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 Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 1:28 pm
 It was very interesting having a travel companion, Kai thought; it was certainly an experience he was unacquainted with, but now that he'd had one for a few days, it was really rather nice. It certainly kept some of the loneliness at bay in the darker hours of the evening, or the long stretches of woods where no one was to be found...and his new friend had a good head on her shoulders.
For the most part, she was quite talented at keeping him out of trouble, as Kai was not often one to think before acting. Which is, of course, how he had ended up in the predicament he had currently.
Mon had been asleep when he had awoken this morning and found himself unable to get back to sleep. Because he knew the other wolf often suffered from insomnia, he hadn't dared to wake her, and thought perhaps he would surprise her with some nice freshly-caught breakfast; he was learning how to hunt now, after all, and was slowly becoming rather proficient at killing small game! Yes...a pair of rabbits, that would make for a lovely breakfast for his companion, and surely she would appreciate his thoughtfulness.
Feeling quite pleased with himself for thinking of this, the blue-furred wolf trotted easily through the trees, utterly unaware that he was trespassing into the territory of a pack whose name was feared throughout all of Telk....
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 8:51 pm
Reign of Terror. Reign of Terror… Hmmmph…
Savhir’s thoughts were drifting. When the first light of morning showed its bright face he had risen, as he usually did, stretched and shook himself awake as was customary, gave a yawn and relieved himself as he had always done on mornings past. It was such a remarkably uneventful morning, as most of the others had been since he found himself within the grasp of the Reign of Terror; he still thought it was a bit of an egotistical title, though from what he had seen it fit the creatures quite well. Not that he had actually met any others beyond those with family relations to his Ulfhildr, or truly knew who ran the pack of warrior beasts, but that seemed of little consequence at the moment; he was accepted because of the wolf he had made a family with, not of any actions of his own.
He was actually quite pleased that he had been left unbothered, but he couldn’t help but feel like he should be doing something beyond watching his brood of pups. Inaction was not Savhir’s cup of tea, nor was it his choice occupation, and thus he had found himself wandering about the packlands with a vague intent to learn the lay of the land. It was an amazingly large territory, spanning more acreage than any pack he had yet encountered, and thus memorizing its nooks and crannies would be an incredible undertake - one that the travel-hungry wolf was more than willing to start up, fearing that inactivity would turn him into nothing more than a useless fleshy pupsitter… He would give anything for the life of his young ones, suffer any pain or torture necessary, but listening to them for days on end? It would make even the most dedicated father lose his mind, and Savhir wasn’t exactly quality material.
Not that he could shake himself free of all his children, even as he reached one of the arching border fringes. He could hear the scrambling of one dedicated little son behind him, uncomplaining though obviously struggling to keep up with Savhir’s long strides. “You’re still there, then?” he called over his shoulder, seeing the red boy and raising his brows.
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 9:10 pm
Sudhir had been one of the few to notice his father leave the den that morning and the only one to rise from slumber to do anything. If Father was awake, then Sudhir wanted to be awake, too; if Father was patrolling, or hunting, or whatever it was that Father liked to do, then Sudhir wanted to learn how to do the same in emulation. However, Sudhir hadn’t been prepared for the near journey Savhir had set out to complete, and while he had been excitedly energetic earlier, he was starting to tire. “Mmm, I’m still here,” he replied, tumbling over brambles and sticks that Savhir had been able to span without thought.
He didn’t want to sound as though he was complaining, but his pawpads were tingling with soreness already and there were still several hours to go before noontime even thought of ticking by. And, being a small one, he had never really ventured far from his den - where it was safe, and where he could watch his siblings fight or play or brood. Perhaps he was still a little too young to go out for such long walks, even when he was accustomed to the periodic hunting lessons; either way, he knew that without a small break he would never get as far as what his father wished.
Savhir wasn’t blind to his son’s tired thrashing, and indeed felt a little hindered by feelings that urged him to make sure the pup didn’t injure himself; “You should go back to the den now, Sudhir,” he sighed, turning about and placing a heavy paw on the pup’s head. “Rest a bit and then go straight back, do you understand? I can’t have you wandering aimlessly.”
He had meant for his words to be a little more gentle, but Sudhir had to learn boundaries; striking up an impossible-to-follow-on-tiny-paws jog he bounded away, hoping that the pup would have at least some sense.
"Okay," Sudhir obediently mumbled, gratefully settling on his hindquarters and tugging a thorn from between his toes. "Will you be coming home soon, too?"
Savhir was already out of sight, however, and the pup's question hung lingeringly in the empty morning air. A bird chirped and the rustle of small animals in the bush lent their noises so that the world about him wasn't completely silent, but still - Sudhir sighed, rolling onto his belly. "Guess I'm just not strong enough yet," he voiced softly, scratching at the dirt beneath his paws. "Someday I won't be a burden. But until then..."
Until then, he'd rest up and go back home, as he was told. But maybe - just maybe - he might diverge on some small adventure along the way. After all, experience led to strength and strength led to respect... and he happened to enjoy a good distraction before going back to being just another puppy. In a large family, it was hard to stand out; somehow, he had to figure out a way to show he was different. He sneezed, rolled on his back, and let the cool morning air roll through his thick fur, tongue lolling and paws reaching for the sky.
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 9:27 pm
Kai wasn't quite getting nervous yet, but it was begin to occur to him that he wasn't entirely sure where he was. He had abandoned the river sometime ago, and the sheltered prince still wasn't particularly good with directions once away from the comforting presence of a riverbed and a guiding current. Before, wandering aimlessly hadn't been such a problem -- but now he had Mon to get back to, and it would break his heart if his new friend thought he had abandoned her so soon!
Still, he also had yet to procure any breakfast, and he would feel very silly indeed if he managed to make his way back after hours of wandering with nothing to show of it. Breakfast first, he thought resolutely -- then find your way back to Mon. How hard could it be?
Pausing, the blue wolf lifted his maw to the sky and sniffed, attempting to get his bearings. Something rustled not so far away, and he turned to investigate, crouching down as he moved forward, hoping perhaps the sound belonged to a rabbit...
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 9:48 pm
He had only allowed himself a few minutes of rest, but already Sudhir was feeling pleasantly refreshed; mornings were always cool enough, and the dirt beneath his head still had yet to soak any of the sun’s warmth. For a moment Sudhir contemplated on rolling about a while longer, just a little while longer, revelling in the quiet and the calm that he knew would be shattered to pieces the moment he returned home. Narangi bothering him to play, his sisters bickering and fighting like wildcats, his other brothers… entertaining themselves as they would, he wasn’t too sure what they liked to do. And always with the lessons, the dragging lessons on how to be an efficient killer and a warrior - those weren’t so bad, as they gave him something to work towards, but they always left him feeling rather sore. All the rumours of the forest being dangerous for little ones seemed like a fable, anyways, as he had yet to even feel threatened.
But there was one small scent that nagged at the back of his mind; something he couldn’t pin down, an unknown that brought on an acute sense of awareness to the little pup. Where he had been wriggling in the dirt he fell silent and still, trying to place the unfamiliar feeling of being watched - and then -
His warrior instincts decided to kick in, and leaping up with a vicious snarl and a bristled back, Sudhir’s ears flipped almost completely forward in search of any sort of accompanying sound. A bird? A rabbit? A… an intruder? “Who’s out there?!” he demanded in as deep a voice he could muster, baring his small fangs. His little heart pounded in his chest and his eyes searched the bush desperately, knowing that a little pup would have no chance against any wolf brave enough to challenge the Reign of Terror’s borderlines.
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 9:58 pm
Kai burst through the underbrush just in time to come nose-to-nose with the pup, and let out an undignified yelp of surprise as he fell back heavily to his haunches. He struggled for a moment, his limbs tangled in the branches of the bush he had fallen into, and nearly fell on his face before managing to leap clear. Panting a little, he focused his somewhat dizzied senses on the pup, and smiled fondly. "Oh, hi there!" he said, with a tail wag, clearly not thinking anything of the meeting. "Sorry if I startled you. My name is Kai."
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 10:19 pm
Sudhir was a little beyond startled, just barely managing a strangled squeel as a sudden blue face exploded before him; he tossed himself back at almost the same time the intruder wolf did, planting all four feet like ramrods and taking up the most vicious pose he could think of. He had to defend himself now! He had to remember all those moves his mother had shown him, all the snarls and threats his father had taught, had to…
Had to figure out just how ridiculous the blue wolf now appeared, flopping about in a bush like a caught fish and blathering on as though he had a right to be across the border. He was bigger than Sudhir, but wagged his tail in an obviously disarming way, and letting the fur along his hackles settle back down Sudhir stared at him studiously. “What are you doing here?” Sudhir asked suspiciously, always on guard and yet wishing he could chuckle a little at the wolf’s - Kai’s - antics. “You’re a weird intruder...But! You could get in serious trouble for being here!”
Perhaps he wasn’t in any real danger, as at the moment Sudhir was the only one aware that the borders had been breached; but just to be careful, just to stay on the safe side, Sudhir had to give warning. He couldn't smell packmates or family members, but that didn't mean they wouldn't catch scent sooner or later.
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 10:29 pm
"Oh, my...I didn't mean to intrude." He flopped to his haunches, rather sheepishly scratching at an ear with a hindpaw, his smile sheepish. "I'm not familiar with these lands, I was staying awhile with the Akiiki Chibale but headed inland and...am here, now." He was feeling exceedingly foolish now, as the pup's eyes were burning into him in a somewhat unnerving way. He glanced around himself, determining that they appeared to be alone, and after a moment of hesitation, "...Where am I, precisely?"
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 10:50 pm
Sudhir would have kept on the defensive if Kai hadn’t been able to flash such an obviously harmless grin; finally settling himself down and sitting tenderly, Sudhir gave Kai’s question some thought. Akiiki Chib… eh? Where was that? Sudhir’s life had always been here, and therefore he had no working knowledge of the land around him - only that other packs were to give tribute to his own, as a way of ‘keeping the peace.’ “You really don’t know where you are?” he asked, his voice a little lighter and his head tilted a bit to the side - to be sure Kai wasn’t followed by some other, more menacing creature. “This land belongs to the Reign of Terror; only warriors, hunters, and vicious brutes live here. Which is why if you were found… they might eat you.
He wasn’t kidding, he had heard the rumours. Glancing about once more to make sure he was still the only one aware of Kai’s appearance he continued, “Are you looking for something, or are you just passing by? I haven’t met anyone from outside the pack…”
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 11:05 pm
"Eat me?" He echoed, not entirely sure if he should take the pup seriously -- but he certainly didn't seem to be joking. He shivered. "I...I'm just passing through. I left my homelands awhile ago, and have been wandering for sometime...I was just looking for something to eat for myself and my companion and I lost my way." He glanced around himself, suddenly supremely uneasy -- but part of him couldn't help but perk up in curiosity.
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 11:20 pm
A companion? Kai had a companion hidden out there somewhere? “Some of them will. At least, that's what I've been told...” he said slowly, lowering his nose to the ground. “But I suppose before you do I could show you were some game is… Like, pheasants or rabbits. They’re quick to catch.”
He didn’t like leaving the wolf and his companion without breakfast, even as his own stomach was reminding him he hadn’t eaten yet. Finding game had been one of the first challenges, when he was still very small and barely able to gnaw on meat, so sniffing out a rabbit’s nest or a pheasant’s hiding place wouldn’t be too difficult - in fact, Sudhir saw this as a way to secretly train his senses, tracing his nose through the air and breathing in deeply. There were certain smells, little wafting scents, that would point him in the right direction, and looking to the blue wolf he stated, “These woods are full of game. Good game. But you have to know where to look.”
He smelled something gamy, something reminiscent of past meals, and looking to Kai he asked, “You do know how to find little animals’ hidaways, right?”
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 11:26 pm
He smiled gratefully at the pup, rising to his paws to follow after. Well, at least this little journey would not have been completely in vain. "Sure I do," he said, in response the youth's question, though he shifted a little uncomfortably; he was getting better at hunting, to be sure, but he wasn't exactly a master just yet. It occurred to him that this child had very likely killed many more creatures than he had, and that made him a little ashamed.
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Posted: Tue May 25, 2010 11:54 pm
Sudhir didn’t find too many things worth smiling about, but for this - well he let loose a little grin.
“Alright then, let’s see if we can’t scare up something to eat!” he brightly chimed, lowering himself into a crouch and sniffing at the bushes. “Father always tells me to be silent, and move silently. That's how you find…”
He promptly shut his mouth, realizing that he was breaking a prime rule by letting his tongue flap as it did. He was sure that he was on the trail of a rabbit, recognizing the scent and finding a pattern to where it twisted, and moving as carefully as possible he glanced over his shoulder to assure himself Kai was doing the same. No sense to go floundering like he had earlier.
Savhir had been traveling at a steady pace for a while now, thinking and jogging, scaring up the occasional flock of birds without intent to eat. He wasn’t hungry yet, and he was beginning to feel a little antsy about leaving his son alone by the borders… “Perhaps I should make sure he didn’t mire himself anywhere,” he thought aloud, looking about slowly and memorizing this last place of travel.
He knew he should leave the pup to his own defenses - Ulfhildr would be more than happy to let Sudhir find his own way home, as a test for his wit and directional skills - but at the same time, Savhir didn’t want to be the one to lose a pup because of a bad idea. There was quite a distance between him and his pup, but it wasn’t so great that any real danger could occur before he found Sudhir again. He sniffed about, a little disappointed to find the wind blowing in the wrong direction, and began thinking of turning around.
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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 12:56 am
Kai crouched down, his belly nearly scraping the earth as he crept forward trailing the pup before him, tail held aloft so as not to drag the ground and rustle any bushes. He was getting good at this! Besides, it was just a rabbit, nothing terrifying like a deer, and he'd caught a rabbit before...and now he had help. Encouraged by the thought and temporarily putting all thoughts of being eaten out of his mind, he followed his new friend, sniffing rapidly for the scent of rabbit so he could memorize the smell.
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Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 1:50 am
The trail was getting hot; he could smell something delicious, something alive and hidden away, and trembling a little with excitement he paused just outside what must have been a rabbit’s den. He saw all the little signs of habitation - the bent grass leaves, the scuffed dirt, the scratches at the earth that seemed so fresh he wondered if perhaps he had caught the rabbit at home. That would be best, if the rabbit was already patiently waiting to be snatched up, versus waiting around to see if it would come back. He wagged his tail once, then settled low to the ground, poking his little muzzle into a stand of dried grass - just a little further in, he found the shallow hole he had been hunting for, and giving a sharp little bark he exclaimed, “Found one!”
At that moment a furry creature decided to leap free, little paws scrabbling as Sudhir’s swift jaws snapped for purchase; just one long-eared rabbit had hidden itself away in that den, but it was a plump one, and it was sure to make a good meal. Sudhir flew after it, spinning and wheeling on his little paws as he had been taught, and soon enough he had corralled the rabbit so that it was making an almost headlong charge to where Sudhir hoped Kai was waiting. He gave a small howl of excitement, nipping at the rabbit’s heels and trying to reach a good kill point, but so long as there were two hunters? The rabbit stood no chance.
Savhir’s ears pricked sharply at the sound of a small, distant howl, all bodily movements halting as he strained for more. It was his son’s voice, he was sure of it, but what had caused him to call out like that? A ripple of discontent and brooding fear ran down his spine, raising up his fur as it did, and spinning his bulky body about Savhir found himself trotting briskly to where he had last seen Sudhir. If anything has happened… he thought to himself, growling deeply and hoping that, just this once, he would arrive to find Sudhir playing some sort of game while on his way back to the den. He would have to scold the pup for making needless outbursts, especially when alone and vulnerable… there would be a severe talking-to, but so long as nothing had happened, he might be able to cover up his son’s follies.
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