Swiftcurrent Creek far east movement

She's calling for Kas but anyone's welcome. :)

Recalling Kaskara's recent invitation, Junior decided to make good on it by visiting the creek today. It would keep her mind off her recent preoccupations, namely Dante (the positive) and her father's potential replacement children (overwhelmingly negative). Assuming the older she-wolf had given her some semblance of directions, Junior navigated her way there with very little trouble—a testament, perhaps, to her candidacy as a true, blue Outrider—though she arrived rather hungry, thirsty and weary from the long trip.

Her big ears twitched nearly constantly in response to the voice of the nearby burbling brook. Her mouth felt as dry as the dusty leather pad of her paw. Well aware that it was a horrible idea to breach the borders, she ignored her raging thirst and sat squarely about a hundred yards beyond the borders. Gathering enough saliva for the task, she then tipped her onyx muzzle into the air and called for Kaskara.

Danica heard the strange howl, and heard that it was meant for another, but she was close enough that she figured why not intercept and make sure the guest was friendly. Just because they weren't stupid enough to breach the borders didn't mean they meant well. Danica was slowly picking up her aspiring warden duties by hanging more or less around some of the borders. She couldn't go far and was trying not to push it but sitting around doing nothing was worse than death in her mind.

The stranger was young, even younger than Magpie, and Danica dismissed any threat as soon as she saw her alone. Even if she meant trouble Danica was sure Kaskara could handle it.

Still she approached though. "What brings you around our borders?" She asked, curious. It had been a while since Danica had done dealings with wolves not of her pack. This girls smelled of the Plateau, where Kas had come from, but Danica held no suspicions of treachery. If they were doing such dealings they wouldn't be calling on the border for anyone to hear.

Kaskara heard the girl's call and had been burying a rabbit in a communal cache, so she hadn't been able to leave just then. When she finally recovered the cache with leaves, she made her way to the border and found that Danica had already arrived, and asked what the young plateau wolf was doing on their borders. Kaskara didn't know Danica well, but she was pleased to see that she treated Junior with fairness, despite being a stranger looking for one of her packmates.

Kaskara would have gone to them then, but something held her back. She had never seen Junior interact with anyone outside her home pack before, and she was curious to see how she handled Danica's question. Not that the Eta had been harsh or demanding, though it was a legitimate question. She remained hidden in the shadow of a tree, watching the pair carefully, her large ears swiveled toward them to catch every word.

The wolf that arrived to greet her was not Kaskara. Nonetheless, Junior smiled and bowed her head, her tail thumping on the grass behind her. When she straightened out her neck, she peered at the stranger, careful to avoid making eye contact. Her fur was a cream base with spun gold. She was very pretty, though there was something slightly standoffish about the way she held herself.

In response to the pertinent query, Junior answered simply, "I'm here to visit Kaskara! She invited me." Her big ears twitched and she added, "I'm Junior, from Blacktail Deer Plateau."

I'm assuming Danica would scent Fox on Junior since she is an Alpha now. If I'm incorrect on that I can edit that last part out ;)

Danica noted the lack of eye contact approvingly... someone had taught this young traveler well when it came to greeting strangers on their own land. Apparently the Plateau had some manners. In response to the reply her question recieved, Danica smiled. "Did she now?" She wondered if Bazi had been asked before this invitation had been extended... but that wasn't really Danica's problem, was it? She herself had no issues with the young wolf visiting, so long as she kept it on the outside of their borders. It might not be seen so kindly if they ventured within, however.

"I'm sure she'll be along then, so long as she was in earshot." Danica did not know Kaskara well but the girl seemed nice enough. She was Scimitar's sister, after all, and Danica's issues with her brother had nothing to do with his personality. "The name's Danica, by the way. So you and Kaskara were packmates for a while?"

There was a trace of a scent on Junior... one that Danica knew well, but she didn't comment on it. Instead she filed the information away for future pondering. Seemed that their ex-Alpha had found herself a new home after all. The Plateau, huh? Perhaps she'd need to make a visit of her own.

I'll have Kas reveal herself next round, so this post will be short. :)

Kaskara stood in the shadows, watching the pair from the side. She noted Junior's respectful stance and her gentle words, and Danica's equally gentle response. She wanted to see what Junior said to Danica's last question before she revealed herself, though she didn't want to hide in the shadows anymore. It wasn't exactly her style.

Although Junior sensed that Danica only wanted to make conversation to pass the time until Kaskara showed, Junior paused, unsure as to whether she would be opening a can of worms by answering. She decided a simple, "Yes," might suffice. Maybe Danica knew why Kaskara had left the plateau and come here and it wouldn't be on Junior to awkwardly explain how her false death had caused it. She still felt strange about that.

Another time, she might have mentioned Fox but Junior could scarcely think of her father's new mate lately without dying a little bit inside. It didn't bother her that Fox had replaced her mother at Peregrine's side, as her parents had split up before she was really aware of anything. It did bother her that the two of them might be plotting to have another litter, at which point Junior and the other three pups would be shoved off on their own, evidently. Never mind that they were already quite self-sufficient; it was the principle of the thing!

The youth fidgeted, looking to Danica as if simultaneously afraid of more questions (about Kaskara's departure from the plateau, namely) but hoping she'd ask her something so she wouldn't have to think about being replaced.

Junior's reply was short and nondescript. The girl seemed somewhat twitchy and on edge, as though she were uncomfortable with the question, and Danica's interest was of course piqued. Never one to let others' objections weigh her down, she cast a sly smile at the pup. "Something tells me there's a story there, and your reluctance to tell only makes me think it's a good one."

She couldn't make the girl speak though, and not having met Kaskara, she somehow doubted the girl would take it very kindly if she scared her friend off before she even got to speak with her. "Keep your secrets, though, if you want. I'll just have to guess." She mused on it for a moment. "Perhaps an affair gone south? Let me guess, Scimitar's your father, and now you've come to rejoin your family and live happily ever after." It was outlandish, the idea of the Beta having an illicit affair, not to mention creating a child. She was obviously not his also, having nothing of his look about her. But she couldn't help heckling the poor girl.

Kaskara frowned. Junior's reply was short and Danica was now intrigued. Kaskara had been nothing but honest and open with Bazi, and the white dove had accepted her despite her flaws, but she wasn't sure everybody else needed to know her past business. Back-pedaling a few paces, she took off at a jog, tugged a smile onto her face, and headed toward the pair. "Hey, Junior!" she called, giving the girl's shoulder a friendly bump with her nose when she was close enough.

She then turned toward Danica, having arrived just in time to hear the woman's last words. "Thanks for meeting her, but there's no need to upset the girl. She just came to visit." Kas also didn't appreciate her attempting to smear her brother's name, either, but decided to ignore that fact for the moment. Studying Junior for a moment more, she turned back toward Danica and explained. "I left the plateau because of my actions, not because of anyone else's. Junior was the first wolf I met there and we've been friends since, even after I left."

Danica sensed a story and Junior opened her mouth, prepared to say something, though she didn't know what. Her lips pressed closed when the she-wolf proceeded to goad her. The youngster fidgeted much more noticeably now. Did she have to answer these questions, as Danica's guest? It was none of her business.

Only when Danica mentioned her paternity did the youth finally say something. "What? My dad's name is Peregrine..." she said with a slight scowl, not sure what to make of the implication.

Right then, Kaskara appeared and the pup immediately stopped squirming. "Hey, Kas!" she said loudly, rising onto all fours and licking her friend's chin. "I'm not upset," she assured the dark she-wolf, glancing at Danica. "But she was prying. Is that the right word?"

Kaskara approached quickly after that and neither seemed amused. Ah, such was life. She was pretty used to most not getting her sense of humor. Didn't stop her from getting her kicks though.

"Prying would assume that I was asking questions. I'd say the more accurate term would be wildly speculating." If they were going to label her as rude might as well do it correctly. "And see? No one's upset, no harm, no foul." She sighed. These two were just no fun. Couldn't play along, not even a little bit.

Danica had lost interest almost immediately in kaskara's reasons for leaving her previous pack. Say what you like about Danica but we was no busybody. There were few she cared enough about to want to know what was going on in their lives, and no offense, but Kaskara wasn't one of them. At this point she knew she'd be intruding, having no part in their obvious friendship. "I suppose since your here my job is done. I'll let you two get on with it." She felt they'd appreciate not having her hanging around and had things she could be getting back to.

Kaskara could have hit Danica with that smug look on her face, but she swallowed all the bad feelings and simply let it go. It wasn't worth it to berate her anymore, especially since Junior said she wasn't upset, and Danica truly hadn't been prying. Just slandering her brother's name and possibly hers in the process. "Even so, it was uncalled for. She's just a girl."

Kas didn't care what Danica thought of her, especially if she was no fun or boring. It wasn't her place to entertain the lighter colored wolf, anyway. Kas nodded when Danica suggested her job was done there, and she repeated, "Thank you for meeting her, Danica. I appreciate you keeping her company while I finished my task." She did truly mean that, whatever she felt about the woman's previous speculative statements about her brother.

Then she turned back to Junior, a smile on her face. "How're you, eh? How was the trek over?" She walked a few paces back into neutral territory, hoping the young girl would follow. They could hang out around here for a while.

As it turned out, it wasn't the right word. Junior felt a little stupid for the misnomer, yet quickly shrugged it off. Not a moment later, Danica dismissed herself and readied to leave Kaskara alone with her visitor. The pup said a simple, "Bye," and then promptly forgot Danica as she walked away.

Kaskara motioned for her to move back into neutral territory and Junior followed.
"It was fine. Long..." Junior said, then smacked her lips and asked, "Hey, is there a place I can get a drink around here? My mouth's as dry as dust." She was hungry too but didn't feel right asking for a handout. She could grab a snack later, on her way back.

When Junior said she was thirsty, Kas smiled and showed her to a stream that led away from the creek into neutral territory, not far from where they were currently standing. "This place is nice," she commented, showing her the small stream, and the canopy of trees that hung over it to create an ample amount of shade.

"Sometimes I come here when I need to think or be alone." It was secluded enough that others usually didn't bother her, but close enough to the creek that she could hear if Bazi or her brother called a meeting. Curious, she asked, "Did you get a chance to talk to Blue Willow about me coming to apologize?"

Kaskara led her to a small stream shaded by some leafy trees. Junior made a beeline to the water, drinking greedily and slopping it all over her chin. When she was finished, she lifted her head and licked her lips, burped, then turned to join her friend nearer to the trees.

When Kaskara asked her about Blue Willow, Junior felt herself grow hot. "Oh. No. I'm sorry," she admitted, feeling like a jerk. "I still will! I just... when I went to see her, we started talking about something else and..." Even as she spoke, the pup flushed even more. Was there any way to tell Kaskara the truth without making her feel bad? Maybe she could be vague... "I got upset and left. But next time I see her, I promise I'll say something." Her mismatched eyes flicked to the creek wolf's face, silently begging for forgiveness.

"It's okay," Kas assured her with a smile. It wasn't a big deal, at least not right now. Eventually she would make her way over to Blacktail Deer Plateau to speak with Blue Willow, but she did not know how it would go when she did. Would Blue even agree to meet with her?

Kas shook her head slightly and turned back to Junior. "I hope you weren't upset when you left to come here. She might be worried about you." The last thing she wanted was another misunderstanding between them and another placing of blame gone wrong. Kas knew that it wasn't Junior's fault that she fell in the creek last time, but she hoped she was doing everything in her power now to keep her family from worrying too much about her safety.

Gah, sorry this is so short!

Although Kaskara reassured her, Junior didn't know what to say in response. She had left the plateau without seeking out Blue Willow to rectify the situation. Suddenly unable to return her friend's gaze, the pup dropped her gaze to her paws and fidgeted guiltily. She had really failed Kas today.

Don't worry about it! Want to wrap this up?

Kaskara almost laughed at Junior's physical reaction, but kept the sound from bubbling into reality. It was hard enough on the girl knowing she had left without speaking again to Blue Willow; she didn't need Kas laughing at her. "Don't feel bad, Junior. You're still young. You'll learn how to handle things like this with time and experience." It was pretty much the only way to learn how to reconcile your feelings with another wolf's. "Tell you what. I'm going on a scouting mission in a few weeks. How about I come by then and we can both talk to Blue Willow?"

Sure! I've faded it for us. :)

Kaskara's next round of reassuring words earned a slow tap of Osprey's tail, though she didn't feel fully redeemed by any means. She had really dropped the ball. Where her friend wouldn't be hard on her, Junior would be very hard on herself.

Her eyes lifted when Kaskara mentioned a scouting mission. "Scouting mission?" the pup mouthed, liking the taste of those words. "Yeah! I mean, sure," the youth agreed before asking, "What's a scouting mission? It sounds really... Outridery!"

Her friend obliged with a description and it wasn't long before Junior's spirits lifted again. Talking about a shared interest with a friend tended to have that effect, eh? By the time she left the creek a few hours later, she felt happy and excited all over again about becoming the wilds' next amazing Outrider.