Taye moved in an almost hunched manner, his head so low that his chin brushed the ground and his tail curled tightly against a hing leg. He was a shy creature, skittish and flighty as a hare. He spent most of his time alone, afraid of approaching strangers, afraid of getting close to anyone, particularly those bigger than him. As such, his social skills were certainly poor for one who was fully grown and this only added further to his nervousness of being around others.
And here he was, all alone, in this strange land, creeping amongst the shadows and wishing his fur could blend to match them. For whenever he passed under the moonlight, his pale fur glinted brilliantly, a signal to any who looked his way that he was there.
The hooting of a nocturnal bird startled him and he froze, whiskers quivering, drawing his head up so he could check his surroundings. As far as he could tell he was still alone...but the wind had played tricks on him before and his eyesight, though reasonably sharp, often clouded due to nervousness.
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He'd been noticed quickly upon entering their territory by Dapplespot and Swiftthinker. It happened fairly often, given that the pack chose not to mark their borders to better conceal their presence from outsiders. They were well adept at moving in their lands though, especially at night. Even the brightest coat knew how to duck and dodge with the minimal shadows and plant life to hide themselves, but mostly the wind was on their side tonight. The current blew his scent to them rather than the other way around.
Dapplespot had been sent to bring word back to Wisdomchaser, and after the three females had been observing him in silence for a while the lead had made up her mind. She told the other two to wait with a silent signal and stalked forward from the shadows, eyes glowing in the darkness that she seemed to melt right out of with her dark coat.
"Who goes, stranger?"
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He turned his head to the side, sensing movement but not able to place it. He figured it for a rabbit or some other small critter running around in the darkness, and was thus scared witless to see the pair of glowing eyes that belonged to one of his own kind. He all but freaked out, puffing up in fear rather than in any threatening gesture. His laid his ears falt, dropped his head again and literally crumpled to the ground, pressing himself to the floor as if he wished it would swallow him up.
Heart thudding, all he could manage was a strangled sort of whimper, peering up at the female with apology there, clear in his eyes. He was desperately afraid, and though he tried to form words, his voice just seemed to fail him.
"Uhh..uhh...please...p-p- ...don't hurt Taye."
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She hadn't expected that response, never seeing a dog cower so fiercely before anyone, not even her father (and he could be terrifying in one of his moods)! She kept her expression and her guard up in case he hadn't come alone, but so far as she could tell he had, and was genuinely frightened.
"I don't wish harm on the undeserving. Tell me why you've come to my pack's lands." She instructed instead, voice still firm, and really no softer.
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He winched, closing his eyes as if by doing so, she would miraculously dissapear. He seemed genuinely dissapointed when he opened them again to see her still standing there. Her question was a simple enough one to answer, but he was afraid of speaking again. She might not like his response and he didn't want to die!
"Uh, um...Taye...Taye didn't mean to. Accident. Lost...not know he was so close to a pack's land."
A shiver ran the length of his spine and he seemed intent on burying his nose in the grass, afraid of doing anything that might send teeth upon him. He certainly seemed to have no idea how to defend himself let alone fight back.
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This one spoke so oddly... she couldn't help but notice. Still, he seemed harmless, but she couldn't allow herself to but she couldn't allow herself to be trusting of outsiders right off the bat. Many a creature out there in the world was capable of great harm and deceit, though being one of their own he was certainly granted more benefit of the doubt than another would have been.
She approached quietly and softened the edge of her voice.
"Stand up, Taye, no one here will hurt you as long as you do not warrant it. Are you alone?"
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He rose on shaky legs, his skinny body and unkempt fur clear in the light of the moon above. Even still, he would be a fine specimen if he was better fed, with good, long legs and a kindly muzzle. His nose twitched but even those he rose, he dare not look at at her face in fear of angering her.
"Alone." He responded. "Always alone. Taye not have friends. Family...they elsewhere." He hadn't been abandoned, of course. He'd just felt...overwhelmed being with them. He figured going off alone would be better, though he soon learned to regret that decision.
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The first thing she noticed was his poorly fed state, he sure wasn't going to overtake anyone or cause any trouble like this. The worst that might happen is if he went berserk.
"If you need someplace to rest I can allow you to stay for a few days." She replied, looking at him.
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"S-stay?" He replied, tipping his head and daring to lift one ear forwards. Stay with her in this pack of hers? Would that not be dangerous for him? What if they didn't like him and fell upon him in fury? He gave a quiet whimper and his ear fell back again, head hunching. He certainly was a rather pathetic wild dog indeed.
"No one will mind if Taye stays? Not hurt him?"
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"No one will hurt you if you stay, you are welcome here as long as you heed our ways, brother." She replied, allowing a soft wag of her tail, signaling the other two to slip off unnoticed so as not to alarm their new visitor.
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He blinked, swallowing back his fear and trying his best to relax. He'd only just realized how tense his muscles were and there was a throbbing in his head that suggested it really wasn't healthy to be so frightened all the time.
His tail wagged softly in response and, with a small twitch of his nose, he nodded. "Taye will heed." His eyes darted nervously around them, but saw nothing else that might scare him. "Where is this place? What your pack called?"
He thought how odd it would be to be around others again, to...socialize...it had been a long time. Far too long. How he had even survived was something of a mystery, though probably down to sheer luck.
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Wisdomchaser watched as he collected himself slowly, expression calm and patient. She was nothing like her father in many ways, but in others she was every bit his daughter. Most often she appeared as her mother's child, however, like now.
When he spoke again she answered with a softer voice.
"You're in the lands of Timmain's children. We here live only in the Now, so our pack is simply called Peke Na."
Only Now.
