Lost Creek Hollow see you later simulator
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Ooc — Kat
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#1
Joining 
They were bickering, again. Too weak to do much else, Bat closed her eyes and let her head loll sideways, enjoying the sensation of weak sunlight on her cheek. Despite the irate voices in the near distance, she drowsed. She only roused at the scent of fresh meat.

"I caught you a lil' somethin'," Ukulele said, smiling fondly down at the invalid.

-Thanks,- Bat signed, her throat still too raw for speech. She was pretty sure her rescuers now recognized and understood the sign for what it meant. In any case, the young wolf better known as Lele smiled and nodded.

"Daddy and Spur had another argument about you," Lele said brightly as Bat slowly rolled onto her belly and began to eat. "Daddy wants to keep you with us but Spur thinks we should drop you off with the nearest pack." Her voice softened, became a little said, and Bat stopped chewing. "She says that'll give you the best chance at recovery."

Bat carefully swallowed, then drew in a breath. Tambourine had been the one to pull her from the river, Larkspur the one to get her breathing again. Together, they'd dried and warmed her, drawing her back from the brink of death. They, along with Tam's daughter, Lele, had been looking after her ever since. She owed the three of them her life, for sure.

And she wanted to tell them that she belonged with the Redhawks, yet Bat hadn't been able to verbalize since nearly drowning. She wasn't much good at ptero, not that they'd understand anyway (aside from the very basic and universal signs, like the one she'd just used). By now, they'd traveled into lands Bat didn't recognize at all.

Spur's right, Bat thought. She tried to convey this to Lele. Much as she had quickly grown attached to the party of three (despite the adults' bickering), she was still in pretty rough shape. She needed the support of a pack. The Redhawks would've been ideal, of course, but Bat sensed that they were very far away now, out of reach.

She ate a few more bites. When Ukulele curled up beside her afterward, Bat leaned gratefully into the warmth and fell asleep.



A few hours later, refreshed and restored as much as possible, Bat sat at the borders of a snowy hollow. Lele stood beside her and it was her peer who raised her voice, requesting someone in the resident pack's leadership. Tam and Spur had hung back to avoid causing any problems; neither they nor Lele would be staying here with her.

Bat pursued her lips, looking at her friend. They'd already said their goodbyes. But Lele stayed put, ready to speak for her where she couldn't, and appeal to these wolves to take in Bat and nurse her back to health.
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Ooc — Magdalyn
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along came terance, who knew none of these wolves even though his player is silently squeeing to see them all around. he looked upon the small grey one, first, big ears and bright eyes to boot. she looked a little thin, maybe weak, terance couldn't quite gather her state just yet. and then to the other, his green eyes unable to hide the concern that laced them. they were young, after all, and though how young he couldn't tell, terance was a sucker for pups. 

"is everything alright?" he asked first, instead of his usual formal greeting, "can i help you guys?"
Jalapeño
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Nunataq had been hanging around borders as well, sniffing out tracks left by other adults and in a process of deciding, which one would she stalk today, when a howl echoed through the hollow and made her listen. There had been occasions, when she had heard a stranger's voice call for someone particular within the pack, and a prospect of intercepting someone new was the deciding factor. And off she went.

The big bulky guy, who had not yet made it in the Pepper Gang ranks, but still was liked and respected, was already talking to a group of strangers. Two were closer than the other two, she had spied in the background. She offered Terance a quick look of greeting and a wag of tail, and remained standing nearby, eager to do an inspection of the strangers of her own, once the guy had finished his.

Cameo. You can skip her in the posting order.
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Ukulele must've sensed Bat's eyes on her. She turned, smiled in a way that could only be called sisterly. "Everything's gonna be fine. I'll make sure they look after you. Spur says she knows this place," she continued, turning her gaze from her companion back to the nearby hollow. "She said she grew up here, actually. She thinks you'll love it h—"

The arrival of a black wolf with green eyes captured both young females' attention. He reminded Bat of several other wolves, though she didn't bother trying to place them. Her silver eyes peered up at him, saying all the things she couldn't, though fortunately Lele was quick to give her a voice.

"Hi! I'm Lele and this is my friend, Fish. She can't talk right now because she had an accident. She almost drowned but my daddy and our friend saved her. We've been looking after her but we think she belongs in a pack. We were hoping we could drop her off here, with you. She needs more care than we can provide on the road." Ukulele was young—just a few weeks older than her—but Bat marveled at her charm and eloquence.

Bat bobbed her head to corroborate Lele's tale. She smiled faintly at the ironic nickname, given to her by Lele after her daddy had fished Bat's freezing body from a break in the river ice. There was so much more Bat would've said if she could, though she was not only mute, she was also weak. Once in her life, she'd been lackadaisical for the hell of it; now, she truly didn't have any energy to spare.

"Hello!" Lele piped up again, drawing Bat's attention to a second wolf, who looked to be about their age. "I'm Ukulele—Lele, for short—and this is my friend, Fish." Tambourine's lookalike smiled warmly, nudging Bat with an elbow and mouthing, "They seem nice!"
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Ooc — Magdalyn
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"you don't all plan on staying?" was the first question terance asked, a deep frown pressing to his features. the other girl, lele, was still young. granted, it sounded like she had a father looking after her... still. terance worried. "sorry --" came his second comment with a shake of his head, "i'd only worry about the winter -- you seem young..." but then again, terance knew better than to make assumptions about age. nowadays, everyone younger than him looked younger than him. before him could've been two yearlings or two 6 month olds -- he had no clue, honestly. 

"but, of course -- fish can stay with us," he said with a dip of his head, a soft breath falling from his muzzle, "my name is terance, leader of the hollow. we have plenty of room here for you." he didn't press the other to stay, it seemed like fish was some sort of straggler that someone didn't want to deal with anymore. logically, it made sense. he waited for any questions.
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"Oh no, no," Lele said, maintaining her chipper tone, "daddy and Spur and me, we like to travel! Don't worry about us, we can take care of ourselves." She beamed at Terance, as if honored by his concern, her smile growing impossibly wider and her tail beginning to thump when he went on to say he would take in her ailing friend.

"Oh, yay!" the teenager said, suddenly smothering Bat with hugs and kisses. "Thank you, Terance, thank you!" she chirped in between. "They're going to take great care of you here, Fish. I can tell. And we'll come back to visit you one day, I promise!" She finished her demonstration by bracing her forelegs on her fellow youth's shoulders, staring her deeply in the eyes, smiling and planting one last smooch on Bat's nose.

-Thank you,- was all the weakened Bat could think to do, directing a grateful smile at Ukulele first and then shifting it to Terance. -Thank you...- she repeated, wondering if the sign would be understood.

"She's saying 'thank you,' I'm pretty sure," Lele translated as she swept to her feet. "Oh, I'm going to miss you, Fish. All my love. Thank you again, Terance. Goodbye!" And with several dips of her head, waves of her tail and even a few blown kisses, Ukulele melted into the underbrush, disappearing in the direction where Tambourine and Larkspur awaited her.

That left Bat at the borders, facing her new leader. She kept her head bowed as she waited for whatever came next. She'd always wanted to infiltrate another pack, though these circumstances were far from anything she'd ever imagined. There wasn't much she could do about it now, so she'd just have to make the best of her situation.
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Ooc — Magdalyn
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there was a big show of love and affection and relief, maybe, for fish. lele seemed thrilled that the little dark wolf could stay, and he waited patiently for all of that to go down before lele gave her goodbye and left. "safe travels," called terance after her, his forest gaze eventually dropping to fish. 

she's saying thank you, i'm pretty sure. terance honed in on that, ears flicking forwards as he studied her. "you're welcome, fish," he said kindly, sending her a warm smile, features deepening as he did so, "do you think i could ask you a few questions? i think it'd help me." assuming fish complied, terance began to roll out a few questions. "how do you say "how are you"?" terance asked, ears flicking. and if she answered, terance would try again, "what about "i found something important"?" they were small strides but... terance thought it'd make her life a little easier if he knew at least these two phrases. 

"i'll do my best to communicate with you," he added, ears flicking. poor thing.
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Terance's manner was very warm, immediately reminding her of Tambourine. He and his daughter were simply two of the most upbeat wolves she'd ever met. Bat had only spent two weeks with them, yet she knew she'd never forget them and she truly hoped to see them again one day. She wondered if Spur would still be with them when that day came. She had taken very good care of Bat (excluding nearly crushing her throat in her attempts to save her...) but she was simply not as likable as the other two. Spur clearly resented Lele too.

Bat shook her head. They were gone now and she needed to focus on the present and the future. Terance was making an effort to communicate, which earned a smile from the poorly youth. She nodded, then listened carefully. Unfortunately, her ptero was rudimentary at best. She had to ponder a moment before slowly moving her forelimbs.

-How are you?- she signed, then paused and regretfully shook her head. She didn't know how to sign the second phrase. "I'm sorry," she mouthed, thinking of Towhee and wondering if there was any chance Terance might be able to read her lips.
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Ooc — Magdalyn
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terance was a bit oblivious when it came to certain things -- so he really couldn't read lips. but he kind of got the gist of what she was doing. in that, no, she didn't know how to say that. "is this a language?" he asked her, now a bit confused that she didn't know what that meant. if she couldn't speak, you'd think she'd have this down pat? unless... well, maybe this was recent? terance really couldn't ask her.

"are you from a pack?" he asked her, a bit dumbly. she probably was. terance might've recognized her scent had she gotten here earlier and, well, if she hadn't been drug out of a river. but there was nothing left of the redhawks for him to recognize, and she could really speak. "i only know of a few around here but... maybe you can tell me?" he waited for an answer. "elysium? .... swiftcurrent creek? .... easthollow? ... moonspear?" hesitation now, "blackfeather woods...?"
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"Is this a language?" -Yes.- "Are you from a pack?" Bat perked up a bit at this, signing, -Yes,- again a bit more emphatically. He began listing a few. Although she was listening for Redhawks, it didn't stop her from marveling at the sheer number of them. Most of the names were utterly unfamiliar, though her nose wrinkled a bit at the last one.

-No,- she signed emphatically. -I'm from Redhawks,- Bat added, well aware that he wouldn't understand. Were there other gestures she could make to get Terance to understand? Thinking quickly, the youth began to flap her arms (like the wings of a hawk) while simultaneously mouthing, "RED! HAWKS!" No sound came out of her mouth, though a slight choking noise did.

Suddenly, she was coughing, hard. She hunched over and gasped for breath between the paroxysms. Way to overdo it, whackass, Bat thought to herself.
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Ooc — Magdalyn
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"you've had run ins with blackfeather too?" was his first question, clearly interested (and surprised that she wasn't from moonspear!!). but then she got all weird and flappy, kind of stressing terance out. he frowned, heavily, feeling so sorry for her. she looked so frustrated, and honestly? he would be too. he wished he could understand her better so he could help her... but alas, he didn't. at least she wasn't from blackfeather woods. ugh. 

"i'm sorry, fish, i wish i could help you," he told her with a shake of his head, and as she started coughing, terance stepped forwards to nudge her cheek gently. "c'mon, i'll get you fed and cared for. we'll figure out how to get you home though, i promise."
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She felt the touch of a cool nose against her cheek and turned toward it. A few more coughs rattled out of her, causing her entire body to shudder. Her throat ached horribly now. She appreciated that Larkspur had saved her life, though Bat wished she hadn't practically destroyed her larynx in the process. She reached up a paw to rub at her neck, wondering if she would ever be able to speak again.

-Okay,- Bat signed with the last of her energy, slumping slightly into Terance.
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Nunataq watched the interaction between the strangers and Terance with interest, as she always did, when she was in the mood of learning the art of understanding, how verbal (bumbling-bubbling-babbling fools would be a more correct term were she able to voice it) people functioned. Her keen gaze traced the facial features of the involved parties - particularly Terance's and Bat's - finding and reading cues they did not realize were there.

She decided that she did not particularly like the trio of wolves and she scrunched her nose, when Lele hugged Bat, which in Nunataq's mind was the rudest form of invading private space. Being averse to any unwelcome touch or too close proximity of most wolves, she did not understand those, who did. But this weird bit paled at the beautiful pair of ears the stranger possessed and, while the mute girl watched them with a gaze of someone, who has seen the holy ghost, she made a decision to act nice and befriend this little weirdo. In hopes of munching at those lovely appendages.

Then she noticed another thing, while Terance was apparently struggling with a very ineffective way of communication, the other was pretty much silent. Nunataq rolled her eyes and gave a look of sympathy to the girl - she understood her pain and frustration (which she imagined from her own experiences). Why couldn't people simply shut up and look? Everything was so obvious and verbalists unnecessarily complicated things.

Finally, when the two had reached some sort of mutual understanding and begun walking home, Nunataq followed them a little distance away.