The Sound of a Heartbeat
#1
[html]
Hope I did this right ^_^


Word Count: 604


Desired Profession Path: Medicine


NPC's: None






The white-furred wolfdog advanced across the grassy plain, softly inhaling the earth scent of the cool, morning air. The chilly breeze ruffled the grasses around him, lifting his long fur and ruffling his hair. Somewhere far off across the plain behind him an elk bulged, and he stopped for a moment letting his eyes and ears wandering in the direction of the sound as he readjusted the small messenger bag over his shoulder. It held little contents, only his thin cloak and scarce remains of last night’s supper. His other hand rested on his belt. A simple dagger swung from it along with a leaf wrapped around smoldering coal salvaged from his last fire. He found starting fire and pain. He simply did not have the patience to sit there and concentrate for that long and taking a small piece of the fire each time was an easy way to jump start the process.




Raphael Salvage had heard much of this ‘land of the east’ from his mother, but he had yet to conclude whether or not the claims proved to be true. Once when he was a small pup, he believed his mother’s tells like a fairytale, dreaming of one day traveling to that mystical place. He had grown a lot since then, and now knew that no magical land existed near the sea where the sun raised. Still, if this land held any hint of the promises his mother whispered in his ear then he would be pleased to remain here until he found his father at least. According the smallish group of nomads he ran into only a few days ago, over this plain and just south of the western bay was the pack lands of Aniwaya. A peaceful pack that spent it’s days tending to the crops or animals, just the kind of place he thought he might enjoy.




He continued on, not being able to stay still long with a task in front of him, his composure calm and collective even though he could feel his excitement increasing in the pit of his stomach. He tried to ignore his distaste of the heat, even as slight as it was, smoothing down his ruffled hair and wishing for a moment he hadn’t worn is dark jeans. He often made a habit of wearing one of his only clothing items even when he was expecting a heat filled day, and it didn’t help that is long fur was made to keep heat in, not out. Maybe he’d cut it once he got settled in.




Eventually trees began sprouting among the grass until he found himself no longer in a plain, but a thin autumn forest littered with leaves of reds and golds and fallen nuts. He silently welcomed the shade and what relief it brought from the heat, but a scent tickled his nose and ended his relief early. He paused midstep and raised his ginger tinted nose into the air conforming his suspension. Under the smell of the freshly decaying leaves and morning dew hinted a more distinct odor, one that could only be the collective scent of wolves. Though the distinct scents themselves he did not recognize, it wasn’t hard to guess that this was the start of the pack he was looking for. He proceeded in taking a few steps forward, up to where the scent surged the strongest. He did not pause for a moment, did not give himself a moment to overthink his actions coming here, instead he raised his white head, his snout pointing towards the heavens and let out a deep, loud, melodic howl.
[/html]
#2
OOC: HI Big Grin Looks okay to me.

IC:
It seemed the hurricane had given up its relentless bullying of the lands, but it had left plenty of reminders in its wake. Several AniWayans had sustained injuries, varying from broken bones to gaping cuts caused by the debris which had been propelled about by the fierce winds. Everly would never be glad to see an injured packmate but the focus healing warranted had helped to quiet her own fear.

Now it was all over Everly sat in Optime form, her legs swung over a thick branch which was strong enough to have been left alone by the storm. The Kunikoti had been trying to replenish her stores of medicinal herbs and they lay in neat rows beside her. A length of the vine she'd carried to use as a tourniquet was now knotted tightly about her waist, a healer's equivalent of a toolbelt. She still hadn't quite adopted the use of non-natural fibres.

Occasionally the woman's keen eyes would turn skyward, eyeing the clouds with more of a threat than nervousness. Her tail lashed uneasily with every gust of wind which felt too strong. Everly would never have the power to change the weather but she could damn well shoot it dirty looks.

The howl which rang out made her ears twitch again, curiousity seeping into her slight frown. A joiner, the first she'd been aware of since her own admission into AniWaya. Tucking the plants into her improvised belt, Everly pushed off the low-slung branch with her hands and landed surely with her knees bent. Straightening and giving a quick glance around, the cream and chocolate wolf set off in a jog, darting around and over obstacles as she relished the feeling of being able to run freely without a wall of wind to push against.

Everly slowed to a relaxed walk as she neared the pale wolf, greeting him with a smile and a nod. Her voice was clear but smooth, although her eyes might have betrayed the fact that this was her first time greeting a joiner. “Unalihelitseti,” she called, vaguely wondering if she'd pronounced the AniWayan word correctly. A portion of her was distracted by the male's impressive build. “Can I help you?”

(368 words)
#3
[html]
Word count: 355






There was a lonely span of silence after the howl, silence only broken by the occasional song of a bird as he waited. He pricked his ears forward quietly searching the thin forest in front of him. He was not patient no matter how much he often told himself he was or tried to change that trait and the silence did not help things. He once again smoothed down his short hair and readjusted his bag to a more comfortable place upon his shoulder, slowly rubbing his hand along the deer skin bag as if to whip off any contaminates. A soft crunch of a leaf sounded from the other side of the woods, his ears pricked and his eyes laid forward once more as it did so. Within moments a figure appeared.




It was a she-wolf. That was easy to tell. Her coat was a quiet mix of chocolate browns and lighter, earthy colors dancing and fading into a simple pattern along her surface. She was built tall and lean, unlike himself, though she was shaped like a pear instead of the standard hourglass shape. Still, she was not completely unattractive or she wasn’t as far as he could see at least. Her eyes were by far the most stunning thing about her, but he could not lay his on them for very long and had to almost instantly dart them towards the ground as his instincts instructed him to. At first, she spoke a word unknown to him. It sounded like it was a different language all together utilizing sounds that one almost never found in Standard English. Her next started in a language he knew well. She did not offer her name, much like he had expected her to, but instead handed him a question and a simple on at that. He did not hesitate a moment before he answered. “I have come in the hopes that I may join this pack, madam.” Though he was in his subordinate position, his confidence still hung around him in the air even as he spoke. His voice was clear yet decently loud and projecting.
[/html]
#4
Everly tried to maintain an air of quiet composure as she looked over the pale newcomer. Immediately noticeable were his mismatched eyes, pale beside dark, when they weren't looking at the ground. There seemed to be no such dichotomy in the rest of him, besides the contrast of long fur paired with his short mane. His build indicated power and strength, and the Kunikoti who had come to greet him was curious to see it in action, but she could hardly ask him to run laps or do push-ups to satisfy her curiousity. It was clear that he was strong and healthy, and that was good enough.

His posture was submissive, appropriate to the situation, but there was still an air of assertiveness about the man, a self-assurance which seemed to instill more confidence in Everly, too. Her question was answered swiftly and directly, the response she had expected. What she hadn't quite expected was the moniker on the end - Madam. It was enough to make an eyebrow quirk and a faint chuckle tumble from her lips before she cleared her throat and composed herself again, her eyes apologetic. After all, she hadn't offered him an actual name, and Ev could hardly object to a term which denoted respect. ”Sorry, I'm not quite used to that one yet. Please, call me Everly.”

The breeze picked up for a moment to sweep a section of rich brown fringe over the pair of sunflower eyes and their owner tossed it away. “I'm quite new to AniWaya myself,” she explained, gesturing to the claimed lands around them. “What sort of skills could you contribute to the pack?” The ginger-tinted wolf's physical strength seemed evident, but Everly was equally intrigued by things which might not be so obvious. Her gaze rested on the bag at the stranger's shoulder, the more delicately built wolf leaning forward a fraction unconsciously, as if that tiny shift in her stance might reveal what lay within. She didn't inquire further as to the bag's contents; the Kunikoti shifted her weight back to stand squarely once more, feet slightly apart, waiting with a smile for the male's response.

(359 words)
#5
[html]
Word Count: 561






The air swirled carelessly around the pair of contrasting canines, playing quietly with the autumn leaves. Even as they stood there, a few of the leaves lost their grip and fell softly towards the ground, floating and diving as they caught the air before settling among their fallen comrades. One of these particular leaves landed only a foot away from the paler of the two wolves and for a moment his eyes skipped over to it traveling over it’s reddish surface, but already the leaf had begun to turn brown. His eyes quickly fell back over in front of the she-wolf as she begun responding to his words. Her voice was like before, soft, but this time a slight sound of amusement escaped her lips as she began her explanation. A slight smile spread across his lips, though with his slouched posture he doubted that she would notice it. He had been trying to break this habit of referring to females as madam since he had picked it up from the medic back near his home, but after a month or two he had given up. He himself found it amusing and often times he didn’t even notice his use of it as it passed right over his conscious into the air.


With her first statement still hanging in the air, he repeated her name silently to himself. He had always been good at remembering names, so he by no doubt would remember it. Still, one couldn’t be safe enough. Everly. It rolled easily throughout his mind, almost like a song played by one of the many birds in the forest as the sun began to rise. It was unlike most names he was accustomed to, however. Where he came from most names were short, he usually being to odd ball, and names ending in –ly were few and far between. Still, he took a quiet liking to the name probably because it was different and he was get bored with normal. “Don’t worry about it. I find it amusing myself” He said wishing that he could raise his eyes to meet hers, but he knew that it was not worth being turned away, “You may call me Raphael.” He subconsciously left off his last name, and either didn’t notice it’s exemption or ignored it.


Once again the breeze swirled through the trees just as softly as it had before, ruffling his hair off to one side and causing a few pieces of hair to gracefully fall in front of his vision. The darker wolfs hair must of gotten swept by the wind too for he sensed a small, innocent motion in her arm before it once again settled into it’s original position. He also brought his hand up to his face and sweeping it gently back over to it’s correct place. “I have skills with a knife, but I prefer hand to hand combat more. Besides that, I can heal and have training as a medic. I have knowledge to grow my own herbs and such, but I do not know how any of them would fair in the weather here” finishing up explaining everything he counted as a skill he let his eyes wander quietly over the land she had gestured towards, though the only things he could see were the thinly placed trees and the brightly colored leaves.

[/html]
#6
OOC: Leader pleaase? Big Grin (I think you can edit that into the thread title?)

IC:
“Raphael.” The syllables flowed as easily as the breeze through the fine strands of varying browns and blondes which covered Everly's form. It invoked an inexplicable sense of elegance in the healer's mind. Raphael spoke elegantly, confidently, and Everly tried her best to match those traits within her own utterance of the name. Three syllables, the same as her own name, yet they seemed to run together with less friction. Raphael's words seemed near as smooth as his name.

“Do you have a surname?” The siamese AniWayan blurted, curious to see if the pale man's family name matched the one which made him an individual. Of course, an individual was far more than just their name – a wolf called Fluffy could rip someone's throat out as easily as a wolf called Fang, but names interested the sunny-eyed woman all the same.

Deeds and thoughts, responses and attitudes would form the bulk of someone's individuality as Everly saw it, and sometimes hints could be seen in what someone chose to do with their time. Everly managed to keep her eyes fairly neutral at the mention of weapons, willing away unwanted images from the past, but her toes dug into the ground slightly, as if to keep her rooted in the present.

Raphael spoke of experience in healing too and Everly snapped into attentiveness, her head tilting and her face brightening. “It seems we share a specialty. My rank's Kunikoti, a healer rank.” In the wake of the hurricane Everly knew an extra pair of healing hands couldn't have hurt, but she was still mindful of her newness to the pack, her rank. “I'll call a leader for you,” the she-wolf added brightly. Her head tilted back, one hand cupped beside her mouth as an unwavering note spread over the territory, requesting the presence of a more senior pack member.

(313 words)
#7
I'm accepting you Out of Character until one of the leaders can pop in and reply In Character! You can start roleplaying as if your character has been accepted into AniWaya. Just assume one of the three leaders (Ulilohi, Claudius, or Io) has accepted Raphael.

[html]
<style>.awinfo a { font-weight: bold; }</style>
Welcome to AniWaya!

Hooray! Check out all of this fun stuff:

  • Have a look at the Aniwaya Territories for interesting areas to explore.
  • Completing tasks in the season game offer collectibles, tables, avatars, icons, art and titles. Have a look!
  • You can collect points from your posts and trade them for various prizes, including art.
  • Remember to look into AniWaya's culture and laws!
  • Do you have a horse? Add it to the official stables overview, here.
  • Do you have a spirit guide already? Add it to our current listings, here.

Need help? Confused about AniWaya stuff? Don't hesitate to PM your questions to the AniWaya account, and we'll reply as soon as possible. If you need posting tables, avatars or sigs, you can request code and graphics in the talents subforum. If you're feeling lost or confused about the game, don't hesitate to post a question in the Questions and Help forum!

[/html]
#8
Claudius is pretty badly injured, so he'll probably smell really sick and look pretty bad. XD
[html]
[/html]Claudius had become somewhat acquainted with many of the newer members of the tribe during the hurricane, but in the worst way possible. He heard news of the damage, who it had affected, and who had been injured in passing while he had been recovering from his injuries. In a truly irresponsible manner, he'd managed to injure himself so badly that he couldn't shift out of his two-legged form. Although he was now well enough to walk about the tribelands, it was with great pain and discomfort. Nonetheless, when he heard the call from the borders -- from the Kunikoti of the tribe, no less -- he realized that he was the closest and responded with a howl of his own so that they would know someone had heard them.

With great effort, he walked through the forests of AniWaya to the easternmost borders. He was lucky; the village was quite close to the borders, so the walk was not as long as it could have been. He had to stop and rest along the way many times, but after much time, he made it. He stopped again before greeting them in an attempt to catch his breath and stop his hands from trembling.

When he finally did find them, he was careful to walk slowly and not trip. The many leaves concealed branches and roots that were liable to trip him. With his left hand and his right shoulder injured, he wouldn't be able to catch himself.

"Huh-hello," he said, addressing both wolves: Everly and a burly male. "Huh-huh-who i-is thuh-this?" he asked Everly, with a slow nod to the other wolf. [html]
[/html]
#9
[html]
Word Count: 520







The breeze did not return as it had before, instead it roamed somewhere else disputing the underbrush and leaves much like it had here. Silently he was grateful. That would mean his fur would remain in it’s rightful place on top on his head and not down in the middle of his face. Without the ruffling of the leaves, the air around them was silent after he finished naming off his skills. However, it was not for long before the short silence was broken by the elegant she-wolf in front of him. She spoke his name with confidence, lingering over the syllables as if to dissect who he was from the simple sounds, and for a split second he couldn’t help but wonder what she thinking. He did not have much time to ponder over the she-wolfs interest with his name, however, before she brought up the question. He should have known it was coming. Any rational wolf would ask it, but still, it sent a determined flood of anger over him. He quickly tried to swallow it down, to shove it into the back of his mind where it could swirl until a question such as this brought it out again, but he still feel it smoldering, just waiting to break him. He tried to keep his posture the same, but he was almost positive the she-wolf could have seen it in his eyes if only they weren’t faced towards the ground.




“It’s Salvage, madam,” he said, maybe not as confident and sure as his words were moments before, but it was all he could do to keep the anger out of his voice. He could have said more on the subject, but he left it there. He did not want to make his anger boil over. Thankfully, she changed the subject for him. “Maybe we should get together some time, share our knowledge a little bit,” he said. Then, she turned and howled, sending a sweet tone through the air. The whole world around them seemed to sing along with her. Moments later another howl echoed through the air, an answer to her call. As he would have guessed, she was not of high rank and therefore could not allow him entry into the pack lands in front of him, but it wouldn’t be long before a leader who could arrived. Well, it was longer than he expected.




After quiet a moment’s wait, a white, male wolf cautiously came into sight. While the wolf looked large and taken care of, anyone could tell that he was injured, by both the sight of him and his smell. He did not seem to need any imminent care, just time for the body to repair itself, though if Raphael was a bit more experienced he might have been able to speed up the process. The male wolf stuttered as he spoke, but Raphael waved it off as him simply being tired from his injured journey over here. “I am Raphael,” he answered leaving off his last name once more, “I’ve come in the hopes that I may find a home here.”

[/html]
#10
The breeze seemed to retreat, leaving a pleasant stillness in its wake. As it took its harassment to the leaves further afield, it left behind a somewhat tousled mane on Everly which looked a bit like a haystack set on top of her head. One hand moved upwards to hurriedly smooth it down. Everly was generally on good terms with nature, although they seemed somewhat suspect with the memory of the hurricane so fresh, but she wasn't averse to trying her best to look at least presentable.

The change in Raphael was nothing more than a quickly contained flash, so fast that a frown hadn't had time to properly form on Everly's face. There didn't seem to be anything wrong with the ginger highlighted male's surname in her eyes, but then she hadn't had to carry it. Instead she had the family name Skyfall, the mark of a family which had all but disintegrated for all its youngest daughter knew. She nodded, perhaps a little more slowly than she should have, and inclined her head towards her fellow healer with a smile. “Thankyou for the offer; I may have to take you up on that if you stay.”

A response to the Kunikoti's call floated into the sky. Everly's head cocked to one side to listen to the voice of one of her leaders, assessing the pitch and tone and arriving at the conclusion that it was probably Claudius, the silver-coated male who seemed to have been dealt some of the harshest of blows by the hurricane. Everly was anxious to see how far his injuries had progressed on the path to healing but she tried to wait as patiently and calmly as possible.

The silver and tan leader came to meet them slowly but steadily, and Everly let her tail drop, her ears drawing back. She took a step back as Claudius drew closer, greeting him with a polite smile, a quick bow and a partially extended arm, just in case the ground was planning on somehow deceiving him. Bright yellow eyes returned to Raphael as he introduced himself, before the woman added a small, soft contribution of her own. “Raphael's a healer too.” The medicine woman fell silent then, unsure of what else to say, lowering her eyes so they couldn't try to analyze the state of anything too deeply, from Claudius' wounds to how Raphael's bid to join AniWaya would go.

(404 words)
#11
[html]
[/html] The unknown wolf was quick and to the point with his response and Claudius appreciated that. Right now, all he wanted to do was return to his new makeshift home, lay down on a few furs, and sleep for hours. But since Ulilohi and Io were otherwise detained, it was his responsibility to see to the new wolf. Claudius glanced from the newcomer--Raphael, he said--to Everly when she piped up. He perked up a bit at the mention of his profession, since AniWaya certainly needed more medics and healers in their midst. Although he knew it would probably too much to ask, they would do well with a medicine man since he was worried that their ancestors' spirits had been roused in the hurricane. Certainly, they would understand that it was a force of nature, but they had to respect them all the same. Former AniWayans lived beneath the ground. They had much sickness to tend to: both physical and spiritual. The hurricane had left them weak and tired.

"Wuh-wuh-we cuh-could duh-do with... an-nother... huh-healer... a Kuni-kuh-koti... I a-a-am su-sure... Eh-Everly... wuh-would... appreciate... thuh-the... help... nuh-now thuh-that the hurr-i-ca-a-ane... ha-a-s... passed," he replied, nodding in Everly's direction. He was very thankful for her help; she had joined just before the storms hit and had been an asset to the tribe ever since.

"Wuh-why duh-duh you suh-seek... to juh-join... A-ni-i-wuh-waya...?" he asked, inhaling laboriously. [html]
[/html]
WC: 237


Forum Jump: