Ankyra Sound Nothing more to say
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#1
All Welcome 
The battered side of Lele's face hurt again. She cracked open one eye (the other was swollen shut and she did not know yet, if the extent of the injury had destroyed vision in it) and carefully rubbed the painful side against her paw. It was very hot to the touch left a reddish white, sticky substance smeared on her fur. "Crap..." she murmured, scrunching her nose at the stench of putrefying flesh and then pulling herself up to her feet. Stretching came somewhat stiffly, but at least, whatever wounds there had been on the rest of the body, they were nowhere near as bad as on her face. Chunks of fur were missing and there were shallow cuts or scratches, some bruised muscles, but nothing too serious. 

Lele hobbled to the water's edge, but stopped mid-way to stare down at herself in a pool of water. A reflection there would not have flattered even the greatest beauty in the world and for her, who had for a while thought herself beautiful, seeing, how pitiful she looked now, was another blow to a self-esteem that had already been torn down to a smoking pile of rubble. Better not dwell too much of it, she thought and continued to, where the ocean's waves rolled gently against the white sand of the coast. She walked in there up to her knees and after some hesitation leaned down and submerged the left side of her face in the cold water. The relief was instantanious - saltwater prickled against the open wounds a little, but cold took the fever and most of the pain away. 

She closed her eyes and sank to her belly, savouring a peaceful moment, before memories of recent events caught up with her and began to torment her again.
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#2
The sounds of the rolling waves going back and forth in and endless motion, the salty taste of the wind and the sea gulls that flew above his head, always looking for an opportunity to steal a catch. There was so much to enjoy about the beach and the endless sight of oceans in the distance while dreaming what was beyond the borders of what the naked eye could see. Dragonfly was truly a beachy boy and preferred this territory far above anything that had a 'mountain' in its name.

The only downside of Ankara Sounds was the long journey through forest-like areas to get here. And having stumbled upon it was more lucky than anything else, even if he wanted to belief the salty scent of the ocean led him here. There weren't many paw prints left behind, burned in the sand or covered by its endless amount of slippery pebbles instead. So to his surprise, he wasn't alone near this private hidden outlet.

The other wolf was betrayed by her scent; a mixture of a nomadic lone wolf and that of the salty ocean made her almost a wolfish sea mermaid. As he drew near, leaving only his paw prints behind of his wanderings in the sand, his honey-brown eyes glanced at her in the distance. Her face was half-bruised and battered, the wounds carved upon her face as a reminder of harsher times of the past. Even still, she lay there so serene and peaceful. And he was not one to judge or stare for that matter.

Not wanting to interrupt her peace, he lied down like a sphinx a respectable distance from her. Then he too began to take it all in and enjoy the scenery, the sea and the serenity. A pleasant reward.
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Lele would have remained the picture perfect model for a romantically melancholic marine scenery were it not for a wave that washed over her, filling her nostrils and ears with saltwater and eyes with tiny particles of sand. She sprang to her feet immediately, spluttering and coughing, shaking her head to rid of the excess water and stumbled back to the shore. Once there she did another round of drying herself and only then did she notice that she had been watched. 

Strangers did not scare her, but for a moment there she felt very uneasy. Because it is one thing to live with the realization that you have suffered from violence, it is completely the other, if someone else witnesses this and asks questions. If not out loud, then you can read the curiousity in their eyes. What would Larkspur do?  She was not overly fond of her step-mom and had suffered far more from her than actually learned (or learned very well, who she did not wish to be), but at times like these, when there was a possibility of inquiries that she did not choose to answer, it was easier to think about that viper of a wolf. 

Most likely tell him to eff off and offer a bit of encouragement, if they did not understand on the first go. But this was not Lele's way of handling things, though imagining her stepmom here and now brought a ghost of a smile to her face. It was better therefore to be the first to start a conversation: "Hey! If you want to go for a swim - the water's frickin' cold." She told him, approaching close enough to be heard, but remained within a safe distance.

Long time no see! :)
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Even with his eyes opened, he had taken a path to his inner mindset. The vast ocean, the sandy shoreline, the gulls above his head and the cloudy skies -- they appeared to be only a painting upon the wall. A peaceful one. Being close to endless amounts of water brought him peace, silence and serenity where he could just vibe  off in the moment and forget about everything else. Even the other wolf who -- last time he remembered -- enjoyed her own moment of silence in the scenery --

..he barely figured out that she got up and approached him with a stillness, respect and a distance. He was so zoomed out in his inner sanctum that he hadn't anticipated her coming towards him (or take note of her face, for that matter). "Uh, oh, HI!" Was all that he could blurt out in the moment. After taking a deep breath and a moment to recollect himself, his words began to form a meaning in his mind. She spoke about the cold opportunity to swim. That sounded like a great idea!

"Is that an invitation?" He inquired curiously and with a playful undertone.Deciding not to wait for a reply to that question, the male stood up, kicked up some sand from the shorelines in a playful manner before slowly running towards the water. Running slowly had two functions: one it gave her momentum to catch up if she wanted to and second of all, it gave him mental power to prepare for the water. Because cold meant really ice cold as  it wasn't full-blown summer yet with chances to heat the water up a few degrees.

--

Hi, I couldn't resist a thread with you :)
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You are in luck - I am starting off with a brand new toon. I am glad you replied!

A name would have been nice, but Lele did not expect to hear such, if she had approached the person and started off with a small talk without any proper introductions. She was glad he caught on the idea of swimming rather than focusing on her battered face and something in is eager response with flirtatious undertones made her smile and chuckle. "No, not really - I have had enough for today," she told him, but nevertheless followed to the edge of the water slowly to see, whether he was going to slip and fall and, perhaps, do something just as silly. She did not know the guy at all, but she felt that this kind of mischief would suit him. 

Lele sat down and observed him curiously, glad for a distraction, glad for having neutral company after a very long time and it would occur to her later only that this was the first time in a long while, where she actually felt a little happy.
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#6
I consider myself lucky then :)

---

Running towards the waters, he could already hear the waves rolling out a cold, wet blue carpet. "You sure?" He called back to her, making sure she wouldn't regret this opportunity before it was too late. If he hadn't ran towards the water like a wild stallion set free for the first time, his nose might have picked up the salty sea-water scent that clenched to her fur and betrayed her moments, dips and dives with the sea. 

The first sensation of the water was one that made him tremble. "Eek, cold!" He yelled out loud as it took some time for his body to get accustomed to the cold temperature of the water. It was a one-way street from here: he quickly dove fully submerged into the water before he was allowed second thoughts. 

"R-refreshing." He said a few seconds later as he dragged his fishy body back to the shorelines. There was a half-surprised smile upon his body as he had almost forgotten how cold the water of the ocean could have been. At the same time it made him feel more alive than ever. "The name is Dragonfly."
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Lele did not reply, just watched his antics in amused silence. Something in him reminded her of her dad - when Larkspur was not around to make everyone's mood sour, they had had wonderful moments together, being as silly and impractical as they wanted. On more than one occasion her young self had wanted to keep that cheerful light in her father's eyes glowing and she could not understand, how, what she had found heart-warming and amazing in his personality, could be of no value to her stepmom. 

Soon her yet nameless companion's brief tryst with the ice-cold water had come to an end and he returned to, where she was sitting. Lele got to her feet and took few steps back to avoid getting splattered with water, in case he decided to shake his coat. Dragonfly was his name, she acknowledged this with a polite dip of her muzzle, then offered her own name. The shortened version of it: "Lele." 
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Dragonfly felt reborn after his salty ocean dive. Water still dripped from his wet coat but he felt no need to shake it all out -- even if it made him smelly-welly like a stinky pirate. The salty ocean scent was very defining; either you loved or hated it. To Dragonfly it would automatically select those who he took an extra liking to. After all, if the salty air would stir a certain disgust within a wolf he or she was already 1-0 zero behind (in soccer terms) to Dragonfly's likeability skill. The fact that Lele -- as she introduced herself -- had even recommended the dive gave Dragonfly extra reason to like her even more.

"What brings you to the shorelines of the ocean, Lele?" Dragonfly wondered out loud, trying to find out more about her reasons for being here. After all, it was quite a journey coming all the way to Ankara Sound. Would she love the sight of the ocean as much as him? "Not many come to this secret shoreline, it's quite a journey to get here."
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#9
"Is it that well kept secret?" Lele laughed in response to Dragonfly's friendly inquiry and cast a glance around. She had not specifically looked for any place at all, just followed the sound of waves, wind and scent of salt and seaweeds. "If so, then you should consider hiding it better," she pointed out and leaned to the side to scratch and itch under her muzzle. While doing so her nails caught on an edge of a half-healed wound and she winced, when it was torn open again. 

"Nothing in particular. This place seemed to be as good to stop by as any other," she shrugged. "What about you? Do you live here?"
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"Best kept secret!" Dragonfly said with a playful smile plastered upon his facial features; so far this meeting had been fun and light-hearted. Lele sounded like a wolf whose company he would enjoy and maybe he even found a new friend in the female. "Not many ventured here." He said -- pointing at the fact that there weren't many scents hidden among the shoreline unless the salty air did a good job at fading them all away. And it took quite a large amount of steps to get here.
 
His eyebrows raised a little when she compared this place -- one that he loved -- with just about any other territory. Oh no, but this territory had something many other territories hadn't: an ocean! What was not to love about this place? "No, I'm a drifter. I was kicked out of my birth pack and now I'm just wandering about, home is here and everywhere. Home is the world. What's your story, Lele?" Dragonfly couldn't help but to ask and wonder.
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"Pretty much the same, except I was not kicked out of anywhere," Lele replied, leaving out the part, where she had almost got eaten by a bunch of very self-righteous and jealous wolves. That did not count as being exiled, since she had never been part of that group, save for a spring-romance with their alpha. But this train of thought as light-heartedly written, did not stir particularly good emotions and she tucked them safely back to revisit later, when she felt ready. For now she was glad to pretend that everything was alright.

"Home has been my world ever since I was born," she elaborated a bit. "Except it does feel lonely at times, doesn't it?"
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#12
Her last statement hit the nail to his heart; it was terribly lonely being a lone wolf. Despite that fact, he wasn't one to settle for just about any pack out of desperation or because he had to, especially now that during the spring and upcoming summer season food was aplenty. Maybe he was forced to join a pack during the winter season or maybe sooner; it depended on what turn of life events would be in store for him.

"Yeah, terribly lonely -- I miss my birth family." He chuckled and wouldn't romanticize life of lonereship because it was a harsh road with challenges along the way. Still he had a lot of freedom and was bound to no one. "But I'm also here to meet new faces and maybe even some friends." He pointed at Lele and smiled, like her he wasn't here to pour out his heart or drown in a pool of sorrowful emotions. "Let me tell you a secret: I love, love, love the ocean."
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Lele almost blurted out that she missed her family too, but stopped at the very last moment. You miss something that exists somewhere, but as far as she was concerned family the way she remembered it, no longer existed. She had no idea, where either Tambourine or Harps was, whether they were alive. So close for such a long time, but the contact had broken so easily afterwards. Larkspur she did not miss, but then now, when she was at her lowest, she would settle for seeing even that grumpy face. Just to prove that a family she had called her own had existed once. Now - the more time passed, the more it felt as if her past was that of a different wolf's. 

She cracked a half-smile at Dragonfly, when he pointed to her as a potentially new friend, but did not comment on that. Instead she wondered, whether the man acted like this to all, who he met, or whether she was something special in his eyes. More likely the former, which also meant that just as quick as he was making friends, he also would not stick around to keep them. With this is in mind she decided to be careful. Promise nothing. "Hard to take that friend with you wherever you go," she remarked. "Are there other inanimate objects that you have made friends with?" she teased him.
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She was partly right: Dragonfly was an amicable wolf who was easy to get to know since he usually held a kind demeanor in high regard. He could be silly, he could be serious or a mixture of both. But behind that friendly face was a wolf who didn't let many fall too deep into his heart as a way of protecting himself in case he would get hurt. There was a difference between a regular friendship and making a true and deep connection with someone, regardless of the type of relationship (family, friend or lover). Despite the fact that his past didn't know many bad times his heart too had been battered, bruised and broken due to the hardships that life could provide.

"Yes.." He proclaimed her question of friendship with objects all too seriously. For a moment his train of thoughts was riding on the things he loved. "I love honey too." But usually honey would get him into trouble as it wasn't easy to get. What more did he love? D'oh, wait a second since he wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, her silly jest and kind tease only registered seconds later. "Hey meanie." Dragonfly proclaimed as his paw shifted towards her shoulder with the intention to nudge her gently. "You, you are -- no were -- making fun of me, weren't you?" Eyebrows raised as he quizzically looked at her. "But I am SO onto you!" (Yeah, much too late).
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"Ain't you a bit of a detective," Lele burst out laughing, finding the guy more amicable by the minute. Dragonfly was fun without the burden of trying too hard to impress her. Just being him and not expecting anything else, save for common courtesy, from her. It was refreshing and nice. 

"I hope that it does not tarnish any chances of future relationship here," she flirted with him and it would have looked a lot nicer, were it not for her battered face, which made her attempts at being secretive and alluring weak and misplaced. "Where are you to next?" she asked.
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A detective? Dragonfly? He liked the sound of him as he adopted a "Sherlock Holmes"-pose for a second, looking like a true criminal investigator for a second. "Detective 'Fly & Inspector Lele." He concluded with a smile and some light banter, enjoying her company and how seemingly smooth their conversation went. At her light jest he shook his head, no their relationship wouldn't be ruined.

And then she questioned where he was headed next? A moment he pondered about that one as ideas were tossed in his head from left to right; in the end one stood out. "I go where food goes." With that in mind, it appeared as though their first case knocked on the door: "Inspector Lele, have you picked up any suspicious scents from prey?" He couldn't help but to ask while adopting a quirky Sherlock Holmes-pose once more.
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"I stink like one now, but I would rather not end up on your lunch table," Lele retorted to his quirky inquiry. She was a wounded animal - true, but in her mind's eye she was not planning on dying just yet. Even if the world in general seemed like a chaotic place to be in at the moment. Even if she herself was not in the right mindset to look past the bad things that had happened. But she somehow knew that one way or another things would turn out alright in the end. She just had to wait. Perhaps, they were turning out well at this very moment.

"No. I have not. What crime did they commit?" she asked, getting into the game. "Did they humiliate you in public?" 
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A quirky eyebrow was raised at her suggestion of 'Lele being lunch. With leathery lips turned into a wry smile, he playfully said. "Oh, I quite like the stench of the salty sea; it adds some extra flavor. Are you sure I can't take a bite?"

Half of Lele's face had been torn, bruised and battered by a vicious attack; of course his honey-brown eyes had observed that. However instead of being judgmental or staring at it, Dragonfly hoped that between their silly jest and odd banter she would be unaware and in a bless instead of being consciously reminded of it every now and then.

"Abso - frikkin - lutely." His answer to her question was positive; those suspicious prey, how dare they. How dare they do what? "They dare to run away whenever I want to hug them." With an impish smile, he added. "With my teeth." Yes, because what sort of prey wouldn't want to roll out the red carpet to end up as a predator's snack? 
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At the suggestion of "taking a bite of her" Lele grew visibly uneasy and looked away from Dragonfly. He had not intended to insult her, yet she found herself uncomfortable with the way he had worded his joke. All things considered, it was not a very tactful thing to say to either an injured wolf or a woman. Less so, if it is both. But she sighed and let it pass - after all he had proven himself to be quite harmless and did not seem to have any other intentions behind those witticisms. 

"You might want to try a different manner of hugging then," she told him and shrugged. "What are other incriminating arguments?"
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Oh no, what had Dragonfly done? His enthusiasm and silly demeanor began to diminish at the moment he saw her smile slowly fading away. His white ears flung backwards apologetically while a heavy lump suddenly felt in his throat. If he could have taken back those words, he would. Not only did her smile waver away, she also looked away uncomfortably. The white male was natural expressive and empathic, he could feel her concern and the strange silence that followed afterwards. Lele let it pass and moved on with the conversation, but he couldn't; at least not without offering a heartfelt apology since it was never his intention to make her feel this way.

"Listen, I'm sorry for my words and for what I said. Those words had a playful and silly intention; I never meant to hurt you but I should have used more tact and be more subtle."
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#21
Sorry for the wait! Summer vacation - lots of time spent outdoors, hardly any by the computer. :D

Draggonfly's hasty apology made Lele even more uncomfortable and she looked away, feeling embarrassed that her momentarly uneasiness had been so evident in the first place. She would have loved to continue this playful banter and forget all this entirely. "Uh, nah... never mind," she shook her head and smiled at him quickly. Then tried to remember, what had they been discussing earlier and did not find much at all.

"So... where did you say, you were planning on going next?" she asked the first small-talkish thing that came to her mind and hoping that the guy would be just as glad to move on from the topic as she was.
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#22
Sounds like fun and good times :D

----

Veni, vendi, vici (or something like that). The awkward moment with a heartfelt apology passed by and Dragonfly was glad that, like she, the focus went back to the fun part. Pfew, he softly sighed. What a relief, he thought as his honey-eyes looked at her while regaining back a part of that playful glint that had been there before.

"I-I think I'm heading to Co-co-co-nut Grove." He had seen the wavering palm trees before, quite exotic to these lands. And he would enjoy the wiggle of sand across his toes some more. Not thinking twice, he added. "Hey, want to come too?" And while he wasn't quite ready to join a pack just yet, he was definitely looking for a friend or two along the way as his journey in these lands continued. Though where he was truly going or what life had in store for him? Who knew. Curiously he looked back at Lele while impatiently awaiting her answer.
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Coconut Grove - Lele did not have any associations with the first word, therefore to her this was just another weird area name that probably had some backstory that not even Dragonfly knew. She may have been wrong, but he did not look like someone, who liked to dwell on details too much, and she was not going to ask.

His offer was tempting, but after having been on her own for such a long time made her hesitant to accept the offer. No offence to him in particular, but after the very recent fallout - where she had bet everything in the game and lost miserably - she had trouble trusting people. Even if they appeared as pleasant and easygoing as him. What if... 

"Thank you for the offer, but - no. My face needs to heal and the saltwater seems to be helping," she explained. "But perhaps we will run into each other at some point, won't we?" she added with a smile. "The world is a big place, but not that big that some paths won't cross."