Cerulean Cape lullabies of the lost

Finally, finally.. her paws reached the sea. She had followed the river, roved across the sandy shores, then went right to where the waves began to lick up onto the land. Once there, she decided to head northward with a new-found electricity in her veins in the company of one of nature's most powerful aspects -- the ocean.

She took care to get her paws wet and slick her underbelly with briny water. It was chilly, but far from unbearable. With her coat still in the process of shedding out for the winter and the springtime temperatures rather balmy, the dark alpha welcomed it. That and she had once spent months smelling like the sea.

For the span of the next several miles, she was at least vaguely familiar with the place. The memory was distant, but slowly coming back as sight and scent alike brought her closer. Yet, it had changed in its subtle ways. As nature was apt to do.

Since she had rested and fed, she was prepared to travel for a while if she could. Sooner or later she suspected she might encounter a pack.. but until then, she would greedily skim the coastline, even as night crept ever closer.

this is gonna be somewhat vague since timelines but I wanted to help ya get this closed at least! Hand-waving a bit over when this exactly occurs with relation to both

We can make this a spar or just a convo, doesn't matter to me!

Dante had decided to make good on his plan to seek experience outside his borders, leaving the Betas briefly in charge as he traveled the nearby regions. He would not go far, and actually had just reached the limit of his comfortable distance as he stared at the coast before him. He had followed the river as it passed through forests on its way to the ocean, knowing from experience that, unless things had changed, the trip would take him through no claimed lands. Luckily that held true.

Eagerly he strode forward until his paws were lapped by the water of the waves, the cool refreshing water washing the travel away. He had come this far, so stood still a few moments, appreciating the sensation of the sand beneath his pads. Beaches were not a place he would ever call home, with the strong stinging scent and lack of cool forests and grassy soil, but they had their merits.

oo thanks for joining! and a spar might be interesting ;D also timelines = ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ahah

In her seaside travels, she alternated between a jog and a canter. Oftentimes just when she began to settle into a faster pace, something caught her eye and she slowed to investigate further -- washed up sea-plants, fish bones, odd rocks, just to start -- rinse and repeat the more ground she covered, for the beach had a lot for her to take in. Eventually, she settled on a trot just at the edge of the waves.

Somewhere along the way, something perhaps more interesting than driftwood came into her sights. Slowly, the silvery silhouette adopted unexpected familiarity. Although, they were hardly even acquaintances. She didn't even know his name, but this mattered little as she drew herself steadily nearer. Even over the brine of the sea and the day's fading light, she knew it was the same wolf. This knowledge paired with the lightness of her mood kept her steps airy yet purposeful as she chuffed her greeting and slowly swayed her tail.

For a moment she had paused a stone's throw from him, but it was short-lived as she found stillness didn't suit her. She glided in closer and arced a loose arc around him, mischievous, almost, in her subtleties. Being so far from home and energized by the thrill of travel along the ocean's reach, it came naturally. "Long time no see," she smirked, dipping her muzzle at him then.

It seemed far too cliche to even say the obvious -- that she didn't quite expect to see him here, or how curious it was to see their paths cross again here in a place where neither of them exactly belonged. Her own purpose here was somewhat selfish, and she couldn't begin to hazard a guess as to why he had come to the shoreline. 

Unaccustomed to the soundscape of the waves, he did not detect her approach until she was upon him, her steps having been muffled by sand and covered by rumbling waters.  He worried only a moment, but then recognition struck and he gave a small smile, amused by the chance.  Who would have thought?  Here of all places.

"Indeed.  Quite a ways from your mountain."  He turned slightly as she circled, questioning the (almost predatory?) gesture but passing it off as a mannerism.  He wasn't the greatest with social graces, and in truth her forward manner threw him a bit.  Meeting on neutral ground, it made sense, but he was a creature who was most comfortable with solid space and somewhat formal interaction among strangers. 

Luckily, one thing he had gotten used to since taking up mantle of Alpha of the plateau was frequent discomfort, and this a mild sort.  "Though I too, have wandered a bit.  What brings you from your stone fortress?"  A beach and a mountain were an even worse comparison than the plateau and the shore, but perhaps she was not the homebody he was turning out to be.  Even now he itched to be back, despite his appreciation for the wonder of the waves.  The full story of his departure was somewhat unimpressive, and not near something that he would impart with a 'rival' alpha, no matter their friendliness.  The short of it, though, he could gladly give.

Amekaze still barely knew him, so could only see the beginning of his finer details.. but she watched intently anyway. He did seem to appear differently here. Then again, near the mountain had been such a different time and place. And, she knew she wasn't quite the same either. 

Before she could remark on his own distance from there to here, he took the next step anyway and she nodded easily. "True, just a bit.. your Plateau is not so far," she reasoned with a smirk; the Plateau was practically just over the Horizon Ridge to her. "To stretch my legs.. visit the sea, explore.." she answered thoughtfully and tossed a brief glimpse over the sea's horizon. She offered him the truth but not with much detail to bulk it up any. "It has been a while." was then spoken with a touch more seriousness as she slowed her steps gradually in an attempt to rein herself in. Just in the smallest of ways, she had been feeling cooped up there. This trip was intended to remedy that, after all, and she only hoped she could bring good vibes back to the mountainside.

So she steadied herself anew and flicked her tail in a slow rhythm. "What about you?" she peered readily at him.

"True. I thought it wiser to remain nearby." He was a bit farther than initially intended, but not so much as to have cause for alarm. The jaunt back was a quick one, relatively speaking. Her reasons for straying were straightforward, and spoke that she did in fact likely have more a wanderer's soul than he. "A reasonable desire, more than my reason." He smiled at the somewhat strange nature of his aim. "I left looking for a little practice. The local creatures weren't quite the right sparring partners and the plateau is fresh out of bears at the moment." A slight joke.

After the fact, he wondered how exactly he intended to get that practice. Attack a random stranger? Pick on some unsuspecting predator? Ideally he would find someone willing for a spar, but how likely was it a random stranger would agree to a fight? He wasn't sure. So far he hadn't much luck even finding anyone. Hers was the first face on this trip so far.

Wiser, indeed. She knew the selfishness of her own travels, and that there was a risk in leaving the mountain at all; it may not be the same place when she returned. There was always that risk, though, even if she only left for a while.

As he spoke onto his reasons, she tilted her head and cupped her ears, trying not to appear too interested in this reason as it took shape. And, she couldn't help but appreciate his mention of the bears with a soft chuff and accompanying smirk. "A little practice? Perhaps I could help," she lowered her head and shifted her stance slowly, subtly, into something more prepared. "Although I may not quite compare to a bear," she smirked, envisioning the move-set a bear might bring to a fight. She may not have had much practice as of late, as she was favoring other interests at the moment, but a warrior was very much a part of who she was; turning away this opportunity would be unwise for her as well.

She readily offered, and he was elated by this, for it meant he didn't have to bother coming about and asking. Her shift was subtle, but subtly was not his finer talent. He squared off, but displayed a smile as he replied. "I suppose we'll have to find out. Though I'm sure this practice will suit me better anyway." His tail waved as he lowered his front a bit in expectation, prepared for her to make the first move.

Though he had practiced a bit with other creatures, spars with other wolves were optimal, as it wasn't often he intended to pick a fight with their non-canine neighbors. The plateau didn't encounter such invaders often and when it did, the entire pack could usually handle it. It was future rank challenges and lone wolves he thought to prepare against, and for that he needed a fellow wolf to practice with. It was fortunate she was open to the same!

She was now finding herself eager to learn -- to see how the sands underfoot may influence her, and of course, to watch his way of battle first hand. With it just a spar, she would be afforded the opportunities to observe the finer details that may be overlooked, and already she felt the slow thrum of adrenaline.

Amekaze knew it would take a minute for her to get fully into the flow of it, and she would be feeling it out as she went. She lived in a time of peace on the Spire, and while ideal for the safety of the wolves, it left her unpracticed. But, it seemed he could likely admit to the very same, so she did not worry. "We will," she lilted, and then sprung forward lightly; she would make the first move to get herself into the groove of this. Her path arced around him and quickly, she swung for his flank on his left side.

She was quick - quicker than he by far, that much he could tell already. Attempting to outmaneuver her would likely be useless for the stockier male, so instead he needed to find a different approach.

As she swung in to attack his flank, instead of attempting to avoid the move, he leaned into it, a playful growl leaving his throat as he put his shoulder towards her move, hoping to block somewhat while his muzzle reached to grasp lightly at the thick fur of her ruff. He did not seek to come close to breaking skin, but even making contact was practice for moves that, in an aggressive spar, would lend themselves to injuries.

Every step handled just a little differently here in the sand -- as suspected it might. She could feel her momentum being shifted and absorbed, even if it was terribly subtle. She would need to simply learn on her feet.

He responded, and her ears swung forwardly eagerly as she met his defense with a rumbling growl of her own. Of course, she only aimed to nip at him lightly, and felt a pinch in her own skin plus fur being tugged not long after. She moved aside accordingly, shaking out her ruff and smirking as she looked him up and down -- wondering where to test his defense next. This lent itself to a circle around him, although she kept it quick to move to his opposite side.

As it seemed suitable, she re-positioned herself and her approach dug her deep into the sands. She gathered her momentum (as much as the short span of space allowed, anyway), sprung with a more pronounced leap, and came for his shoulders readily.

After they made contact, they parted, and for an instant sized one another up once more. He matched her smirk with a challenging grin, though her next move required an agility to match that he did not hold. The sand did not help things either, dragging his already stocky frame down and making it harder to move lightly even than usual.

As such, when her rush met his shoulders, the shifting sand beneath his feet didn't allow him to hold his ground, and unused to the challenge, he fell. Not willing to quit quite yet, he attempted to turn and get a foreleg around her, in an attempt to knock her off balance as well, though his tail shifted elatedly through the sand behind him.

tfw u thought u posted this reply but find it in yr drafts later -___-

Amekaze considered her moves a success, enjoyed the rush it brought, and paired with the footing's challenge, he tumbled. She tried to dart back before it could go south for her and basically use him as a springboard backwards, but she found she couldn't muster the momentum.. especially not with one of his forelegs aimed for her, effectively tangling her with his leg.

She grunted, and since there were no other directions to go without difficulties, she fell down with him. His leg wrapped around her proved a stronger force than anticipated, especially with gravity on his side. She nipped her teeth at him here and there -- although nothing was aimed precisely, she hoped for his chest or neck, but was preoccupied with everything happening. With him bigger than she was, and probably able to out-manhandle her if it came down to it, she didn't want to give him the opportunity to pin her somehow.

She was suddenly awfully close to him, and she tried to right herself when she could, managing to at least get her hind paws back on the sands awkwardly around him. In the meantime, she aimed her opened jaws at his, hoping to clatter teeth with him at best so to keep him busy.

hate it when that happens!

He managed to bring her down with him, attempting to hold her in place despite the awkward strain it put on his leg. He felt no awkwardness in their proximity as he was caught in the spar. In any other situation it would have been uncomfortable yet now seemed only appropriate.

She would not be held and his grip began to break before he could maneuver to pin her. Distracted by the flash of teeth behind gentle snaps, he countered with some of his own, fighting to find his own feet. Her back paws had found purchase and he knew it was moments before she took the advantage for her own. Swiftly he rolled from under, releasing her fully and attempting to put some space between the two of them. Then would he attempt to rise and reassess.

it's way overdue bc i've let it drag stupidly bad but i'm gonna go ahead and wrap this one up <3 i'll be vague so i hope you don't mind!!

Their spar maintained its rises and falls. She was hard to get a hold of, but he was sturdy and steadfast. Amekaze's heart beat wildly in her ears as she countered, struck back, and maneuvered. She was oddly content with her mind and body alike engaged so thoroughly -- and perhaps far more inclined to let it show, through panting breaths and exaggerated (by her subdued standards) waves of her tail.

But as all things, it came to an end when the time was through. She was satisfied and hoped he was too, then bid her farewell. Their paths would cross again when it was appropriate and she resumed her travels.