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 Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 1:48 pm
The puppy smiled as she rolled the word and its meaning around in her mind. She had one! A huge one, at that, and they all seemed to genuinely care for her - especially her Mama and Papa! Why, she even had a pair of grandparents and countless other family to play with and to take care of her. She hadn't been born here - she didn't know where she had been born, or who her birth family was - but that didn't matter to anyone in her new family, least of all, her! They treated her as though she had always been one of them, and though she was sure that somewhere, some other adopted pup felt a certain emptiness within their new family... she was never given time or a reason to feel that way.
Her new parents had walked with her and Loki, her grandmother and alpha female of the pack she now belonged to, to show her the better part of the pack's outer boundaries when she had been strong enough. When she had tired of the journey but still wanted to continue on, her father had carried her on his back. She wasn't a teen yet, but she wasn't a young puppy either, and though her parents expressed concern over dangers outside of the territory, they explained that they weren't going to keep her cooped up in the den, or try to watch over her every move. But they would appreciate it if she didn't wander too far off their lands alone. Schatze had agreed.
She now sat atop a fallen tree at the edge of the territory that her family had explained to her that day. A gentle breeze worked its way through the trees, possibly off the river nearby, and ruffled her fur and the personal effects she wore causing the feathers to flutter softly, and the beads to rattle gently against each other. The sounds they made caused her to smile again, and she closed her eyes to shut off the sense of sight and concentrate on hearing and smell. There was only faint evidence of the sea this far inland, but it was enough to let a wolf know it was there, if they were looking.
She contemplated visiting the sea, but later. Right now she was waiting. For who, she didn't know, but she was sure they would come along soon enough!
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Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 4:57 pm
|~| *tosses Denzel in shamelessly if Stormy doesn't mind* Sorry about the length, I ramble. ^^; Schatze is gorgeous! |~| The river murmured, coaxed, invited him to wade in. Its surface glinted gloriously, shimmered like the eye of a coy animal awaiting its first playmate to introduce himself. The way the water weaved through rocks day after day without rest, cut through the land with such force, and yet be gentle enough to hold its own population of creatures within its depths: it was an amirable trait he wished to acquire, but that was all.
As far as Denzel was concerned, the river was a temptress not safe enough to approach as of yet. No more slippery escapades or hopeless fishing excursions, not until he honed his skills on land first. And so the pup went into the trees, banking on the chance that the gods had something planned for him today.
It was easy to blend with the muddy banks by the water, and the forest canopy provided plenty of shadows for him to take advantage of. Trodding lightly so as to make less noise, the spotted youth meandered through the trees, ears erect and eyes alert. The wind ruffled his fur in passing, and he would have ignored it otherwise had it not brought a sound he had never heard before: like acorns colliding together. But that wasn't it, he was sure, something subtle in the noise told him so . . . And the scent the breeze carried was another wolf's. Closeby, in fact.
As a loner, surely he would have had the wit to avoid such contact. But Denzel had never prided himself on being self-preserving first and foremost; he hardly prided himself much at all, often letting some other-wordly force take the lead for him and going along with wherever life took him. The location this omniscient being had decided to show him was beyond his control, and even if it was to danger, who was he to stop fate? A brawl or two might toughen him for worse things to come anyways, so it would be better sooner than later. Taking in the scent again, the pup followed the invisible trail without thought.
At length he paused at the edge of a clutter of bushes, leaves carressing his pelt as he peered through the underbrush. Large as he was, Denzel was quite conspicuous even when hidden, his eyes being the only thing that blended in. What a strange pup! She appeared to be tangled in some type of brown vine around her tail, but what was hanging from them? And why did she have that strange loop about her neck? Was she being strangled in front of his very eyes?
But she didn't look in danger. If anything, the pup looked quite peaceful just sitting on that fallen tree. Denzel blinked quizzically and stepped forward out of his hiding place, several leaves clinging to his coarse fur as he made his way to her. The air of peace, accented by the vaguest hint of salt from the sea, drew him closer like a magnet. He was driven to know where those accessories came from, why she sat there alone and calm, and whether those gold ticks in her ears were new enemies to worry about.
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Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 6:16 pm
The little one refused to say she was lost. Picking her way through the tight embrace of the woods surrounding her, the little black socked pup paused now and then to search the breeze for familiar scents. What had started as a harmless game of hide and seek had for the past hour taken on a more frightful experience for little Scherzo; she had been in the process of seeking her sister, and instead wound up getting her trail horribly confused. For all she knew, her black and violet sibling was still hiding patiently, waiting to be discovered.
Hmph. Some hiding place indeed.
Step by step, muddied paws carried her unknowingly closer to Schatze's small retreat. A familiar scent, that of water, had brought with it a sense of hope to the little girl; wolves drank water, didn't they? That meant that maybe, just maybe, her family might thirst and eventually come down to the rivers edge! Oh, she was too little to remember that the river was long and stretched out, that they might visit and yet be hundred if not thousands of feet apart; but to wait near the rivers edge seemed like a good plan. Especially since howling was out of the question.
She wasn't that desperate, especially if her howl caught Ahrim or Jeile's attention instead. Though she could handle her brooding brother, it was her black and blue pelted father that caused her the most concern. He was always griping and grumbling and telling her she was a coward. . . which, in a sense, was true; but no matter how 'brave' she tried to be, she just couldn't please the wolf and no doubt hearing her cry for help would draw her trouble.
So the little pup continued on, and only paused when she caught a rustle in a near by bush. Stopping dead in her tracks, she looked over and found not quite fifty feet ahead of her a little black and brown shadow sneaking out from his hiding place. On top of that, he was staring a lump on a log. . . Wait.
Did that lump have fur? Squinting, ears suddenly flattening, the blue femme hesitated in her walk. A sniff of the air confirmed that she was close to an unfamiliar puppy scent. . . .Oh great. Strangers~!
Scherzo found herself at a cross road; did she suddenly jerk away from the rivers edge and run in to the bushes, or did she carry on? This was her first experience with anyone that wasn't part of her family. . . so how did she react? Part of her instinct said run, ears and tail folding lightly in a moments fear. But a voice sounding quite like her father's quickly warned her otherwise. . . . No! She couldn't be a coward all her life. . . .
Slowly, step by step, the blue and black one bridged the distance. Eyes wide, she glanced from one to the other, confused upon their appearance. Where were all their colours? The black, the blues and purples! Why were they just so. . . so . . . . drab! Ah, but the thought didn't last long; they were wolves, weren't they? Maybe they just were meant to look like they were smeared and covered in dirt, mud and rock. The pup perched on the log was given a double take none the less, various jingles and vines hanging off her. . . as well as a huge flop of fur sitting on her head!
What on earth was going on?
Pausing as she approached, the little one turned her gaze on to the black and brown male adjacent to where she stood. "Pssst~!" She whispered, loud enough to get his attention. "Why's she look like that?" Blunt, maybe, but perhaps this other one knew. Maybe they were related? Then again. . . .maybe not. He didn't have a mess of fur on top of his head, oh no indeed!
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Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 7:40 pm
Somehow, Schatze wasn't surprised to see another pup when she re-opened her eyes. "Hello~" she offered as she stood up on the log with a stretch and yawned, pink and purple splotched tongue curling up in the act. A sheepish grin was offered in apology of the yawn. She shook her head a bit, causing the rings in her ears to tinkle softly against each other.
"Where did you come from?" she asked, ever curious. She knew he wasn't from her pack, and if he was, he was a well-kept secret! He also didn't really smell like the sea or her family, so she felt it was safe to assume he wasn't from around here. She wondered breifly though, if he was alone or if his family was nearby.
Some wolves don't have family...
Oh yeah~ She remembered how she had apparently been not too long ago. But... she wouldn't bring it up unless he did! It would be best that way, in her mind anyway. As she waited for him to answer her question, or at least her greeting, she noticed another wolf creeping up. Wow! She had hoped for at least one wolf to find her today, but two? Now this was neat.
"Hii~!" she offered the other wolf, her voice sing-song with happiness. The first wolf hadn't surprised her in any way - he was earth-toned like she was, and like the majority of her family was... but the second wolf was very very bright! She knew there was no way she would have overlooked this female if she had been in the same pack.
She faintly heard a whisper pass between the other two pups, but didn't strain very hard to hear it. She didn't suspect malice on their part, but figured she had the higher ground, what with being so close to a large pack of familiar wolves as she was.
Schatze took this time to wonder about where such colorful wolves came from. The mountains maybe, where the ice and snow where so white and bright that maybe you had to adapt to blend in? Hmm. She remained standing, her tail swishing back and forth casually.
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Posted: Thu Mar 06, 2008 4:25 pm
Intent as he was on the stranger's quirky appearance, he had not heard the approach from behind. A one-track mind could only absorb so much, and by golly those things protruding from her form were an eye-grabber to say the least. Thus, he started at the question that came out of the blue as though it had been spoken in a booming volume, leaping clean from the ground and twisting an extra ninety degrees before landing in a crouch. Denzel's tensing body acted freely of his mind's will; he wasn't actually feeling hostile, it was just that Instinct took over. And Instinct dicatated that he insured all who were present stayed in view while making sure not to appear vulnerable at the same time. Then again, maybe they already thought he was an easily-frightened one after that little jump.
He saw . . . another pup. Denzel relaxed a tad, ears erecting themselves upon his head again, but not by much. Precaution, a friend of Instinct, ordered him to take a few steps back to put equal distance between himself and the two girls, and he obliged it. Suddenly it seemed that he was finding wolves popping up everywhere around him. Was Fate hinting at something? Whatever it was, it was placing the social-snail in interesting situations.
What odd colors she had. Then again, it seemed as though outlandish hues were a new trend in these woods. Because she did not seem dangerous, Denzel chose to answer her question with a shrug and a blink before turning once more to the vine-covered youth. Vaguely he wondered why she acted as though she were expecting them, and then shook his head. One thing at a time, taking it step by step, it was all his mind allowed . . .
Right, her question now. Where? He settled on his haunches in thought, drawing his gaze towards something far ahead of them: the horizon line. It was a nice stable stop to concentrate on, a focal point for mental-probing. Where, where, where . . . Nothing came up in the mind-search under that category, not even a "did you mean this?" suggestion. Blank. Zippo. Did that mean the particular piece of information was irrelevant enough to be forgotten? Oh, it placed him in such an uncomfortable position to not know. Denzel shrugged again, his tail slightly tucked beneath him where he sat. He hoped that by showing a little bit of submission, they wouldn't mind his rather bland answers.
The pup made no move to inquire either of them in return, however. His was a mind centered around the belief that things should come to him unforced, much like the river that would never be tamed and flowed to wherever it chose; that was how a conversation should be, he thought, and so sat in silence, watching the two strangers out of the corner of his eyes for a reaction. Like a tiny experiment, he gauged their responses and was ready to adapt.
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Posted: Sun Mar 09, 2008 11:44 pm
 Cordova walked into a clearing in the woods and looked around sniffing the air. He smelled some other wolves around...very close. There were a few smells he hadn't smelled before....Well he was young and hadn't smelled a lot of things before. He had been traviling through the woods for quite a long time wondering if he would meet someone nice to travil with or play with for a little bit atleast. He wanted to find his own place to live and stay...maybe he could find a pack who would like to take him into it or he could make his own pack when he got old enough...maybe. He didn't need to think about that right now though, he just wanted to play with some other pups, or adults who wanted to play with him atleast. He wondered if they were nice wolves that he could play with. He had tried to play with other things but he always ended up eating the mice and birds when he played with them. He looked around as he walked towards the smell. "Hello?" he asked as he poked his nose through a bush looking around for the other wolves he might play with.
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Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2008 1:56 pm
((Sooo sorry for the delay! I'm not usually this slow. ))
Scherzo wasn't sure what to do next. There was a small pup perched above them donned in various strings and vines and whatnot; then there was an earthen wolf who didn't seem to be too keen on talking either which meant an estranged silence settled over the land. Well, it was estranged to Scherzo - how the other pair felt she could only guess.
Glancing from one to the other, the little blue pup wasn't sure what to say or do. The only pups she was accustomed to being around were her sisters and brother, and the only wolves she knew well were her parents. To now be forced to interact with two strangers, the blue and black girl found herself a little lost and unprepared. Were they going to be sweet and fun like her sister, or were they more aggressive and snarling like her father and brother? Thus far they didn't seem too hostile, but then again, no one had really said much of anything.
Sitting down, albeit a bit cautiously, the young pup looked from one to the other. No one seemed to want to say anything more than hi, and Scherzo wasn't exactly bold enough to initiate conversation. So without adding much to the conversation, the little one slowly began to relax. It only lasted a good moment though, as a new voice broke through from the bushes.
Jerking back to her paws and whirling around, fur bristled and tail poofed out in surprise, the little one caught sight of a flash of white. It was small, like them, and didn't seem hostile but . . . another puppy? No way! It seemed as if the entire area was suddenly alive with life and little ones. How long had she been with her family and met none outside her own; and now, here she was, meeting not one, but three others! "H-Hi. . . " She finally spit out, glancing over her shoulder at the other two, before turning her inquisitive gaze at the new stranger.
Did he HAVE to sneak up on all of them like that?
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Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2008 2:30 pm
She was beginning to think that these pups could very well have lived in her pack their whole lives and she would never have known, with how quiet they all were. When the third new pup stuck its nose from the bushes, her ears went up in surprise. So many.. so quickly! She had had a hunch that today would be a good day to sit just outside her packlands!
But deep down inside, Schatze was just as shy as the others seemed to be. It was hard to strike up conversation and she knew it well, but fought valiantly to speak when no one else could.
Maybe a question would bring them all out of their shells? She hopped down off the log, wagging her tail as she walked into the circle of them. An amicable smile sat square on her maw, and the rings in her ears jingled as she made her way to them, a prance in her step.
"I'm Schatze." she introduced herself, grinning. "My pack's lands are that way, just the other side of that log." she gestured over her back towards her former perch, as she offered the information. "Where are you all from?" she asked, pointedly looking at Denzel as she spoke, hoping that since he was the first new wolf she saw, he would be the first to answer her question.
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Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2008 4:55 pm
The third pup was recieved without much reaction. Having already been on slight guard since before he had arrived, Denzel had been able to observe him fully and thus was not ill at ease. Another strange coat; he must be wandering near packlands . . .
And then the vine-covered youth - Schatze, she said? - pointed out where her own pack's territory was, and he turned his head away from the horizon line to see it for himself. Again the vague smell of salty air washed over him; did she live near the Moving Waters? Was the log the boundary line? He made careful note of its position just in case he ever passed by again; if her fellow packmembers were as queer-looking as she was, he would rather not engage them on the wrong side.
Once memorized, he shifted his attention back towards the two newer additions to the party with an attentive eye. Being a lupine of silence, one would think the lack of conversation would be comforting, yet within the pup felt a sudden deep restlessness, and urge to speak, to be spontaneous to make up for the lack of action . . . And then Schatze spoke again and the compulsion faded away as if it had never existed; he shrugged it off. In response to her question, Denzel directed a paw towards the bushels he and the others had come from, glancing over his shoulder to make sure the female was watching. Seeing as she was making her way towards them, he scooted over to balance out the gradually decrease in area between the four of them; center, center, he must be in the center . . . But growing so close!
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Posted: Sun Mar 23, 2008 11:24 pm
Cordova looked around at the other wolves he had snuck up on and hoped that he hadn't made any of them too upset. One of the females said hi to him and he smiled a little bit. He looked at the other two and one female with some stuff on her introduced herself to him. He smiled a little when she said they were close to her packs land cause he was hoping to find some wolves he could live with and leaarn from. He looked at the last pup and he wasn't talking at all. He wondered if he was upset or something or just happened to want to be sitting there scilently just watching them. He smiled softly tring to seem friendly. "My name is Cordova." He said softly. "We wont get in trouble being so close to your terratory will we? And i'm from no place particular. I just wander about a bit, i dont know what happened to my parents." He said softly as he looked around them shyly.
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