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 Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2009 5:31 pm
Even through the thick trees in this part of the forest, drops of rain managed to get to Carmen. It had been pouring for hours now, and her fur was soaked down to her bone, and a shiver ran through her. And to top it all off, it was only getting worse. The wind had picked up not long before, and nearly every few seconds a flash of lightning pierced the air.
Buffeted my a huge, cold gust, she closed her eyes and turned her head. She was going to freeze to death if she didn't find a place to go soon.
She had found a group of Nova living in a large fallen tree, but they had turned her away with harsh words, the biggest warrior even threatening to fight her. She couldn't believe that they could be so rude. What had she done to them?
She stopped, something hitting her nose. The smell of another Nova? She padded towards it slowly, but kept her muscles tensed in case they chased her too. Leading her up to a tree with a hollowed-out base... she peeked in.
Quickly, though, she realized that whoever the scent belonged too wasn't actually in the trunk anymore. Gratefully, she walked inside, instantly warmed from the cold air and rain from outside.
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2009 8:27 pm
Oriel didn't even know how long it had been raining, but he was already tired of trying to find a spot that could shelter him from the storm. It seemed like when he finally found a good place, the wind would change directions and he would be drenched in water again.
He had only been out on his own for about a week now and it was a lot rougher than he thought. But he still wasn't going to go back to his parents, oh no. At least now life was thrilling...even if there were down times such as this where he wasn't sure what to do.
Oriel paused for a second to sniff the air. There was a faint scent of a female Nova, but he couldn't tell how long ago she had been there. Normally he could figure it out, but the rain was washing away the scents of the forest pretty quickly. Shivering, he saw a hollow tree not too far ahead and sprinted towards it.
Just as he made it to the base, he realized it was already being inhabited by a bright red Nova sitting inside. He stood there for a minute and blinked, not knowing if he should fight for the shelter or run.
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2009 8:49 pm
Carmen had curled up towards the back of the small space, and begun to fall asleep now that her fur was drying a bit. She had almost slipped into a light sleep when the scent of another Nova hit her.
Lifting her head quickly, she saw the small Nova standing at the entrance of the space. She got up quickly. "Oh... um. Is this your place? I'm sorry if it is, I just needed to get out of the rain really badly."
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2009 8:58 pm
Oriel stood in the opening, still unsure of what to do. It looked like there was plenty of room in there for the both of them... but... He didn't know if that was the right choice to make. If he were with his parents then they would probably chase her out, but she needed a place too and it was pretty miserable out there.
"No, not mine." He swallowed, a paused for a good few seconds. "Can I join you?"
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2009 9:12 pm
Carmen eyed him. He wasn't that big... and if he started anything, she'd be able to defend herself. "Sure." She answered after debating for a couple seconds. "There's plenty of room." Scooting closer to the wall so there would be more room, she nodded at the orange Nova.
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2009 9:28 pm
Oriel smiled and stepped inside with her. He fluffed up and shook his fur, spraying the other Nova with the rain that had been on his coat. "Sorry." He said with a hesitant laugh, trying not to look at her. Then he circled around and laid down as far away from her as he could. He wanted to say something, but he was feeling pretty tired from all that running around. He figured he wouldn't need to get to know her anyway since they'd probably go their separate ways once the rain had stopped.
Oriel stared out the opening, watching the rain come down heavier and heavier until he found himself resting his head on his paws and falling into a light sleep.
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2009 9:40 pm
It was a little hard for Carmen to fall asleep knowing that there was a strange Nova in the same area. But once she heard his breathing slow and was sure he was asleep, she calmed down a little bit and fell asleep herself.
The next morning, she woke up first. She slid out of the den and stretched a little, blinking her eyes at the sudden sunlight. Besides the wet ground, you could barely tell there was a storm the night before.
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2009 10:25 pm
It wasn't much longer until Oriel woke up with a yawn. He stretched out his front legs and then stood to look out the tree opening at the Nova he had spent the night with.
Against the sun, she had the brightest red coat he had ever seen in his life, and he couldn't help but think what a beautiful color it was. He was one as well, but not many brightly colored Nova survived past kits with all the predators out hunting.
He cautiously stepped out of the tree towards the female. He told himself he wouldn't stay much longer, but a little talking probably wouldn't hurt before he ran off. "You don't live around here, do you?" She would have been nice and cozy in her den instead of out in a tree if she did.
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2009 11:09 pm
Carmen hadn't been expecting the other Nova to wake up so fast, so she was a little shocked when he suddenly came out of the tree. "No, I don't." She answered his question, trying to keep her surprise unnoticeable. "I don't really live anywhere. I left home and haven't settled."
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Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2009 11:55 pm
Oriel almost blurted out that he was a wanderer too, but he wanted to impress her. So he stood up straight and puffed out his black and white chest. "I know these woods pretty well." He told her...which was not completely true. He had made his way around it a few times and was just getting familiar with it. "I could even hunt some prey for you if you're hungry."
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Posted: Sun Aug 30, 2009 12:05 am
Carmen's ears twitched up a little bit, interested. She would never admit it to this stranger, but... she had never learned how to hunt. Her mom and dad hadn't let her, and that was one of the few things she hadn't learned elsewhere. "Some prey would be nice..." She said, kind of accepting indirectly.
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Posted: Sun Aug 30, 2009 5:48 pm
"Great!" Oriel said enthusiastically, but then it hit him that he wasn't a very good hunter. He'd been able to catch a meal here and there, but he had gone hungry most nights since he left home. Glancing off to the side, he wondered just how he was going to catch anything for her. "I'll..um... be back soon then. Just wait here." He didn't listen for a reply as he jumped off into the tall grass.
He wandered around for a little bit, not smelling much of anything. If he had to he could just leave and never go back. It's not like they would run into each other ever again. Just as he was deciding to do that, the scent of a petcha reached his nose and he crouched down. In the distance he could see the grass up ahead wiggling.
He took a few steps closer to the petcha and then waited for it to come only a couple feet away. Oriel hesitated for just a moment and then pounced, catching the rodent like creature between his claws.
Proud of himself, Oriel padded back to where he had left the female Nova and still saw her right where he had told her to wait. "A petcha." He said, dropping the prey in front of her. He fluffed his chest fur out again, hoping he impressed her.
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Posted: Sun Aug 30, 2009 5:56 pm
Carmen bent down and sniffed the prey. It was plump and smelled so delicious, that she instantly dug into it. But after a few big bites, she realized how rude she was being. Lowering her ears in an embarrassed way, she lifted her head to look at the other Nova.
"Thank you." She said gratefully. It was a rare occasion that she got fresh meat to eat. The red nova was about to go back to eating, when she also added. "Do you want some of it for yourself? You caught it after all."
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Posted: Sun Aug 30, 2009 9:41 pm
Oriel was starving but he decided to decline. "Nah, I don't need anything." He said, watching her. "I can catch something else later." He looked around and saw a berry bush off to his right. He walked over to it and tore off a branch with his teeth. Carrying it over there, he also dropped it in front of her.
"There's a pond not too far from here if you want a drink. I can show you." He didn't even think that maybe she was tired of him and just wanted to go her own way, but he was too busy trying to look good to realize that.
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Posted: Mon Aug 31, 2009 4:23 am
Carmen hesitated before she began to eat again, studying his face to make sure he really didn't want any. After a couple more bites, and a few berries, she raised her head again. It was weird for a stranger to be so polite. Was he lonely maybe? Or just trying to impress her like males often did.
"I thought I heard a stream last night, but I was too busy trying to find shelter to try to take a drink..." She told him. Water would be nice after a good meal like that.
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