[P] At least you have a pretty face

[Luka Stryder]

WC: 256
OOC: Set same day as this thread

The depths of darkness before her were unlike anything she'd seen before. Even the night sky was lit with the silver moon and twinkly stars. This was all-consuming. It ate any light that ventured near and refused to let it go. Luka's ice blue eyes twinkled with the possibilities of it all. Her father's warnings faded behind her like the sounds of the winter forest. He was a fool to keep her from this.

Giggling with anticipation, she ran alongside the ravine, sending the rocks and snow on the edge cascading into the oblivion. She'd heard tales of what she would find here, but so far they had fallen so short of the reality before her.

The thick, dead foliage faded before her and she skittered to a stop to avoid falling into the widened cliff face before her. Her feet slipped in the snow and her rump fell onto the ice hard ground with a crack. "Ouch..." For her first winter, Luka had been shocked by the changes in the world. Once soft soil became rock hard in the cold. Greenery died with the promise of returning in the spring. She had been too young to remember the winter she'd been born in.

Luka rolled over on to her hands and knees, crawling to the cliff edge to peer over. Scanning the rock face, her injury was forgotten in the realization that she would definitely be able to scramble her way down to the pool below. It was just a matter of getting there.

[Cedric Stryder]

Through This Magnifying Glass - I See A Thousand Fingerprints - On The Surface Of Who I Am 

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OOC: stuff here

Taking Ulrich to Wolfville would certainly make the trip a lot quicker, but today Cedric wasn't heading there on his own, but in the company of Parzival. The cat had seen the town before a few times, but not quite in the same way as today. Parzival was a Cavalier now, motivated to prove himself to Casa. A lot of the usual skills of the pack would be beyond the feline, but things like scouting and guarding the borders was within his capabilities. Of course, Parzival needed to know every part of Casa to be able to guard it, so Cedric aimed on showing him around all the corners of Wolfville today so he'd be more used to it. 

The pair weren't expecting to stop along the way, even less expecting to see a child near the dangerous drops of the ravine. Or one that looked to be finding a way down it, almost falling in the process. Cedric could see her clearly but couldn't place a name for a moment. Which in his defence wasn't so farfetched when Casa had so many children already, but after spotting the flecks of red in her fur, a name jumped to attention and the man rushed forwards with Parizval right behind him. 

"Luka!" The Lune, and uncle, called quickly. "Whatever you're doing, stop! This cliff isn't a place to play!"

[Luka Stryder]

OOC: Sorry Cedric! :p
WC: 236

Luka's ice blue eyes threatened to roll in the back of her head as a growl settled in her chest. "Obviously." Her feet were settled on a solid foothold so she crossed her arms over the cliff edge and rested her chin on it. "Of course, I clearly meant to swan dive my way down just for funsies. I know it's not a place to play!"

Careful as she could, she felt around for a lower space for her next step down the rock face and held her weight on her arms. A few pebbles tumbled down, clattering all the way to the bottom. Luka's red tipped ears lowered to listen for the sound of it hitting the bottom. It took a little longer than she liked. With this clown getting in her way, it would be dark before she made it to the bottom and she hadn't thought to pack food. A lesson for next time, she supposed.

"I'm exploring. It's different." She grunted and shuffled a little to the left to see if there was better surface for her to use. "I wouldn't expect you to know, seeing as how old you are and all." He was all scarred up and gray. He was probably old as her dads. Maybe even older. And that stern look on his face was as if etched on granite. Clearly an expression he'd worn for decades at least.[/color][/color]

[Cedric Stryder]

Through This Magnifying Glass - I See A Thousand Fingerprints - On The Surface Of Who I Am 

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OOC: Word Count: 377

Whilst Cedric enjoyed how confident the young Cavaliers were, he was a bit taken aback when Luka returned his concern with some childish disdain. Treating Cedric like an obstacle and not a concerned family member. And if Cedric was the kind to be tough and stern, he might comment on it and demand some respect from the young girl, but instead the uncle huffed a breath and continued his approach slowly. Luka didn't actually stop, and as the girl began to shuffle down and find some spots for her feet, Cedric looked to Parzival with a silent request. The cat picked up on it, stopping and grumbling before turning around to go find a place to get down the cliff himself so he could be at the bottom first. For the lion, it wouldn't take long. 

With that sorted, Cedric looked back to Luka, approaching the edge himself at an angle so he could watch the girl. He wanted to rush over and stop her, but at the same time Cedric knew distracting the girl might make things a lot worse. She was doing alright so far, but from this angle Cedric could better see the best places to set her feet or grab. The girl grew snarky again, and Cedric frowned at the comment on his age. Did Luka really not know much of him? Her uncle? She'd not grown up here, so it did make sense. 

"Actually," Cedric began, his voice deep and serious, "I used to climb cliffs with my sister at your age. And I'm old to know that if you want to climb properly, you need to keep three points of contact on the cliff." The Lune glanced down just below Luka, then gesturing at a good portion of flat rock. "There is a good spot, set your feet there and then hold the cliff with your arms no higher than your shoulders." With all the suggestions, Cedric was tempted to join her, realising it might actually be better for the sake of his niece's safety. So with a sigh, Cedric crouched down by the edge and shuffled his way across, committing to this dangerous stunt for the sake of proving a point to his sassy relative.

[Luka Stryder]

WC: 226

Rather than belittle her for her youthful naivety the way that she was familiar with, Cedric shot her down with cold hard fact. Her ears flicked back at it, unsure of what kind of quip to make against it. Her silver-blue eyes glanced up sheepishly at the silver man but then back to her handholds.

He gave her advice that she tentatively took, for what if he really was old and dumb as she thought? Regardless, she gingerly toed at the ledge he claimed was there. When she put her weight on it, it miraculously held and she giggled up at him. "Oh," she exclaimed, suddenly brightly. "You're right!" To her great surprise, when she looked towards him again, he was against the cliffside like her.

"So, you decided to join me, old man?" She giggled charmingly at her uncle, but a flash of sharp white teeth let him know that her joy was genuine. When she felt he was close enough, she resumed her cautious descent with a little less caution than the situation demanded. Rocks scrabbled down the cliff face in the wake of her passing. Hopefully none of them landed on the poor scout who had dared go ahead of them. Aside from a few close calls and slips, Luka remained unharmed save for a few scrapes of her hands and knees.

[Cedric Stryder]

Through This Magnifying Glass - I See A Thousand Fingerprints - On The Surface Of Who I Am 

---

OOC: stuff here

Cedric didn't decide to climb down with his niece out of pride... well perhaps a bit of pride, but really the Lune wanted to be involved for the sake of keeping Luka safe. It was one thing to be the panicking adult, shouting out logical reasons as to why this was unsafe and dangerous, but Cedric knew that a young lady like Luka would just see that as a challenge on her desire for fun. It might cause more issues, more harm than good. So, naturally, this was the better course of action. Plus if Cedric was being true to himself, he did enjoy this kind of thing, missing the climbing adventures he and Nora would go on when they were younger. 

Luka seemed to climb a little closer to him, which Cedric gave a smile too, happy that he could now properly guide the girl down at any point needed. "I have, but this won't be a race. My old bones can't go that fast." Cedric commented back, then focusing a bit more on his own climbing. A few minutes of the quiet descent, Cedric saw movement down the bottom and saw Parzival trotting over and glancing up. It was hard to tell but the feline looked to have a bit of smirk on his face, now seeing Cedric committing to this stunt, so it made sense that Parz then went looking for a good piece of rock to lie on and wait. 

"Oh Luka, to the left," Cedric announced, using his hand not holding the cliff to gesture, "some good holds there, looks wide enough that you might get a bit of a rest to enjoy the view." A good, fun suggestion that the Lune hoped his niece would take. Because it was one thing to safely climb down a cliff, but another to remember and enjoy the experience. Besides, Cedric arms could hold onto a vertical surface for quite some time given his age, but that did mean Luka's younger ones were probably feeling the strain now.