It had been around a day or two since she had joined the pack she had came to know as the caldera, Redhawk Caldera, its full name. She hadn't spotted Perry, Ashton or Theseus ever since the encounter at the lake, but the scent their pelts had bore had been rubbed on her, and she was officially made a Redhawk ever since.
Prima wandered about the lands that she now called home. She'd spent most of the day getting familiar with the scenery, was now out to do things... Pack duties. Right. Okay. The silver fae began to set out for border patrol, for that was one of the basic protocols she had to meet whilst being in a pack. Well, she could also check out the territory as she went guarding the edges of the lands, right? Later on she decided she would advance towards filling the caches, ready for the thrill of a good hunt, if she still hadn't met any of her packmates, which she wished for to happen.
Endeavouring to meet one of her packmates, she set out for the borders of Redhawk Caldera, her paws falling lightly on the dusting of snow that'd settled on the ground.
When Elwood came across an unfamiliar scent, he began to follow it. He quickly discerned that it belonged to a female, and she must have interacted with Peregrine at some point. At first, he was surprised; he had thought their ranks were full to the brim, but that was because he wasn't aware of Godfrey's recent disappearance.
The newcomer's trail led him towards the borders, and when her silver figure came into his line of vision, his breath caught in his throat. From afar, she looked strikingly similar to Avery, though the logical portion of his mind quickly overthrew the emotional reaction. He already knew it wasn't her, due to her scent, but he was surprised by the uncanny resemblance.
Striding towards the female, Elwood barked out a friendly greeting, his tail waving like a banner behind him. "Hey there! Are you our newest recruit?" he called out over the crunching of his paws in the snow.
She caught his scent before she saw him. She turned just as she absorbed the smell, and there the grayscale male was, his eyes an inquisitive yellow, his tail waving dominantly over his haunches. Prima paused for a while, seeing the seemingly unnerved expression on his features, before smoothly lowering herself into a position of respect, as she had been taught to back in the old customs. She was sure this guy was one of a high rank, judging by the way he carried himself.
Soon he called out a friendly greeting towards the fae as he approached, which Prima promptly returned with a bubbly smile on her face. ”Hi! Yeah, I was accepted a day or two ago. Currently beginning the process of settling in. I'm Prima, Prima Ashdown.”
He cupped his ears towards her as she introduced herself as Prima, and indicated that he had been correct in his assumption that she was the pack's latest newbie. "Nice to meet you, Prima. I'm Elwood," he replied, leaving off the fact that he was the caldera's Beta. Whoever accepted her might have mentioned him, anyway, if they had filled her in on who comprised the pack's leadership.
Tilting his head slightly to the left, he asked, "Need help with anything?" She had stated that she was settling in, and he remembered that when he had been a newcomer, Somnia had assisted him in looking for a den to call his own. He wanted to pay it forward and make Prima feel comfortable and welcomed.
”Well met, Elwood.” She regarded him curiously, straightening up as Elwood closed more distance between the two before pausing in front of her. The graphite-pelted male then sent her a helpful question her way, asking her if she needed any assistance about the caldera as she was only beginning her first few days.
”Thanks, Elwood,” Prima said gratefully, ”The territory seems huge, so it'll probably take a while to see it all. But anyway, could you take me on a little tour around the place? It'll be fun, and I'd love to see everything that's around my new digs.” The Caldera looked amazing and seemed to suit her lifestyle, anyway.
She turned her head then, eyes squinting as winter sunlight shone on her pelt and streamed onto her face. It was a good day, and she couldn't wait to see what was to come. ”Also, I haven't been briefed too thoroughly on leaders and pack customs and whatnot. So... yeah, I think that kinda stuff is what I need help with around here.”
Of course, he would have to show her the lake at the top of the peak. So before he responded to her second query, he gestured towards the slope and began to move in that direction. "Well, part of our land is made up of this here mountain," he said, glancing over at his pewter companion. Briefly, he thought about how many grey wolves had taken up residence here -- himself, Finley, Somnia and Tempest, to name a few. He then continued with his spiel. "But it's actually a dormant volcano, and the top was blown off in an explosion, leaving a crater. That's where we're headed, so you can see our namesake."
He strode forward quietly for a few seconds, giving Prima a chance to reply to his explanation, then addressed the pack's hierarchy. "Peregrine and Fox are the Alphas. Did you meet one of them? Finley is the Beta female, and I'm actually the Beta male," he said with a sheepish smile and a shrug of his shoulders. He paused again so that she could digest the information as they slowly made their way up the mountainside.
A volcano, so it seemed. Redhawk Caldera's land was partly made up of an inactive volcano, and it was right there. The small silver-pelted girl marvelled at the mountain for seconds, wondering how something that powerful— a volcano, the something was, had slipped past her eyes as she'd labelled it as a normal mountain, if not slightly irregular.
Well, the pack's title was Redhawk Caldera. It explained. ”Fascinating,” She murmured lightly, genuinely fascinated as she made her way after Elwood as they worked themselves towards the mountain. ”Well, as long as it doesn't blow off sooner or later,” Prima said, an additional joke.
He replied to her inquiry, informing her of the leaders— so it seemed that her guess had been correct, as he was the Beta male, along with another named Finley. Peregrine and Fox were the Alphas... yeah, Perry and his fart jokes about his mate, Fox. ”Actually, I met Peregrine, Theseus and Ashton before I joined the Caldera. Well, I was there when he first got his, um, new perfume, and well... Yeah. Basically.” She chuckled lightly, unsure of Elwood's reaction, but she was pretty sure that she'd learnt about how the skunk had sprayed him that day. ”Still haven't gotten the chance to meet him 'round here in pack lands, though I'm looking forward to the day I once again greet what his scent bears. And about Fox... I vaguely remember Peregrine telling us one or two fart jokes about his mate, and, well... Sorry if it's too much information.” Prima smiled once more, amused. ”Really, I'm already glad I joined your pack.”
"Hopefully it's done blowing its top," he agreed, then cupped his ears towards her as she spoke of the pack members she had already met. So she was acquainted with Peregrine -- and his lovely new odor -- as well as Ashton and Theseus. Elwood had met Theseus himself just recently; the Chinese wolf was one of the other relatively new recruits.
He couldn't help but laugh at her summary of the pack: they were comprised of skunk smells and fart jokes. "Yeah, we're a pretty interesting bunch. There's never a dull moment. When Fox was in heat, Peregrine started humping her in the middle of a pack meeting," he said, rolling his eyes at the memory. He glanced ahead as they came to a fork in the path, and he guided them along the trail that would continue to lead them towards the top of the mountain. "You asked about customs, too. We're a pretty traditional pack for the most part, as far as ranks. You can earn a trade to show your commitment to the pack. I'm a gamekeeper and warden. We have activities every once in a while, and those just provide a good opportunity to socialize and get to know your packmates." It was fairly easy to be successful in Redhawk Caldera; they were a straightforward and uncomplicated group.
The two Redhawks weaved their way up to the top of the caldera as they chatted. She listened to his laughter as she informed him of her first meeting with Peregrine— so it seemed that it was very common around the Caldera, Eau de Skunk Spray and fart jokes. And humping between Fox and Peregrine. They seemed to be a rather... spunky Alpha pair.
But this was what she loved, what she would love. A great pack life, consisting of unfunny fart jokes, filled with unforgettable experiences and the introduction to live in the moment, if the Caldera would offer her that. And she would make sure she would work up to her name to achieve it.
Prima began to laugh at the mention of humping, her blue eyes bright and glimmering. The way practical the seemingly thoughtful, practical Elwood said it, humping, was somehow deadly hilarious. "God, I think I can imagine it. Yeah, another reason to add to my list to why I'm glad I've joined the Caldera.”
She nodded at his words about the pack customs he called the trades— so it seemed, gamekeeper and warden. The petite sterling girl vaguely remembered somebody mentioning something about the trades— the word was spoken before, though she was yet to fish the full informative paragraph out from the jumble that made up her mind. ”I'm sure I've heard of the trades, though I can't really recollect at the moment. What are the other options, rather than warden and gamekeeper? I'd love to work towards one of them, it'd be a great opportunity.” She smiled. ”Activities, well. I can't wait to attend them.”
The thought of Finley caused Elwood a brief moment of distraction. He hadn't seen or talked to her since their excursion in the ice cavern. At first, that had seemed like a good idea, but he was starting to miss her companionship. He didn't want to be the first one to give in, though, so he continued to avoid her. With a short exhale, he refocused his thoughts to the present, just in time to hear Prima ask about the other trades that were available.
"There are quite a few trades, actually. You can pick whatever you think would compliment your skills the best -- there's caretaker, naturalist, healer...to name a few," he replied. He was hoping to add warrior to his resume within the next few weeks. Squinting ahead of them, his eyes narrowed against the glare of the sun off the snow, he judged that they only had a little further to travel before they reached their destination. He couldn't wait for Prima to see their unusual landmark and take in the view that it offered of the wilds.
When Elwood told her of the trades, she turned to wonder what would best suit her— caretaker? Would she be too much of a klutz for that? Naturalist? No, she failed to even decide whether or not tomatoes grew during winter. Warrior? Healer? Nah, she blew. But if she were to be assigned any of those roles one day, she would definitely shove her worries down her throat and do the very best she could.
Well, right now the sterling female had many options.
The girl momentarily looked up towards the sky as they continued on the trail, lost in her thoughts. ”I think a trade that'd demonstrate adventuring, exploring, stuff like that would go best for me. Is there anything like that, or do I have to settle on, like, gamekeeper? That'd be cool for me too.” Vaguely she'd remembered the adults back at Bellemonte Valley speak of something of a trade like that, though she couldn't place a finger on it. The young Prima, as restless as she'd been back then, had slipped away before the adults had finished talking.
"Oh, yeah!" Elwood replied eagerly to Prima's request. "That's one that I forgot to mention. Outriders are in charge of scouting and delivering messages and such. Finley is an outrider, I think, so maybe you could pick her brain and see what all it entails." He made the suggestion knowing that the Beta femLe would be happy to share information about her trade -- at least, with Prima. She probably wouldn't be happy if he showed up with the Nu.
By this point, they were cresting the top of the mountain. The rocky terrain leveled out, revealing the pack's namesake. Near the lake's edge, the flat ground sloped sharply down, and there was an island in the center of the iced-over water. Elwood hadn't ventured out to the smaller land mass yet, but it was on his to-do list. "Here it is," he announced, pausing to let Prima take in her surroundings. The Teekon Wilds sprawled out beyond them, revealing a snowy landscape and the frosty surface of Lake Rodney in the distance.
Outrider. She made a mental note of that before turning back to Elwood, listening to what he had to say. Prima jotted down Finley, who apparently was an outrider, and noted to ask her on the topic.
The silver-pelted female gave her companion a grin. ”Thanks, dude! Hopefully I'll soon achieve the trade.”
What was before them was an ethereal sight. Sharp slopes leading down towards a lake, frozen with a thin layer of ice, a dollop of an island square in the center of the water. Wow. She took it in then, her paws skirting the ridge as she trailed along the lake. Enchanted, she looked out into the Teekon Wilds, blinking the sunshine away.
Why she was so fascinated, she had no idea. Well, maybe it was because she had never seen a blown-off volcano before, much less its top.
Well, this was awesome.
Prima gave a grin and began to move, her paws swift to balance her small frame on the ridge, and called out, ”We may or may not be balancing on the edge of life here, Elwood!” She then made her way towards the miniature, snow-covered peninsula that jutted out from the slope, daring to move towards and stop at the very edge of the land mass.
"You've got that right!" he called back to her, thinking that she had hit the nail on the head -- they really were balancing on the edge of life up here. It could not have been more different than the flat grasslands where he had grown up, but he liked calling Redhawk Caldera home. He started to follow her, moving carefully across the rocky and potentially slippery terrain.
She stopped at the end of the chunk of rock that jutted out from the slope, the wind ruffling her fur. Prima loved this feeling, the feeling that almost immediately enveloped her. The feeling of total freedom, total carefreeness. The feeling that she was on top of the world.
The breeze carried Elwood's words of agreement towards her as he neared her with every step. Promptly she looked down at the water and the frozen layer of ice atop it, and the small island sitting right in the center of the bed.
The petite girl smiled. ”Someday I'll swim there.”
He accompanied her to the edge of the peninsula, squinting against the breeze as he looked out over the frozen lake. It was peaceful up here, though in a quietly dangerous sort of way -- just knowing that they were at the top of a volcano, however extinct, made Elwood's nerves tingle. But he loved his home, and all of its quirks and details, even the ones he had yet to learn of.
Prima announced that she wanted to visit the island in the middle of the body of water, and Elwood grinned. "Let me know when you're planning that. I want to come along," he said; he did want to swim out to the lone piece of land, and thought it would be a better idea to do it as a pair than individually.
She grinned as she flickered her eyes from both the frozen-over lake and to Elwood. ”That'll be soon, I hope. It'll be fun. The Caldera's sick!”
It wasn't long before they decided to make their way down from the Caldera, finished with their little adventure up towards the pack's unusual, though beautiful landmark. Prima gave the beta a respectful dip of her head before offering him her "bye" and "see you around".
Elwood grinned at Prima, glad that they had made tentative plans. It would probably be best to wait until the weather was warmer before they tried to venture out to the island -- falling through the ice into cold water would not exactly be the result that they had in mind. He knew about hypothermia first hand from his experience with Somnia, and didn't want to repeat that incident as the victim.
Soon, they started to make their way back down the slope, chatting amiably as they meandered. Once the two wolves reached the bottom, they parted ways. Elwood watched until Prima was out of sight, hoping that she would show some longevity with the pack; her fun personality fit right in with the rest of the group. "See ya!" he called after her receding figure, then pointed his paws towards the border with the intent to patrol.