, and she was thrilled to be able to dish a little about it.  He was on the coast, and we went and saw where he lived.  He said he was a prince and asked if I was a princess. Maia grinned at her sister.  I told him course I was, but I was more into adventuring than running things, so I ran away.  she paused, then sighed.

Ughh he was super quiet and just really nice, yknow? Like, he didn't want to smile, but then I made him smile and it was pretty amazing.  ANYWAY yeah.  Not like he was around to know she was saying those things thank goodness.
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Maia would always remain Wraen's baby sister, even if this sibling was to tower over her or have white hairs and arthritic joints at the end of her life. For this reason she listened to the story with a serious expression of a parent and at that "prince" and "princess" part her brow furrowed, because she had misunderstood the sentence slightly. And recalling the last guy, who had been hitting on her on the coast, she had hard time imagining this fellow Maia was so dreamy about looking like anything else. Funny, really, what a big role does the image play - insert the brutish and lecherous Stormy Boy - the tale is beyond creepy. Think of someone shy - as Eljay, for example - and it's the traditional young love - harmless and cute. 

She decided to go for the latter, believing that Maia had enough common sense not to get entangled with the wrong company. Still... "I am going to salt the pot and ask you - did mom give you The Talk? Or you were already over the hills and far away to listen, why girls and boys are different and what happens during a mad week in spring?" she asked, half-serious, half-grinning and arched an eyebrow, waiting for Maia's response. She realized that she had shattered the romantic tale with all too realistic and practical matters, but - hey - Wraen had some older siblingly duties to fulfil.
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If a wolf could go red, Maia probably would have been crimson.  Ugh, not like that. Well, she amended, smiling.  Not yet at least!  Mom told me, it was forever ago though. Her and Cass had gotten the lowdown together, whereas dad had probably chatted with Cori.  She didn't remember super well.  Stay away from guys or they'll jump you and then you get stuck with babies, which definitely isn't happening anytime soon for me. She said with a sure finality.  Right now kids were the last thing she wanted cramping her style.  

Have you ever, yknow.... out of season? It was a very sister thing to ask, and something she would never ask anyone but Wraen probably because Wraen was the only one she'd be ok with telling back.  She knew her sister didn't have kids, but that didn't mean she had no experience with things.
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Wraen laughed at the patchy retelling of "The birds and the bees" talk and was happy that she was spared the embarrassment of being the one to explain the process and answer all the "why"s and "how"s. She liked the story version of child-conception and birthing better - they just happened and details were omitted, plain and simple.

"The moral of all the fairy-tales, where beautiful princesses are featured, is about not selling yourself short," Wraen said. "So, if a fellow is mesmerized by your dashing personality and body on the first meeting make him prove that he is worth it," she went on, smiling still. Then Maia asked her a question to which she did not have a ready answer. 

"No. Never felt a need to present my beautiful rear either in or out of season," Wraen shrugged. "To be fair, I do not remember that any of those yearly mad weeks have had any impact on, how I feel. Maybe it has to do with the fact that I have never been entitled to have kids in a pack." She thought some more and added: "Though during that time I do find the opposite sex more attractive than during the rest of the year. When I start to consider that even a random guy could be quite a catch... I know that it's that time of the year again."
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Lucky for both of them, Maia's confidence was pretty great when it came to guys.  Sometimes it could drift a bit towards the low side, but not when it came to settling for someone less than amazing.  They'd have to work pretty hard to prove them self.  I'm pretty great. She said, matching her sister's expression.

She listened as Wraen filled her in, figuring that that made sense.  I've found a lot nice to look at, she agreed.  But like we said before, it's hard to know until you know them.  You don't find them very attractive the rest of the time?  That was news to Maia, who tended to flit from crush to crush like a bird.  Both the boys from the coast, the man with the bear, even (she hated to say it) the annoying Redbird had been cute to look at.  Now that one guy who was older and obviously seeing someone here was cute too, but she wasn't much interested in competing and he seemed happy?

I'll definitely have to be careful then, she finally finished, wrinkling her nose.  If Wraen's interest picked up that much when she normally didn't have any, what would hers do?!
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"I am glad to hear that," Wraen laughed, imagining Maia, who was bossing around a horde of possible suitors. On the other hand, it was kind of weird thinking that her baby sister was old enough to have them. The memory of seeing her as a teeny tiny ball of fluff for the first time certainly did not help. 

"Not in a you-will-be-my-baby-daddy way, no," she shook her head. "That's, why I think that it is better to find a soulmate outside the season. You can make a lot of stupid stuff during the springtime madness - and this is not me speaking, but our mom," Osprey had not particularly elaborated on her adventures and misadventures, but something in the way she had said this to Wraen, had made the latter attentive and wary of the possible dangers.

"You will be fine. Just don't rush into things," she concluded and then looked up the pile of rubble. "Do you think we can make any further up?"
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What she said made perfect sense and she filed it away for future use.  She'd never had a season but it sounded like a lot of dumb thinking could come of it, so better to just kinda avoid it altogether for now if she could.

Definitely! There's a kinda hop but it isn't far! She said, walking over as she did to peer down.  They weren't suuuper high, but they were just enough for the fall to be a little nervey.  The butterflies in her stomach were part of the fun though.  Just a little... jump! As she said it, she pounced over, making the jump easily but landing rather gracelessly on the other side as she tripped on some of the loose stones.  Ooof.  I'm good, I'm good!  Ugh. She rolled over to her paws and gave a sheepish shake.
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Wraen watched Maia's progress, ready to spring away the moment her sister would cause another avalanche and come crashing down at her. No offence to her, but her older sister had doubts she would be able to survive being smashed in a pancake by the combined weight of her bulky sibling, blcoks of ice and snow. She winced, when Maia almost did not make, but then she did.

"Mhmmm..." she raised, placing her forepaws against the vertical wall and craning her neck to explore the surface. "I am not too sure, I am tall enough to make it there," she concluded, got back on all fours and thought for a while about an alternative route and not coming up of anything on the spot.
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Ah ok! Hmm.  Maia looked back, then down, now uncertain. In climbing over here she hadn't really... considered that she would need to go back.

Do you see a way to go down? She asked, wondering if Wraen's vantage would show something she didn't see.  There was maybe a spot she could hop to and then a way down, but she could tell very well from above how big the drop was to there.

This kinda reminds me of playing on the river rocks as a kid.  They had only done it sometimes because Dad tended to not like it and herd them off when he saw it, but she'd claimed top stone a few times from her siblings... and been knocked down a few times too.  I wonder if when we get down, we could find a cave to see the giants underneath! Next mission!
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"Hmmm..." Wraen cast a glance around, but did not see anything remotely "ladder-like" to grant Maia an easy way down from the pile of rubble. There was a rather steep slope at one corner, but she was not sure, if her sister should attempt taking it. She could easily trip, fall and... wait a minute! "Maybe try that spot," she beckoned to the area she had just considered. "And either try going down slowly butt-first or... take a risk, go on your side and slide all the way down like I did. The snow at the foot will make a soft landing," she finished, but her voice lacked confidence that either of the plans were the safest or the best options. "Be careful though," she warned her, though this would not help Maia in any way.
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Okay. She looked at it dubiously... it looked really steep from her angle, but slopes tended to do that when you were on top of them.  She trusted Wraen, and besides, this was going to be fun! Yes! Okay!

Psyching herself up, she edged over and began a slow descent.  Well, she attempted a slow attempt.

What actually happened was she placed her back paws on the slope, but she did so without making sure her weight was properly balanced on her front ones.  As a result, when her back paws slipped down, her front ones lost their purchase.  She was going to do the butt slide and fell into a backwards belly slide instead.

Woah!! She skidded down and her back end hit the snow, sending a cascade of cold wet across her back and hips.  Immediately it was her turn to start laughing, partially because of the snow and partially because of the nervous release she'd felt when her paws had slipped up top.  Maybe... these are supposed to be.... slides. she managed to get out between laughs, though breathlessly because she couldn't stop.
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Wraen watched Maia's descent from her icy throne attentively and jumped a little, when the idea went off the rails seconds after it's implementation in real life. Oh, crap! She almost followed, but restrained herself, because her side of the slope was not nearly as smooth, littered with protruding rocks, sticks and shards of ice. It did, however, make her way down easier, her paws having something to grab hold on. 

Once by her sister's side, she inspected her quickly, not entirely convinced by her cheerful laughter that she had ended up unharmed. But she was fine, therefore Wraen gave her an affectionate nuzzle between the ears and with a wagging tail sat down. "That's some ass-diving gig you did," she grinned at her. "I think that with a bit of practice and some polishing you can make a trade out of it, don't you think?" she teased her.
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Her paws and legs were a little scuffed from the shale, but no broken skin, and the stinging was already fading.  Mostly she was just embarrassed, and that and adrenaline were what had caused the laughing fit.  Holy cow that must have looked dumb!

You think? she asked, still giggling.  Maybe I should bring Wildfire here, see if she needs a professional butt-slider.  True to form, even when Wraen did, Maia couldn't bring herself to say the other.  It felt wrong on her tongue.  Bring some deer to the bottom of this hill and I could take them all out! See, now there was an idea.  In all seriousness, she did need to find a trade.  But sliding around on hills and napping were both way more fun than that.
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"I don't think that will end well," Wraen replied, after considering that option. Not that Maia would not be able to stand her ground in the event of deer coming her way. "This reminds me a story of a silly wolf, who met a mountain goat one day. He was about to kill it and eat it on the spot, but the mountain goat offere that there was a better way of him doing it. He would have to close his eyes, open his mouth and she would just swoop there and down to his stomach. The wolf - what the hell was he thinking - agreed. And you can imagine, what was the end of it," she grinned. "Concussion and broken set of teeth, maybe the jaw too. True to the point - that wolf never hunted mountain goats ever again."
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She launched into a story and Maia listener raptly, though at the end she shook her head.  See, he had it wrong!! You don't close your eyes and let it jump, you keep em open and slide yourself!!!! She stood up and laughed.  Buuuut you're probably right.  I wonder how you would hunt anything without teeth.  She had to think on that for a second.

Traps? Like if you lured something somewhere, and then dropped something on their head.  Or chased them into a ditch! But I guess it'd be kinda pointless since you couldn't even eat it.  Wow that wouldn't be fun!  Tangent over, she definitely sympathized with the poor wolf, though he had to be pretty dumb to even get himself in that situation in the first place.  Who trusted a sheep?
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Yeah, what idiot did trust sheep? But that was the whole moral of the story. There was no easy way around hunting and luck was a very rare occasion. "Now you are a fire-cracker of ideas," Wraen told Maia and leaned over to nuzzle the fur at the base of her ears. 

"We could go home now and discuss them in detail," she offered her, because there did not seem anything else left to explore here. They could, of course, return another day. With spring far away - the aftermath of the avalanche was not going anywhere.

"And next time we hunt together, we can apply them in practice," she added.

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