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 Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 10:03 am
Tirin followed the overgrown path towards Sauda's den, cleared only by the light passage of wolf paws. He had been thinking about Sauda on his last few rotations of the border, where a lack of activity-- even at night-- made it extremely boring. After getting a few hours of napping in, he had risen and immediately made for her cave with his peace offering. Just because they spent time together away from the dens didn't mean she would want him in her personal space. It was the looks she had given him when they had sat together in the clearing that made him hope she wouldn't mind something along lines a little more intimate than friendship.
So here he was, walking up to her den entrance with a few vibrant yellow flowers between his teeth. She'd liked the other one. He hoped she would like these too. Sticks and stones, he hoped she was home at all.
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Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 11:07 am
 The days had passed swiftly since Sauda and Tirin had spent the day away from the pack lands and found that flower filled clearing. He had given her a gift that day and she had cherished it ever since. Laying in her den she glanced over at the now wilted flower, though it did still have a hint of color on its most brown petals now. It was sad that such a beautiful thing, a gift from Tirin, had faded way and would continue to do so until it was merely dust within her den, but Sauda refused to toss it away. It was after all special to her.
Tirin had been on her mind a lot lately, even more so after the last time they spent time together. She really enjoyed his company and was pretty sure he felt the same way. Why else would he have given her that flower? Letting out a soft sigh Sauda laid her head back upon her paws. But soon she heard the soft tell tale sounds of a wolf approaching her dens, and given that normally one came by her den without setting up a meeting first she was intrigued by it. She hoped that it would be Tirin, and quickly she got to her feet. Pulling herself out of her den Sauda's eyes fell upon the familiar dark grey pelt of her new friend - who would hopefully become more - and the mouthful of flowers he carried. She smiled at him but remained quiet, eyes twinkling with happiness.
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 8:44 am
She was at home, oh good. Tirin felt some relief at that and his tail perked up slightly, showing the return of all his good cheer. Of course, cheerful with him was pretty much par for the course.
He stopped a few paces away and set the flowers down, smiling broadly at her. "Sauda. I hope you don't mind that I came to your den. I know some wolves like their space." He looked at the yellow flowers and nudged them slightly with a paw. "I brought you some flowers." He fidgeted slightly. "I hope you like yellow."
Truth was, she had probably gotten rid of the other flower after they got back. They didn't stay alive for long after they were picked. He'd have to find something that lasted a little longer next time. Still, the bright colors should please a female, and she had liked flowers before. Next time he'd find her stones, or feathers. Something that didn't die.
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 8:51 am
"I don't mind." Sauda beamed at him as he set the flowers down. It didn't matter to her what color they were, she had no preference in that way, the fact that they came from Tirin was really all that she cared about. "I love them." She told him as she dipped her head down towards them. "They're so beautiful." Taking a deep breath, she enjoyed the sweet scent of these flowers. They were different than the first one he had given her but still special none the less.
"I'll put them with the other one." She told him before picking them up gently and turning she ducked into her den for a moment. The last thing she wanted to have happen was to have them blow away in a sudden gust of wind. Setting them down beside the very wilted pink flower Sauda came back out of the den, stepping in close to Tirin. "Thank you." She half whispered and then licked his cheek lightly.
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 9:10 am
She had kept the other one? That thought occupied him with surprise until she returned and wiped all other thoughts away with a surprisingly intimate gesture of affection.
Were he not a furred creature, Tirin would have blushed straight to his ear-tips. A grin started on his face that he couldn't control, and suddenly all of his energy levels were at their peaks, urging him to go for a run to release it.
"You're welcome." That was a very good sign. His mother did that to his father sometimes. That was a good sign. "May I come in, or did you want to maybe take a trip to the lake?"
Or the river, or wherever you want to go! Let's do something! His mind suggesting, spinning excitedly in head. This intimacy thing was a heady feeling, and Tirin couldn't think of a more beautiful wolf in the pack to be the one to give him that first gesture. Suddenly, his gift became a wonderful idea beyond the proportions he had even thought of it in. Anyone looking would have thought he was just being Tirin-- a mature adult who sometimes had a tad too much energy to be anything but childish-- but Tirin was well beyond that. He wanted to make Sauda as exhilarated as he was feeling. They should go swimming. Or running. They could race to the lake!
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 9:33 am
Sauda couldn't help but laugh a bit as the grin crossed Tirin's maw. It was funny how he could sometimes turn into a big overgrown pup, made things a bit more interesting. Though his question did catch her a bit off guard her face remained happy, with no hint of the surprise that was going through her mind. Could he come in? Sauda wasn't really sure how to answer that, so she just smiled a bit wider and decided to ignore it for now, if only to better think it out.
When he offered a trip to the lake she wagged her tail. "We could go to the lake." It had been a little while since Sauda had been there, what with all the sneaking out of pack lands she had been doing. No, sneaking out wasn't the right way to put it, but her mind was a bit fuzzy right now with so many thoughts. The a thought occurred to her, she wanted to know what was special to Tirin. "What's your favorite place to go to? Someplace special. Take me there."
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 10:03 am
Hm. That was a good question, and Tirin fidgeted as he thought of an answer. There was that spot on the cliffs... but that had been the once as an adolescent, and he had never dared go there again. The thought of being caught and punished was too frightening, although falling off was probably a consideration too. Just not as much of one. He was used to doing things people later told him were dangerous.
"All right, but we have to go a way we won't be noticed, and you can't be afraid of heights," he warned her. "Come on."
He saw one pack member on the way through the main part of the den and nodded a greeting. The male nodded back but obviously had business of his own to attend to, which suited Tirin just fine. They would go the long way, through the meadow, so no one would know what his actual destination was. There was a nice place for them to rest after the climb by the meadow as well. He could just convince anyone who saw them that that was where they had gone.
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 10:15 am
His statement intrigued her. They had to go the long way so they wouldn't be noticed. Now she wondered just where he was taking her, but Sauda trusted Tirin and knew she would be safe with him. "Don't worry I'm not afraid of heights." At least Sauda was pretty sure she wasn't. Honestly she hadn't been in a situation where she found herself up high yet.
Her heart pounded hard when they came across that other pack member, what if he questioned where they were going. But luckily the wolf seemed to be busy with going somewhere and merely nodded to them in greeting and continued on. She walked beside Tirin, casting the odd glance at him here and there curious as to where they were going and also wanting to get a few good looks at her new friend. Was friend the right word anymore?
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 10:48 am
As the warm grass brushed by his legs and sides, Tirin watched a doe by the edge of the meadow startle and run off. He wasn't concerned with hunting right now, but he was sure there were probably a few rabbits and birds hiding in the grass too, waiting for them to go by.
"Not much further," he promised as they veered off from the meadow and passed back into the forest. A few more paces and no one was able to see them unless they happened to be walking border patrol. One benefit of being short on members was that there were none to waste with guarding an area that everyone should know was off-limits. He just hoped no one found out he was breaking that little rule.
"There." He paused and looked up at the cliffs for a moment, giving Sauda the chance to observe it for herself. The cliffs were treacherous, but the path up was manageable with a bit of caution. Still, he wasn't looking to go all the way up, although he was sure the view would be amazing.
"There's a small cave, about half-way up, barely big enough for the both of us. From there you can see over most of the trees. Higher up might be a better view, but the ledges get even worse up there, and I wouldn't want to risk it." Even going up half-way was going to be a dangerous trip, and he didn't want Sauda to fall.
He looked back at her since she would have the final say. "Do you still want to see it? I could always show you the shaded spot by the edge of the meadow instead."
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Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 11:42 am
Bringing her paws to a stop Sauda glanced at Tirin for a moment and then up at the cliff. Well it would certainly take a bit of effort to get up there, even if they did only go about half way up. But Sauda was willing to try anything once, and her tail wagged to show her approval. "Let's give it a try." She said as her eyes returned to Tirin. "If it gets too tough to make it then we can just come back down." But the idea of being able to see above the trees was far too great to turn down, so they would do it, even if it took a long time to reach the cave.
"We can go to the meadow afterward maybe." She suggested, the meadow would be a nice place to go for sure, but meadows were quite easily accessible so she wasn't going to pick that over the cave on the cliff without first attempting to climb up there.
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Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2010 7:54 am
Tirin nodded and took a running jump to reach the first ledge. He paused only a moment before launching to the next one as well, and then he turned to look back at Sauda, smiling encouragingly.
"Follow me but take your time. I'd rather it take a while than have one of us fall."
That said, he made sure she safely made the first ledge before he stepped up onto the next one, making his slow way up the side of the cliffs. He would stop every now and again to make sure Sauda was following, but soon enough he had reached the cave. It would take some squishing, but they should be able to fit. He stepped inside and turned around, taking the far wall so Sauda would have somewhere to step once she reached him. He didn't bother glancing at the view yet, opting instead to make sure Sauda's progress was safe and that she didn't need his help.
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Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2010 8:13 am
"Alright." Sauda waited until Tirin was on on the second ledge before following suit and jumping up onto the first one. Then once the second small ledge as clear she made her way up to it. The climb wasn't so bad following in Tirin's path for he knew the safe spots to walk on. But even so Sauda made sure to take her time and ensure that her paws had a firm grasp on the rock before moving onward. When she finally reached the ledge that held the cave on it, Sauda beamed with happiness as she looked at Tirin.
Carefully padding over to the cave she stopped and first looked out at the view. It took her breath away. She had never seen the land from this high up and it gave a whole new perspective of things. "Wow." She whispered, voice filled with awe and excitement. But after a short few moments she managed to tear her eyes away from the view and work on getting herself into that small cave. It was a bit of a tight squeeze, but with a bit of determination Sauda managed to find a comfortable spot between Tirin and the cave wall. "This is amazing." She told him once she was settled down.
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Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2010 8:27 am
"It is. I guess this is what birds see all the time, but we don't get this chance as often as them. It's the only time I've ever been able to see over the pack's lands rather than just what's in front of me." He turned his head and gestured with his muzzle as he sat down. "That break in the trees there is the opening from the other day, with the flowers. I'm pretty sure anyway. And that's the giant tree by the far corner of the packlands."
He looked over at Sauda before taking a quick peek over the edge. They were really high up. Getting down was going to be harder. He should have remembered that.
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Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2010 8:37 am
Although Sauda was somewhat jealous that birds got such a view each and everyday it did not show at all on her face. Her eyes were roaming over the trees and land that she called home. Glancing at the spot that Tirin pointed out as likely the clearing they had been to she couldn't help but nod. Yes, it looked to be like the clearing they had stopped at, or at least was in the general direction they had traveled. With everything so much smaller from up here it was hard to tell the distance between the edge of the pack lands and that clearing.
Tail wagged a bit, thumping against the cave wall. This was so much better than she had expected. Eyes turned to Tirin, happiness twinkling within them, and a smile across her maw. "This is perfect." She wanted to say more, but the words just refused to come.
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Posted: Wed Jul 21, 2010 9:43 am
"I'm glad you like it." He looked back at her and then leaned over and settled his muzzle on top of her head nervously. He draped his tail across hers as well, rather thankful he didn't have to meet her eyes this way. It was easier.
"I enjoy spending time with you," he said slowly, trying to keep his from fidgeting. He waited a moment, then added, "More than anyone else in the pack." Well, it was true. He and Alya were close, but with their duties it was hard now that they had their own dens.
"Would you consider sharing a den?" He rushed into his next sentence, but refused to move his head off of hers so long as she sat still. "I understand if you like your space or would rather wait or just preferred to keep it to us running into one another. I don't want you to think I'm just looking to build a family, though I wouldn't mind that either." He glanced out at the canopy as he caught his breath. "It's up to you."
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