Face your fears
#1
OOC: Postdated for September 9th

Things were slow at home and Eclipse felt the itch to move. She wanted to get out and that's what she did. She found herself moving across the mountains, on foot though she could ride Buttercup if she wanted to. She found that she liked traveling on foot, though liked the idea that she wouldn't have to if she didn't want to better. She followed the path through the mountains that took her out to the other side, it was well traveled, and one of the few areas to get through the mountains safely.

She was accustomed to walking, moving, and getting where she wanted quickly, though she was distracted easily, so when she saw the waterfall she was immediately intrigued. So as curious as she was she had to look. At the bottom was a nice deep pool. Hurrying towards it, she looked at the waterfall then down at the pool. Her fear of water was what kept her from jumping in though she wanted to dearly, it looked refreshing especially in the hot of the afternoon. She knelt at the side of the pool and sniffed, fresh water. Her hands went to it and touched the quite chilly water. Taking her hand back she shook it and put both hands, her tail behind her waved nuetrally as she played at the edge of the calm water, where as she looked at the waterfall where the water misted and rolled into itself. It was beautiful and interesting, and so very scary.
#2
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Water thundered as it dropped fifty feet, crashing down into the pools below in an explosion of cool spray. It was quite scenic, but it was also quite dangerous. Any wolf who slipped on the wet rocks along the edge of the cliff could topple to their deaths—but they, hopefully, would meet a quick death with necks broken by the impact with the earth. The unluckiest souls would be washed underwater, heads unable to break the surface, until their battered lungs could not resist the surge of cold water.

To die by drowning would be the cruelest of fates.

Vesper shivered as this scenario danced through her mind. She sat in the shade of the cliff a safe distance from the cascade, her ears flattened and her body partially hunched. The thought of drowning was one of the few things that could get to her, though if anyone else were around, she would snap out of it instantly. Alone, she had only her waking nightmares as companions, and so her pulse raced and her stomach twisted as she watched the tall waterfall.

Thirst won out over fear, however. The coywolf sighed and rose onto all fours, stepping cautiously to the edge of one of the basins formed by the Pictou Falls. The pool was lined with rock and grass, swollen with the rivers that ran above it. It looked refreshing, though Vesper didn’t want to find out how deep it was. She had no problem standing and even rolling around in the shallows, in small streams and puddles, but anything that could cover her head was regarded with extreme caution and fear.

Vesper frowned and crouched at the edge of the pool, dipping her head and lapping the cold water up. It soothed her throat, refreshing in contrast with the sunlight falling on her back, and she closed her eyes to better taste the crispness.

When she opened her eyes again, she paused, dragging her tongue over dripping whiskers as she noticed a figure at the other side of the large pool. It was another canine, light brown and oddly shaped.

Immediately, the hybrid was curious. While she had seen luperci before around ’Souls, none had been this small, this young. She frowned then made up her mind, trotting around the edge of the water before pausing a polite distance from the girl.

“Hello there,” Vesper greeted, somewhat awkwardly. It had been too long since she’d spoken to someone much younger than her. “The water feels great, doesn’t it?”


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#3
Eclipse was immersed in trying to tell herself the water couldn't hurt her if she didn't want it to, but when the voice called out she snatched her hands out of the water as though a snake had come up and bit her. The girl looked up, fear in her eyes, but when she could see no malice in the woman Eclipse relaxed. She registered what had previously been said and looked down at the now still liquid.

"Yes it feels very nice."

The girl said, almost hesitantly, she could see her reflection and the clouds overhead as the moved slowly across the sky. Looking back she could see the woman was in her lupus form, and lacked a certain qualifying smell to her. She didn't register it as much, she was still just a pup after all.

"I'm Eclipse, I'm from up north, Ichika no Ho-en"

The girl said, she could tell the woman was a loner at least, that much the girl could smell right off the bat, and this made her slightly more wary of the woman, though she was still a trusting enough child. With all her wanderings she'd seen a bit, but not enough to find that all wolves are bad until proven otherwise.
#4
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The young luperci was startled by her sudden approach, but soon the tenseness relaxed and she replied, agreeing. Her blue eyes fell down to the reflective surface of the water then, and Vesper took a seat near the edge of the pool as well, though she was a bit more stiff than normal. Unless the girl were to shove her, however, she was safe.

“I’m Eclipse,” the light brown child introduced herself, adding that she was from up north.

“My name is Vesper,” the coywolf replied, her tone relatively light-hearted but not enthusiastically friendly. She had never been the type to giggle and coo at cubs; she lacked maternal instincts or something. It was immensely unlikely that she would ever have children, anyway. She didn’t dislike them, but the thought of getting pregnant and raising pups was like trying to imagine a new color—impossible.

“What is Ichika no Ho-en?” Vesper asked, the words formed hesitantly as she tried to get the sounds right. She’d probably butchered the pronunciation, but that didn’t matter. It sounded foreign, and she wasn’t sure if it was a territory or—a pack. Sniffing, she decided that it was most likely the latter; the girl did not smell like a loner, even though Vesper might have believed that she was otherwise. After all, she had become independent at a pretty young age herself.


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#5
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OOC: I could have swore i replied to this, and sorry for horrible post ; ;


Eclipse could see the woman settling down at the corner of her eye. She wouldn't let a stranger go unwatched no matter what, she'd learned that in her pup travels. A “parent” had taught her to sleep with one eye open, though she didn't know exactly what she was looking for. She had decided it was to look for anything that made her scared or uncomfortable. She had never had anyone challenge her life, other than herself and that was minimal at best.
“It's nice to meet you, Ichika is my home, it's a pack up north of the mountains.”

The girl said, her attention mostly back on the water. Her hand dipped into it again now, and she watched as her fur swirled this way and that. It was definiteely interesting to watch and as she did this she asked the woman.

“Are you from anywhere or are you just a loner?”

She asked, she knew the woman was a loner, but that didn't mean she hadn't been in a pack before, and left for one reason or another. Eclipse had after all had her own excursion at a very young age as a loner herself.

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Table by Noelle [/html]
#6
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Eclipse explained that Ichika no Ho-en was a pack that lay north of the mountains. The loner was a little surprised to discover that there was a settlement there, but she supposed she might have missed that part of the mountains when she crossed into ’Souls. After all, a territory couldn’t stretch across the entire range, could it? If she ever left the peninsula, she’d have to pay the place a visit on her way out, see what it was about…though it seemed less likely that she would be leaving ’Souls right away, not while she was beginning to get used to how the prey ran and the territory boundaries lay. She could cultivate quite a nice life here, if she tried.

Vesper decided that badgering the youth with questions about her pack would be taxing, and the brown-furred girl did not seem entirely talkative—at least compared to some pups—so she held her tongue and figured she would learn about it later. She was almost obsessive about learning the lay of the land so that she could thrive here.

“I’m a loner,” the coywolf replied, watching the arm stretch into the water again. “I was born a few miles north of ’Souls. I stayed with a pack briefly, but—well, they could hardly be called a pack for being so small and full of kids. Honestly, I’m probably better off alone.”

The words might sound pessimistic coming from other lips, but the woman prided herself on her independence. The stint with the coyote band had shown her that. Other wolves tended to either slow her down or actively work against her, though she allowed that there might be a pack out there that shared the same values as her. She’d just have to see if it was worth her while.


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#7
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Word Count » 000 :: Out of character text here.

“I was alone once, it can be quite... bothersome most times, I learned that teamwork tends to get things done faster than trying to do it by yourself. Or like with hunting, you can get something bigger if you have others, more strength, and teamwork to take down the bigger prey.

The girl said wisely, though that was probably the wisest thing the young girl would ever say, she looked at the woman and could understand now why she would have scars. Defending herself alone was probably the hardest things ever, and it never happened without a scar coming. She didn't know it was frowned upon to basically tell someone to their face that their way of life wasn't up to par.

“I don't suppose you're the pack kind though huh? So... how do you pass your time if you're always alone?”

Eclipse asked curiously. She wondered what others did if they were loners, did they learn new things, or practice things they alreaady knew? It was a question she hoped that could be answered... at least for this particular creature. If she was right the other couldn't change, so how did one who couldn't use hands, occupy their time with?


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Table by Anna
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#8
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Eclipse surprised the loner by speaking wisely, explaining how teamwork benefited canines when it came to tasks such as hunting. She sounded like someone who actually had been out in the world to experience such things, though it could also be the preaching of a pack wolf. However, Vesper was not insulted by the statement; she’d survived this long, after all, to know her lone way of life was just as valid as a pack life.

“I understand what you mean,” the hybrid said first, acknowledging that the girl was right. “I can’t catch very large prey on my own, of course, but I’m small anyway so I can rely on animals like rabbits or fawns.” She shrugged slightly. “Some canines are just more suited to packs, and while having others around can help you, I’m not that used to it. And there are rules.” She flashed her teeth in a slight smirk. “When you’re on your own, you can do whatever you want and look out for yourself before anyone else—though many loners have friends they’ll look out for, and the smart ones don’t do bad things just because there aren’t leaders and laws.” Such loners, who harassed packs and sometimes hurt their members, were just suicidal.

Vesper cocked her head when Eclipse asked her how she passed her time, contemplating that for a moment. “Well, I’ll chat with wolves like you,” she answered with a smirk, but then she went on more seriously. “There isn’t a lot of free time when you have to survive on your own, but I do like to simply relax and look at all the beautiful sights in the world. I also explore a lot, and I’m trying to learn how to read the stars.” Her eyes drifted heavenward, and she acknowledged it would be a lot easier to map out the sky if she had hands—but she wouldn’t bring up this point around the girl. “I guess I’m not quite always alone, either… Like I said, I don’t really have a pack, but I do talk to others. I’m simply not that lonely if I don’t have anyone around.”

Her existence sounded rather depressing when she put it that way, but she’d always had a faint hope that she would find someone worth sticking with, whether that be a traveling partner, a mate, or even possibly a pack wolf she might get attached to. She had wandered across many other loners, and some had families in packs that they visited but didn’t stay with.

Until she found someone or someplace worth standing by, however, Vesper was fine with wandering.


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#9
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WC:232 OOC: :3


Eclipse couldn't understand why the other woman would rather look after herself than other's. It was a great feeling knowing you were being trusted by them, and knowing she could help protect anyone who couldn't protect themselves, but Eclipse said nothing but merely nodded at her statement of being alone and its advantages. Then spoke of what she did. She looked at the sky then back at the woman.

“You can read the stars? Like a book? But aren't they always the same? I have not seen a difference in them. Except the moon, that changes but how can you read the stars if they are always the same?”

The girl asked, obviously confused about what the woman said.

“I'm learning how to cook, and I'm going to be one of the best hunters of my pack.”

She stated proudly, feeling she should share something of her since she was asking so much of the other woman. She doubted she cared as it looked like she was the raw meat kind of canine. She was excited about the reading the stars thing that she forgot to mention she tended a garden as her pack's Shonu, but she wasn't over confident, and egotistical, she was just proud that she was doing what she wanted for so long, even though her childhood hadn't been the best (nor the worst).
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#10
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The girl glanced up at the sky, seeming confused by her claim to be able to read the stars. With a small, sideways smirk, Vesper followed her blue gaze to the heavens. There were, obviously, no stars out—just a haze that might have been a rainbow from the moisture in the air. She flicked an ear when she heard Eclipse speaking to her again, and she let out a soft chuckle as she realized she hadn’t been very clear.

“Well, I don’t read them like a—what did you call them, books?” The loner shrugged and looked out at the rest of the mountain territory, scanning the wilderness for sign of any other animals that might come to Pictou Falls for a drink. “I don’t read them like you’d read a book; I read the constellations like a map so I know where I’m going. I look at the stars every night before I go to sleep so I know what direction to set off in during the morning.” She smirked and tilted her head slightly. “Though they do move—a little bit. They move kind of like the sun and moon, but you don’t notice unless you’re looking for the pictures they make.”

She almost offered to teach the teen about some constellations, but the suggestion died before it could truly form on her tongue. What am I thinking? She had no obligations to Eclipse, and she probably wasn’t going to stick around here much longer, anyway. The girl was simply someone to talk to for a little while. She frowned.

Eclipse mentioned then that she was learning how to cook, which the coywolf didn’t really pay attention to, but as she claimed that she’d be a great hunter, Vesper grinned. “That’s very cool. Hunting is a good skill; maybe you’ll get a neat rank in it.” She wasn’t sure how the pack ranks worked, especially because they seemed to change from group to group—all fairly confusing to the loner, but nothing that was too far beyond her imagination. “Or at least a lot of respect.”

She let her nose wrinkle a little. “How does cooked food taste? I’ve never really been able to have any; I didn’t see the point when I was in the wilderness. I heard that luperci can add spices and whatnot to it while they roast it.” She wasn’t against the idea of cooking if one had the free time, but she still couldn’t quite imagine how differently it might taste.


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