Nimbus Summit nerds trying to dance

The panic quieted and he found himself back at the summit, though he was unusually pensive. Today’s absolutely splendid forecast cheered him a bit, though any time he tried to accomplish anything, he caught himself standing still, staring off into space, thoughts racing…

He shook off his latest bout of woolgathering and resumed walking along the western border. Caracal saw the sun glittering off the basin in the distance. The sight reminded him of his recent sunset encounter with Gunnar at the coast. Without realizing it, he paused again.

When he came back to himself a beat later, the yearling raised his foxlike snout toward the cloudless skies and called @Heda’s name.

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heda was shaking.
she was stained in pheasant blood. some god of war had seen fit to bless her with four kills, but she had overextended her leg and taken a bruising blow to her right hip in the process.
it felt good to hurt.
it felt good to hurt.
heda was too numb to realize that this was the only time she felt lively, when she was employed in violence against herself.
caracal. her head turned that direction, and pupils still dilated, heda left her catches behind and clawed up from her low position to join the golden medic.
he looked vulpine under the setting sun. heda barked toward him, red-striped hackles lifted with adrenaline, tail lashing at the last moment to tell him it was a game, that she had not gone mad.

OOC: Cameo for now.



Instead of being on patrol like usual, Ensio for once, had taken a time out to enjoy himself. He gnawed on an old bone, taking satisfaction in how the scrape of his teeth felt against the inanimate object.

Somewhere close by, in the distance, he heard first the voice of Caracal, followed by Heda in answer. Interested, he gathered himself up, hopeful to join his age mates. He had not socialized much with the fox colored male and it had been ages since he was last around Heda. 

But as he approached, still a distant figure of ice and stone, he scrutinized how the flame backed girl charged for Caracal. Was all as it appeared, he wondered? He stood back, silent. Watching before deciding on his next course of action.

He paced as he waited, neither his mind nor his paws able to sit still. Fortunately, Heda appeared only moments later, slathered in blood. He gaped at her for a moment before the scent hit him. It belonged to prey. She must be fresh from the hunt. He wondered if he’d interrupted her.

Hey! Caracal greeted, not bothering to ask or even exchange pleasantries. Was wondering if you were ready to go find that snow, he said, his eyes dropping briefly to her ankle before skipping back up to her face, flicking between her own.

her heart raced. her blood slowed. he was asking her on that trip. she felt like demurring. she felt like saying no. but both of those responses came from a sense of duty, and one that was beginning to change. heda flexed her forepaws against the good earth. an entire wild world called.
"let's go." she wanted to work on impulse for once. her body throbbed with the strain of an arduous hunting trip, but the idea of a journey, a real one, spurred heda on.

She agreed, much more readily than he had anticipated. Heda was ready to go right now. Caracal hadn’t really thought this through himself, though there was some part of him that felt a shiver of elation at her dynamism.

Right on, he said with a breath of laughter, pivoting a bit to face due south and taking a step. I think I know where we should go, Caracal said as he began to walk. We’ll head south, then hang a left and go east to the Sunspires. He’d seen several snowcaps from a distance while traveling through the neighboring flatlands.

"sounds good." she mentally inventoried what caracal was saying. she knew him, of course, and trusted him as her packmate, but this was something else. 
when she turned, ensio was there. she halted and gave the other boy a jerky smile. his face reminded her of the hunting on the taiga, and thinking of that made her think of dr—
"should we tell the leaders?" she asked in a mumble, coming to his side. she licked clumsily at her chestfur, trying to clean away the blood and walk at the same time.

He paused in his stride when Heda queried about the leadership. Oh… yeah, he replied, readying himself to send up a quick howl when he followed Heda’s gaze and spotted Ensio. Maybe we can leave a message with him? Caracal voiced the thought aloud as soon as it struck him.

When his eyes flicked to his would-be traveling companion to ask if she might know his name, he saw her struggling to lick some of the blood from her pale fur. Need help with that? he asked, a touch of humor in his tone. What did you kill, anyway? Caracal wondered, easily sidetracked.

fuck it. she didn't want to tell anyone where they were going; she didn't want to make a thing out of it or offer explanations or anything. heda was uncomfortable with the spike of frustration she experienced when caracal turned to stare right at the other boy.
"that's ensio," heda murmured, clearing her throat. "and i was killing pheasants. they ganged up on me," she fibbed, for it had been less an avian conspiracy and more herself slamming her own body into things.

Heda provided the boy’s name, though she did not appear particularly moved by any desire to leave a message with him. Caracal squinted at the swarthy silhouette in the distance, disquiet stealing through him when he suddenly thought of Veteran. He didn’t want to get any closer, either.

Caracal threw back his head and howled, “Heda and I are heading out for a few days!” Surely Ensio would hear. And hopefully at least one member of the leadership—or someone who might relay the message—was in earshot as well.

That base covered, he turned his attention back to Heda, motioning for her to follow as he broke into a brisk trot. I didn’t know pheasants formed gangs, he quipped, glancing sidelong at her. Guess I don’t have to worry about defending or feeding myself on this trip, huh?

caracal took the hint. heda breathed in surprise, then added a yip of goodbye to ensio. hopefully no hard feelings. it felt like he and arius were headed for leadership. she hadn't known wintersbane but those two felt like what he had wanted them to be.
and heda wasn't sure she could meet anyone's expectations.
caracal joked and she snorted. "not unless you want to eat bird every day, that's my only area of expertise." so. they were going on a trip. right now. and they were already moving. did she have regrets? heda identified none, but anxiety was starting to creep up all the same. "so this is what you do then, caracal? go travelling, come home a bit, and head back out?"

Do you know how impressive that is though? Caracal replied. I’d be happy to eat whatever you give me, he added. In exchange, I’ll be on standby in case you get pecked or something.

Heda questioned him about his traveling habits. He felt the back of his neck warm a little. Caracal wasn’t proud of his inability to stick close to home or pursue his studies with Lane. Especially after his talk with Gunnar, he had begun to wonder if he should throw in the towel.

Ah, yeah, pretty much. I’m, he began to say, then pressed his lips together and shook his head, not entirely sure how to articulate his thoughts, if he was even ready to share.

heda smirked but didn't comment on that or anything he said. it felt weird to know that there was something even this jubilant boy didn't want to talk about. she passed him a look that said whenever, right? and tossed her head.
"i could teach you to hunt birds, you know. you do get pecked a lot and you fall down a whole bunch and you might even break a bone, wow. guess it's not that great," she laughed. 
a burst of speed put her ahead of him. she wanted to leave the summit behind.

And I’ll probably suck at it, Caracal thought, though he didn’t get a chance to find his voice again before she rocketed away. He had no choice but to launch after her, neither one really bothering with a backward glance.

Figured we could fade in favor of our newer one. :)