Duck Lake ; i guess i'm not like you

welcome to the madness of these two! c: sorry this is kind of shitty it's 2am sobs
edit: this post wasn't meant to be so long omg please don't feel the need to match it LOL

☼ ☼ ☼

The dove had been laying by the edge of the crystal clear lake, idly watching the schools of tiny fish dash and weave in-between the plant-life at the tips of her paws, her pale body remaining partially hidden amongst the dense, flourishing reeds that kissed the waterline. The morning had brought over a certain calmness that the pair hadn't experienced in a while, and Goose cherished it, closing her lids briefly and lifting her nose to the air to take in a deep breath of the crisp, morning breeze. It smelled so wonderfully of Spring, and the wraith sighed in response, thoughts briefly wandering back to the journey that had already endured upon entering the Teekon Wilds. Although their entry into Easthollow had been a successful one — albeit extremely shaky — the pieces had just not fit into place. They'd kept their distance, with Goose noting how frequently Oath seemed to be on edge, and eventually the cons had outweighed the pros. The wraith, at first, had not been entirely sold on the preposition of leaving what appeared to be a sanctuary, but she would always trust Oath's judgement. Much more than she'd ever trust her gut feeling. And seeing now, how much more relaxed the russet fae seemed to be as she gleefully hunted her prey, allowed the pale to see that their exit had been more than worth it. They'd made it this far already - a little longer couldn't hurt.

Goose didn't need to see what was going on to know whereabouts Oath was in her hunting 'routine' — she could point out each grunt and thrash in her sleep; the dance was so familiar now. When the commotion settled down and the russet seemed to be retreating back to dry land, only then did the dove pull herself to her feet. Goose already had a smile on her face before she could even set eyes on her friend: a plump, limp duck, right at home in-between that cheeky, devious grin. Walking upwards towards her at a lazy pace, she watched as Oath got to work on her prize, unable to disrupt the hearty chuckle that bumbled up from her stomach at the sore spectacle of her. As wonderful as Oath was to look at on the regular, she was a sight to see when she was sopping wet. All long limbs atop an even nimbler form, she looked even more feline in nature than she usually did. "I'd think you were a mountain lion if you had been any further away," the dove teased as she stood by her plopped form, briefly leaning down to run her tongue up alongside her soaking wet cheek before moving to preen at the smaller girl's ear tufts. She couldn't help it; cleaning Oath was one of her peculiar past times.

As she moved to settle by the russet's side, the cool breeze that had been so welcoming before brought forward the scent of something, or rather someone, very unfamiliar. The muscles in the pale's legs tensed almost instinctively as she drew her attention quickly from Oath's coat to the horizon in-front her, eyes squinted in retaliation against the harshness of the reflected morning light. Brown orbs danced frantically around the edges of the lake to find the source, the dove audibly gasping when they fell upon what appeared to be another being. She couldn't tell what story the stranger's stance was telling with the way the brightness distorted her view, and despite her desperate attempt to focus her eyes, it was to no avail. They shouldn't have sat facing the sun. Goose lowered her head to utter softly, her voice cracking with bubbling anxiety, "Oath?"

☼ ☼ ☼