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 Posted: Sun Dec 21, 2014 3:39 pm
He continued his trek across the plains and into the far forest, taking immediate shelter among the thick, lower branches of the younger trees. He frowned again as he took in the new surroundings. Staying here until nightfall was both his best and his worst option. Other animals would still be able to smell him in the area and likely raise alarm. "This is worthless...I need to find a cave, or somehow get up into the mountains..." Vuka mumbled.
He was thankful that nothing had yet crossed his path by the time night had fallen, short of a few birds that paid him little mind. As Vukasin stepped out from the cover of the trees, he wasted no time in shaking off as much as he could and getting on the move again. If he could find shelter for the rest of the night then he could at least get an early start towards the mountains the next day.
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Posted: Sun Dec 21, 2014 4:17 pm
That was just the way it was when you found yourself wandering a new land, searching for a place to belong. She was on her own now, having left her homeland, and she would have to make the best of things. That was what mother had told her when she left. Mother had done the same thing when she came of age and that was how she had met Father. Though the two of them didn't stay together long...
Prim let out a little sigh and a snort as she thought about it. Poor Mother. Father had been so upset when Prim was born. Both Mother and Father had hooves, but Prim had paws. Father had become angry with Mother and said that she had cheated on him. Prim always believed in her mother though. She didn't know why she was different, but she didn't think it mattered as long as Mother loved her.
Prim paused for a moment, looking at the trees around her. A lot of them were lush Evergreens, but there were a few other types amongst them, all of whose leaves had long gone and been carried away by Winter's breath. Prim smiled at the thought of how beautiful it would be when Spring came again and there were new leaves and buds on the trees. Prim much preferred the warmer weather to this cold. She shivered.
The trees became thinner and soon Prim found herself standing by the edge of a small clearing and staring up at the tall mountains ahead. She had never seen mountains before. Suddenly she was aware of another presence nearby. She became startled when the male had stepped out from the cover of the trees and shook himself. She might not have said anything, but let him continue on his way (for he did seem to be in a hurry) if it weren't for the very audible gasp she made.
"Oh. Oh dear." Prim mumbled. She suddenly became quite shy. "H...hello."
She realized she was still standing under the tree cover, and not wanting to be rude, stepped out into the clearing to join him. She suddenly felt very exposed. This was her first time meeting someone in this new land. Oh, she hoped he was nice.
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Posted: Sun Dec 21, 2014 7:01 pm
Vuka froze upon hearing the gasp and laid his ears back nervously. He was sure his position was about to be given away, or worse...jumped. He wanted to move, wanted to run, but for some reason his legs wouldn't let him. With a flick of his tail, Vuka turned his head to look back at the mare as she stepped into the clearing. He continued to remain silent as he looked her over.
She wasn't what he was expecting suffice to say. Paws like his, but no pelt to carry with them. Everything else about her, however, seemed normal. He was actually relieved to see that in few ways, she was like him but he still couldn't help but be wary.
"Hello." Vuka mumbled, keeping a close eye on her and ready to sprint at a moments notice. "...do you live here? Are you going to call others to attack?" He asked.
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Posted: Mon Dec 22, 2014 6:47 am
This new acquaintance seemed even more wary of her than she was of him, which made Prim more self conscious. What if she had done or said something wrong? She'd never met any other Soquili in this new land yet, so she didn't know how they greeted one another. His last question really confused her though.
"Others? No, I don't know any others." She blushed with embarrassment, but continued. "Why would I attack you?"
'Oh no,' she thought. 'What if I've come to a dangerous place? I need to be more careful. Perhaps I'll ask him for directions.'
It was then that she actually took a good look at him for the first time. He was a lot more furry than the horses she had met back home, and oh! He had paws!
"Why, you have paws!" She exclaimed. "I've never met anyone else with them before." She flushed with embarrassment again and hurridly explained, "I'm sorry, I'm being rude... I'm new to this area, and I was hoping... Maybe you might be able to give me some directions? To...somewhere safe?" She finished lamely. She smiled at him then, hoping she didn't look quite as silly as she felt.
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Posted: Mon Dec 22, 2014 4:52 pm
"You would attack me because--" He trailed off and fell silent rather quickly as he continued to listen. If she doesn't know anyone, then he was safe. Especially since she seemed more fascinated with his looks than terrified by them. Vuka's ears pricked forward again as his whole body relaxed, flexing his toes into the dirt below.
"....you would attack me because that's what most think first. They see a predator. A skinwalker. If you're not from around these parts, then you are no threat to me. ...in fact you seem very...innocent?" He said, taking a step closer. "You won't get very good directions from me, though. I've spent days getting this far from my old home. I only know that I want to get up there, into the mountains." Vuka finished, turning to look up behind him. "I know there are caves there."
He stared up for a while before turning his attention back to Prim and taking a few steps towards her again. "Where are you from? What brings you here? I ask because I'm surprised no one else has considered you a threat before now..."
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Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2014 12:40 pm
Prim was glad that he seemed to relax a little bit. She smiled again and shook out her mane a bit so that it fell around her neck, sheltering it a little from the chilly air. It was getting darker, and the thought of a cave to stay the night in sounded nice. Perhaps he could show her where they were, or she could follow from behind if he was unwilling, though he seemed nice enough so far. There were some things he had told her though that she did not quite understand.
"What is a...Skinwalker?" she asked him. She hadn't heard the term before, but from the context she guessed it was some sort of predator. She shivered again, this time not from the cold.
He had called her innocent, just like Mother used to. Or was it naive? It was the same thing, right? Anyway, he had asked where she had come from and so she figured that she had better tell him if she wanted his help.
She sighed and said, "I'm from much further south. At least I think. I think I've been traveling North for some time now, but my directions could be wrong. I followed a funny sort of caravan all the way here. Some sort of...carousel or carnival? I mostly stayed out of the way and followed from a distance. No one has seen me until now, and I probably would have let you move on without noticing me too if you hadn't startled me." She was glad he had startled her though, because it was nice having someone to talk to. She was too shy to admit this to him though.
She pondered for a moment why anyone would think of her as a predator, but figured it must just be this part of the land. Perhaps everyone was a predator here. That's why she was glad to be moving on.
"Will it be safe up in the mountains?" She started walking towards them as she spoke, thinking they were still quite a long ways off, but if they started moving now they could reach them in decent time. "Safe from these Skinwalkers you speak of?" She added with a tilt of her head. "Is that why you are going there?"
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Posted: Tue Dec 23, 2014 9:22 pm
Vuka continued to watch her, though he was continuing to approach ever so slowly. He couldn't help but smile a bit as he listened to her questions.
"I...think I know what carnival you're talking about. It's likely the same one that drew the Skinwalkers towards my old home." His smile faded, ears pinning back again. "Meaning you came a lot farther than I imagined...especially if you don't know what a Skinwalker is with your appearance." He sighed and glanced around the area they were in; as if making sure they were still alone.
"Come with me...we can try to find a place to spend the rest of the night and I'll explain." Vuka told her, turning to head back into the forest towards the mountain range. "I assume it's safer up that way, harder terrain to traverse as far as I'm aware. We don't have hooves though, so it should be easier." He walked ahead in silence for a while, only occasionally glancing back to make sure she was still following. With how naive she was, he could have probably turned on her at any time...but then where would he be? He would definitely be no better than the beasts he ran from.
"Skinwalkers are...similar to us in ways, except blood-thirsty. From my experience they will stop at nothing to kill and take their goal. They also wear an animal's skin over themselves, able to become that beast somehow..." He sighed again and flicked his tail at her. "You can see why I could easily be mistaken for one, can't you?"
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Posted: Sat Dec 27, 2014 11:13 am
Prim was very grateful that he had told her to come with him, so she wouldn't have to follow him from a distance. She was also glad that the mountains would be safer. She hadn't even thought of there being danger on her journey until now. How could she have, without ever being warned of a skinwalker before? And what did he mean about her appearance?
"Wh...what's wrong with my appearance?" she asked him, blushing again, but still following close by all the same. She was eager for when he would tell her what a skinwalker actually was.
Finally, as they walked towards the mountains, he explained to her; bloodthirsty beasts that looked similar to them and wore an animal's skin on their back. Prim shivered at the thought of how they came by that skin. But looking at her companion, she realized that the reason he was so furry was because of some sort of skin on his back. The only differences to him and a normal stallion then were his paws and tail and furry pelt. Perhaps this was how a skinwalker looked. Prim looked at her own paws then. Maybe that's why he had said, "with your appearance."
"Do skinwalkers have paws?" she asked him. If this was true it would make her question everything she knew about herself.
For a brief moment she thought that perhaps her new companion was a skinwalker himself and she just didn't know it. But then, he was very friendly. She didn't think he would warn her about skinwalkers if he was one himself. She was fortunate to have met this stallion she thought. She realized she didn't know what his name was, and she hadn't given him hers either.
"I don't know your name," she said. "Mine is Primrose. Prim for short, if you like."
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Posted: Fri Jan 16, 2015 11:13 pm
"...some have paws, I've seen a few that do. Most...do not I believe. That doesn't make them any less of a threat." Vuka told her, glancing back to see that she was still following close behind and that no one else was on their trail. He had to admit, he was relaxing quite a bit in her company and it was starting to feel nice not being completely isolated. Avoiding others for so long due to his appearance was starting to wear on him quite a bit.
"Vukasin." He smiled a bit at her and looked towards the trail ahead up the mountainside. "Prim...it's nice. ...suits you."BelaLucina Sorry, got busy and other such stuff
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Posted: Tue Jan 27, 2015 10:19 am
"Some do?" she repeated, now slightly lost in thought and coming up to walk right beside him now. She wondered if she was related to any skinwalkers, but dismissed the thought almost immediately. No no, she was just born with paws. She'd always accepted that. Whatever these skinwalkers were or did, she would have nothing to do with them.
She smiled sideways at him at the mention of his name. She liked being able to put names to things, it made them easier to think about. "It's nice to meet you, Vukasin." She blushed a little, "And thank you. I always used to get told that a lot."
Also looking towards the mountain trail, Prim wondered, "Have you been to these mountains before?" For her of course, it would be her first time. She was a little nervous, and a little excited.
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Posted: Fri Jan 30, 2015 7:12 pm
Vuka nodded as he thought about the skinwalkers again, silently hoping that they were a threat Prim would never have to encounter. Though, trouble always seemed to find him...and if she stuck by his side, inevitably she would get caught up in it as well. Still, he figured he shouldn't let it get the best of him again. He may have lost his home but now he was safe and in good company.
"I'm glad to have met you today..." He murmured, focusing on the path ahead. "It's...nice to have company. To have someone who doesn't judge or run in terror." Vuka smiled to himself again. He was beginning to find it hard to stop smiling at this point. Prim was just so...sweet and unlike no one he knew before.
"And no...I've never actually been out this way before. But I'm sure these mountains are like any. Full of caves and places to hunker down for the night. It...won't be pleasant...sleeping on hard, rocky ground...but it's better than nothing."
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Posted: Fri Mar 27, 2015 3:52 am
Prim smiled at his comment. He was glad to have met her. Though perhaps that was just the polite thing to say, but he seemed genuine. And the last part of his statement was definitely true. Wasn't that the main reason to avoid others, for fear of being judged or rejected?
"I do know what you mean," she responded. "I have kept to the trees and the shadows for most of my journey through these lands, but it is rather nice to talk to someone."
"As for sleeping on hard, rocky ground, that's just part of the journey I guess! I've never slept in a cave before," she added in a dreamy, thoughtful tone. The prospect of a new experience, no matter how uncomfortable, made her smile.
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Posted: Sun Jun 14, 2015 11:15 am
"Thank you for your company..." Vuka smiled a bit, turning his head to look at her. "I'm glad to have someone around who doesn't judge." He continued to pad up the path of the mountain, looking ahead once more and keeping an eye open for a decent...and unoccupied cave. He stopped walking after some time and glanced up at the moon before turning into the mouth of a smaller cave nearby.
"Might as well rest here for the night..." Vuka murmured, scuffing loose rocks around and making room for Prim. "I'll stay alert tonight and only rest as I need to. At least that way you can sleep well and safe. I promise..."
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