Welcome to Gaia! ::

The young doe snorted delicately and pawed at the soft earth at the river's edge. There was a lot to be said for traveling alone. Independence was refreshing. There were no expectations to meet and no annoying people tagging along, trying to tell her what to do or pestering her with endless questions and comments and complaints. Sure, she had to keep both ears open for danger, but vigilance was a small price to pay for her freedom. Lethe did not see this changing anytime soon.

She chuffed a breath, her sensitive nose taking in the complex scents of the forest and making sense of them. Rushing river. Damp stone. Fertile earth. Living trees and shrubs and plants. Decaying leaves. Moss and mold and the few flowers that held out this late in the summer. Whatever animals had wandered by recently. The unique quality that the air held at night - colder and clearer and somehow quieter than it was in the day.

And there. Farther off was the scent of another Guardian. The doe stood tall, ears swiveling back and forth, trying to decide whether it would be worth the effort to avoid this unknown stranger or if she ought to face him and have done with it. After all, solitude was nice, but there was something to be said for company every now and again. Assuming it was tolerable company.

One long, dark ear flicked back in annoyance. What was taking him so long? Was he old and arthritic or something? Honestly. She didn't have all night to stand around waiting for him to show up. Never mind that she did not actually have any other plans.

Fed up with waiting, Lethe set off to find this other Guardian at a brisk trot. It did not take so very long, nor was it particularly difficult. His brilliant coat was impossible to miss against the relatively subdued backdrop of the Wood. Rather than an elder, she found instead a buck - one who was perhaps even younger than herself, though not by much, she would wager. Lavender eyes flicked over him, head to tail, in a critical assessment. Whatever they found, it was apparently less than impressive.

"You're slower than a two-legged inchworm."

"...Lethe," she said reluctantly, not sure whether to be disappointed or pleased that her insult did not seem to bother him in the slightest. Well, she supposed that if she was going to spend any length of time with another, it ought to at least be someone that could put up with her barbs. Try though she might, the doe could not seem to temper her surly charms.

At least she was getting better about not attacking people out of the blue. Surely that ought to count for something. Of course, she would not hold back if they had it coming. Lethe refused to be a pushover

"You'll never know whether you're intruding if you take a year to get there. Anyone will have moved on by then."

She hummed, unconvinced by his reasoning and stubbornly ignoring his attempt at teasing. No need to let him get too ahead of himself.

At his question, however, she scoffed. "I haven't settled anywhere. What's the point?" Except somehow, for the first time, those words seemed a little lonely. She didn't have a home. It was by choice, to be sure, but it was still an inescapable fact that Lethe had no real sanctuary.

The doe flicked an ear back in annoyance. Useless thoughts.

There. Just like he said. She could stop wherever and whenever she wanted. There was just no reason to settle. Nothing wrong with that. Somehow, her pride was less wounded by agreeing with this young buck than it was by examining her feelings about being a wanderer. She tried not to think too hard about that.

Instead, the dark-furred doe rolled her shoulder in a graceful shrug and dismissed the topic. "It matters little. We are both of us here, now. For however long that lasts."

...fun?

Lethe was familiar with the word, of course. She wasn't such a stick in the mud that she didn't know how to have fun. ...right? Of course. There were all kinds of things she enjoyed. Like...like fighting. She was good at that. She could give any predator a good run. What could compare to the thrill of a good battle? The manic glee of knowing that your enemy could not compare?

Except, of course, that most people probably wouldn't call that fun. And it wasn't like she really went out and picked a fight just for the thrill of it, either. So where did that leave her? What did she deliberately seek out just for the pleasure of it?

"Stargaze?" she offered, and it come out more like a question than she would have preferred. She scowled, then shifted and flicked an ear back, aiming for nonchalance. "But that's just to relax. If you want a real thrill, try taking on a pack of coyotes." And curse it all, she was back to that again.

If the doe were more honest with herself and a little less stubborn, she might admit that she really had no idea what to do for fun. She had never really tried.

The doe bristled at his laughter. Good-natured though it may be, she did not appreciate being laughed at. Her pride when dealing with other Guardians was such a delicate thing. "More boring, you mean," she snapped, though her heart rebelled at the words even as she said them.

Chasing coyotes might get the blood pumping, but there was a beauty in the stars that was undeniable. They were precious and beautiful and endlessly fascinating. But of course, admitting such a thing aloud would be far too embarrassing. There again, it was equally embarrassing to admit that she her only two pleasures in life.

Instead, she lifted her head defiantly and said, "They need to learn that Guardians are not to be trifled with. We do not need fangs or claws to be dangerous. We are the keepers of the Wood. It is only right that they flee from us, so I make it happen." She rolled her shoulder in a casual shrug, but there was a certain gleam in her eyes. "It's very satisfying."


((No worries. I've been super busy, too.))

Lethe blinked, taken aback at this buck's ready acceptance of her...unusual ways. He wanted to join her? Most would think her mad or stupid. Most would not shrug and suggest hunting up some coyotes right that second. The doe stared as her strange new acquaintance started walking off and started when she realized he was leaving her behind. She scowled and trotted to catch up.

"You know, most normal Guardians would not suggest such a thing," she informed him, feeling oddly obliged to warn him that she was not among the norm for their species. Of course, normal people were boring, so maybe he was better off with her, anyway.