[html] 
ooc: For Beppe! Assuming that she went home, then came back the next day?
secretly falling apart
She'd had to return home that day, though she had wanted to play some more. She had been sure that Faolin would have come looking for her if she'd have stayed much longer, and she hadn't wanted to get caught, and get them into trouble. It was ironic, too, that Beppe was from the Clouded Tears pack. She'd heard things about the old fights between her clan and Beppe's pack.
The seven-month-old was back today, though, after telling her adopted mother that she was going out to explore in the city. Maybe she'd head over to the city after she visited with Beppe, to mask the wolf smell. Sometimes wolves came into her clan, and they were immediately noticed by their scent. What would happen if she came home smelling like him?
The idea that she was coming here in secret made it all the more interesting to her--she was enticed by the danger of it. She really did like being around Beppe, and she wanted to see the place where he lived. It was worth whatever punishment she got in return. No one in Inferni (besides Faolin) had ever played with her the way he had, treated her like an intelligent equal.
The red eyed hybrid sat down near the borderline, unsure of whether she should cross it or not. If someone else came to the border and told her to leave, she would probably have to. They might not let her in, even if she said that she knew Beppe and was his friend.
She sighed, thinking about this, and lowered herself down onto her stomach. She could only hope that it'd be him that came to greet her, and not one of the adults.
[/html]
[html]   Sounds good!
And the sun will set for you
The sky was filled with an impervious fog that hid the sun, who was waiting backstage, like thick velvet curtains. Beppe, himself, felt like a beacon of light, shearing through this weather, and he carried himself with such a bounce that his eyes could hardly stay stable on the obscured horizon. Since playing with the coyote girl on the beach the skies had been deceivingly bright and the icy layer on top of the snow did not hurt when his broad paws slipped through it. This, surely, was how life was supposed to be lived. In this land of opportunity, his boxed-up nature was spilling from the gaps between the slats. He was able to express himself, here. Wide open spaces were what he was built for.
Beppe knew that the day couldn't get much better, but there on the border, as if he had willed his new playmate into existance, was Empusa. The fog shrouded the girl's silhouette, but still it was recognisable. A smile spreading across his face, the sable boy bounded towards her. "Mamma mia! Ciao!" he laughed a little, slowing down as he approached. "Oh, I am sorry, I have forgot zat you speak ze language of ze romahhnce." Beppe grinned at her before adding, "I see that your tail has made it home alright."
[/html]
[html]
ooc: Aww.
secretly falling apart
She hadn't been able to get much sleep last night, curled up against Faolin. It wasn't because she was cold, Faolin had built a big fire, but because she was excited. She'd known that she would be coming to Clouded Tears today, to try and find him. She'd had such a good time the day before, laughing at the jokes he had made about their tails, and about their accents. Thinking about it made her feel warmer, like there was some kind of invisible shield around her that kept all the bad things out. The cold wind, the thoughts of where her mother might be--those things were miles away.
This land was strange. Empusa had never been here before, and hadn't known about the mists. What would it be like to walk through them? Did they hurt? She felt like she knew nothing, sometimes; surely Beppe knew all about the fog, because he lived here. She felt sad that she wouldn't be able to show him Inferni. Maybe when they were a bit bigger she could--because then, if they got caught, she would be more able to defend herself. She thought these things over as she waited, red eyes focusing on the fog that loomed in big, poofy clouds before her.
And then, something moving. She immediately stood up, taking a few steps backwards, slipping, and landing in a sitting position. It hadn't hurt her; in fact, it had made her even more awake. She looked worriedly at the cloud as it changed, turning into something darker. Something...or someone, really, that she knew. Her posture immediately changed when she saw him, goig from a straight-backed sitting position to a standing one once more, her tail low, waving back and forth. She would show that he was more dominant than she here, for these were his packlands. He came closer, and, in a spray of snow, stopped before her. He spoke first, saying something that made her laugh; he had such a silly way of talking! He was still talking about their tails, a shared joke between them.
"Oui, my tail and I made it back just fine. I have told Mama that I will not be back until much later, and that I will likely be gone all day" Their little rendezvous wouldn't be discovered, because Clouded Tears was the last place anyone would expect a coyote to want to go. "I cannot imitate you, Beppe--ze way you speak. I do not have ze...knack for it. If you were to teach me, though, I may be able to speak some of your words. I am allowed inside to play?" She felt a little nervous about crossing the borderline, despite the fact that her smiling friend was standing on the other side.
[/html]
[html] :33
And the sun will set for you
So this was to be a full day engagement. The coyote was a cunning little thing, getting away with the excuses that she had used. Even if he used an excuse so innocuous, Beppe's mother would see right through him and leaf effortlessly through the boy's true motives. He wouldn't dream of telling Maria anything less than the whole truth; the punishment would be harsher that way. The Italians knew that the only way to really get through to a disobedient pup was to make their voices louder and louder, and the older Italian was a pro at that game.
Though Beppe considered himself an expert at being a general goof (it just came naturally) he always thought that other young ones liked to imitate others as well. He had found it was the best way to annoy an adult, at least, though he had only had the chance for a few trials before it was just him and his parents on their own. The boy studied Empusa with his deep chestnut eyes, and stepped aside as if to welcome her in. "Si, but we will stay around the outside because I am new and know not very well the rules." Smiling, he looked off into the distance before saying, "Si, it means yes. And what I have said before, mamma mia, it is something that we say when we are surprised. Ciao is like hello in English. But do not say it to someone who is higher than you. It is, how do you say.. for friends and your family."
He started to walk a little deeper into Clouded Tears, still skirting the border. An Inferni member's presence didn't make him feel nervous, but he was vaguely aware that perhaps she was not welcome there. Especially if she was not telling anyone she was there. Perhaps there was a rift between the two packs, or perhaps, species.
Beppe had never thought of himself as a teacher, but he fancied the potential control he would have. It was nice to share a bit about home with as well, especially to someone who was young like him. The only other he knew about that spoke Italian was his mother, and Beppe wanted to branch out and make new friends. His English was not too good, and it was Empusa's second as well, so he sought common ground with her. "Perhaps, you could teach to me some French as well, so I can do more than my silly accent. Oui oui?" He laughed; that was basically the extent of French that he knew. He had never visited France, at least that he remembered, but there had been a couple of crewmembers on board that had gabbled the language at each other. "I will tell to you a word in Italian and you will teach me the same word in French? I think this is a good idea." He laughed a little again, more in the wake of her presence than anything that was actually funny. His eyebrows lifted and he kept his eyes on her for a few moments more. Today would be a good day.
[/html]
[html]
ooc: I always check this thread first, lawlz. >>;
secretly falling apart
There had been a lot happening, even lately, between the wolves and the coyotes. Empusa had heard that a wolf from his pack, Clouded Tears, had been around the border with a few other wolves...and that the coyotes had attacked her. She didn't see where the coyotes had been wrong, but then she couldn't find fault in the Clouded Tears wolf, either. It made her very confused. The wolf shouldn't have been near the borders at all. That was suspicious, yes. But then again, if the coyotes wouldn't attack everything that came near their lands....it was a lot to think about. And she didn't want to think about it. Not now.
She smiled back at him and came to his side, giving him a nice nudge behind the ear. "Zat is a good idea."She was proud of him for thinking of it. And then she might not smell quite so much like a wolf. "I do not exactly know why mama would not like me to go here--I believe zat our packs used to fight a lot. And zat some members still do. But...me and you are not like zat, so I am not worried"She listened to the explanation of the words as they walked. Oh, now it made so much more sense! "In French, your...Ciao would be 'bonjour'. Bonjour also means...'how do you do'. It is a more polite way of saying 'hello'. Empusa thought of a few more things to say. "Goodbye in French is 'au revoir'. And something that I would say to you, Beppe, is "Vous êtes un ami spécial." It means...'You are a special friend'"
[/html]
[html] Me too... XP
And the sun will set for you
The nudge that Empusa gave him, that little bit of contact, gave Beppe the same feeling that he used to get from waking up on an Italian morning and stepping out of his parent's den. Crepescular rays would weave steady paths through the trees, catching in the shimmery dew that clung to their leaves. The light always had a certain golden quality; not only in its color, but also in the texture and the feeling it gave him. A warmth, a feeling like he was the recipient of a gorgeous present from an unknown sender. It was possible that it would take Beppe a thousand pictures and a million words to describe the feeling. That little bit of warmth transferred on a cold day was special, though, to oversimplify it all. It was like gold.
"Ah, yes... You need not to be worried. The only part of you that is not safe here is your tail." Beppe couldn't help but make light of it, make it into a joke. He had a problem with seeing the full seriousness of something. "And even then, if it is to come down to the wire, I would protect it. From the others, of course. Myself I would have no mercy on it." His smile was barely perceptable, but it certainly glowed in his eyes as he glanced at Empusa once more.
Beppe listened carefully as the girl translated some of his words, trying very hard to press them into his mind. The words sounded so smooth, so soft and elusive. He might have trouble making his voice as gentle as the coyote's, but he would certainly try. Part of the fun was learning things like that, anyways, and he didn't think he would be speaking French to anyone he wasn't friends with anytime soon. Empusa was, really, the only one he had come to think of as a good friend as opposed to just an acquaintance, and she was certainly the only French one.
As she let the last phrase drift out of her lips like a clean white cloud, the boy watched her. To liquify consonants was one thing, to do it with so little effort, with such an ease, was something a little more. His eyebrows arched as she paused, and when she turned it into English his eyes found the fresh snow in front of them, and a smile appeared unwittingly on his face. After a moment he looked back up to her, still smiling. "Sei la mia amica speciale, is how to you I would say that... Sei il mio amico speciale is how you would say it to me. They are different, for girls and boys." He smiled again, silent, and watched her for a bit. The boy didn't know how the French language worked, or how Empusa thought, and he wondered about the implications of what she had just said. Though they both originated in Europe and shared similar cultures with respect to the North Americans, the way the French thought could be miles away from how Beppe went about his world. After a little deliberation, the boy added. "É vero... it means it is true."
[/html]
[html]
ooc: We're freaks I mean that in the best possible way ^-^
secretly falling apart
She wanted to talk to him all day long. Sometimes she wondered why everyone couldn't just get along; Empusa didn't understand fighting, and arguing. She'd never argued with anyone except for Gabriel--he had been the one to accept her into Inferni. But just when she had thought that she and her mother would finally have a home, he'd turned it around on her. Had said that Monet wouldn't be welcomed in Inferni. She wondered if the only reason that she was welcomed there was because she was related to Kaena, the previous leader. She was the leader's grand-daughter. At least, that's what Monet had told her. And Gabriel had believed it.
Empusa felt like her face was going to fall off; it was so stretched out from all of the smiling. She'd never smiled so much before in her life! "I will have to guard my own tail well, then--you are a strong wolf, and if I do not guard it, I know that you will try and get it. I am glad that you would protect me--I would do the same for you, in Inferni" She didn't like to be reminded that she came from there. The only good thing about Inferni was that Faolin was there; her mother-figure was the only light.
"We have differences like zat as well--with feminine forms and masculine forms of ze words" She nodded in understanding, laughing. "Ze languages have so much similar! So much the same! But zey are so different" Empusa thought about the words. "Zey are even a little like ze English. Like...'Nous marchons ensemble' in French means 'We walk together'. Marchons is sort of like ze English word 'march', to walk, and ensemble is a group of people, in English. Strange."
The fog was coming up all around them, enveloping them as they walked. She looked around, not seeing the surroundings, and walked a little closer to Beppe. Maybe talking would keep her mind off of the fog. "I was...not actually born in France, but my mother was" She said, trying to explain a little bit of her history, "She is ze only one zat I was around when I started to speak, though, so I picked up ze accent."
[/html]
[html] Haha, yeah ;P
And the sun will set for you
The silly banter that the two were exchanging seemed to have a little bit of weight behind it, but it was sufficiently camoflauged to prevent Beppe from feeling awkward about it. The muscles that held his smile open were starting to get fatigued, but it was somehow impossible to give them even a little bit of rest. They would have to put up with it and just be sore the next day. Beppe could deal with that. All in all, it would be worth it. He didn't offer a solid reply to the promised protection, instead continued to walk while wagging his tail. The wolf had just met her yesterday and there was already a defense pact between them. It made him feel much safer.
Beppe had thought it was strange that English did not have feminine and masculine forms of the words, and still sometimes called an object by 'he' or 'she'. It seemed like a way to assign value to something, to acknowledge that it is also important. The trees, the skies. 'It,' to him, was such a cold word. "Ahh, yes, they are very similar. There are words like that in Italian too, that are almost the same as English. I cannot recall any this moment, but maybe I will to you tell some later. It is very interesting, this, how they are so much the same."
It was a little surprising to the boy that Empusa was not actually born in France, but he understood how parental influence could affect one's way of speaking. "Your mother, she has raised you by herself? Without the pack, I mean. That is very strong." His gaze rested on her gently even as they walked. "I have just come here a while ago, but I was on a big ship for a while. Italy was a long time ago, I miss her."
[/html]
[html]
ooc:
secretly falling apart
She wondered about what made Clouded Tears so foggy. They had mists in Inferni sometimes, mostly near the ocean...was there a body of water here, too? That would make sense. She didn't know a lot about the water cycle, only knowing that if there was a lot of water around, there would be a lot of rain. Evaporation and precipitation was lost on the girl.
"I was born in ze human city, in ze subway. I have never met my papa, but my mother was always enough for me--she taught me and my brother a lot. My brother dissapeared, I think...I don't remember where he went. It was too long ago. After a while Mama thought that it would be a good idea to go to Inferni, where some of my family lived. Papa's side. They allowed me to join Inferni...but would not let Mama. I do not know why, really. She said that she would come back, and that I should stay in Inferni. But I have not seen her since then."
She felt like she was talking too much--she wanted to know everything about her new friend, too. And she didn't want him to think that she was some kind of a crybaby...that she was weak in any way. After a few moments of silence she changed the subject. "A ship? I have never heard of that before...what is a ship?" Empusa knew what it was like to miss something, too--she felt empathy for him. She didn't miss the subway, though...it had been cold and dark, and full of monsters. But it had been home, for a while. "I would not have gotten to meet you if you had stayed in Italy" She commented quietly.
[/html]
[html] So sorry for the delay! D: It's the second week of school and already they find a perverse kind of pleasure in keeping us there until 11pm. 
And the sun will set for you
Beppe was a bit in awe of the strength that could be nestled, sometimes so deeply, in others. It was always there; perhaps it just needed the right thing to bring it out. Some didn't need to ever use it at all, sometimes one didn't have enough. The boy hoped he would never be in a circumstance to need more than he had, but sometimes he hoped that there would be need for it, just to make sure there was some in him. He was still young, there would be time. Before now he had always been doted on by his mother, and he was sure that that relationship would last a long time.
It seemed like Empusa had already experienced a hard life, with family going missing everywhere. Beppe's father had stayed behind in Italy, unwittingly. He was silent for a moment, mulling over her words. "That is tough.. I have not seen my father for a long time, either.. and it is my fault. My mother is enough for me though, as well. You should meet her." He smiled faintly. "A ship is a big thing that goes in the water and floats. They are like.. the house, sort of, but it a shape so that it can move nicely, and it goes across the ocean."
His eyes met hers again as she made a soft comment, and he peered at her for a moment before saying equally gently, "This is true. I am glad I have come here, I have not had the good friends in Italy, we lived alone in the woods. I don't know the reason why, my family has not told me, but we could not live in the pack. I have never known being in a pack before, I think it is nice." The wolf's eyes fell to the ground for a bit. This sort of talk made him feel heavy.
He stopped walking for a moment, and mumbled, "I think I have forgotten something.." Squinting his eyes, he gave her a coltish glance before exclaiming, "Your tail!" As the words escaped his mouth he pranced towards her and clutched her tail swiftly but gently in his teeth. Trying not to cause her any pain or permanent tail damage but at the same time trying to keep his grip on the appendage, he garbled out a, "Vighhhtory! Eet iz hhhine!"
[/html]
[html]
ooc: It's okay ^^ We went back like. xD A long time ago. ;_; I get out in May. You?
secretly falling apart
All of the talk about their families was making her feel a little sad. She knew that there was going to be better times for them both, that they'd grow and gain all new experiences, with all new people, but it didn't stop her from missing some of the past. Him too, it seemed. She listened as he spoke of life back in his old country--he seemed to love his mother a lot, too. She didn't ask for more details about his father...she didn't even /know/ her father, except by his name. It was his name that tied her to Inferni; Lykoi.
Empusa thought about what a ship might look like...maybe they would build their own, someday, and sail out on the ocean together. They could build a smaller version, anyway. "I am having trouble imagining--I am sure I will see one someday, though" She wasn't that old--she had a lot of time to see ships. "Your pack sounds nice. I suppose that life in Inferni is better than no life at all--and Faolin there is very nice to me. Sometimes I feel bad that I tell her I am going someplace and then go somewhere else...but I wanted to see you very much"
Before she even knew what was going on she felt a light pressure on her tail. Her eyes widened and she turned to look at him, gasping. He'd gotten it! "I will have no tail to protect if you eat it" She reasoned, giggles beginning in the back of her throat.
[/html]
[html] Aww  I get out in April. My university is 4 months a term.
And the sun will set for you
Beppe could still picture the great ship that had carried them there in his mind, the great beast moored in some foggy port a great distance from their home of Milan. It was being loaded with goods and a few select crew, and the docks were bustling with so much activity that young Beppe had managed to slip into the cargo unnoticed. The boy had never really thought about the extent of fortune he must have had for his mother to spot him through the crowd and follow him on. By the time she had followed him through the maze of crates, though, the ship was already lurching away from the docks and into the vast ocean, with a desitination weeks away.
The boy had heard what Empusa had said last, and it made his heart beat speed a little, but at the moment his mouth was too full for any words to come out. Her reasoning didn't faze him -- he knew what the tricky coyote was up to -- and he mumbled, "You erghh just drying du talk me ouut of eet. Eef I have got it.. zen zou du need not du protechh eet. Eet hwgill be sahf in my bellehh." As she started to giggle Beppe was unable to hide the smile and the way it pulled the muscles of his face he unwittingly loosened his grip. He noticed this as soon as it slipped out of his grasp, but he did not grab at the prize again and the grin, wrinkling the sides of his mouth, didn't budge. The boy turned his head and narrowed his dark cinnamon eyes at her, intending to provoke an attack.
He had the most fun when they were roughhousing.
[/html]
[html]  New table time :o
She could barely tell what he was saying, but in a moment the pressure on her tail was released. She quickly flicked it out of his mouth, holding it to the other side so that he couldn't grab it again. He had gotten it once, but he would not be so lucky this time! How could she retaliate, though? She wondered if she would be quick enough to get his tail.
Empusa rushed him, much as she had when they'd played before, getting a bit of momentum by digging her claws into the tough soil. She skirted to the left, then quickly dodged to the right, grabbing for his tail. She wasn't paying attention, though, and her feet became tangled--she tripped, knocking into him.
[/html]
[html] That header is supa cool. Happy Valentines day!
edit: Omg I keep hearing the song in my table on the radio! I had never heard it when you made it for me but in the last week it seems like it's playing every time I turn on the radio. I just put two and two together like 30 seconds ago. Hee.
And the sun will set for you
The strength of a smile was way too overwhelming and Beppe feigned a squawk of anguish as the girl's tail slipped away. The soil here offered a more solid surface than the rocky shore of the beach and it was obvious in the grace and speed that Empusa displayed. The boy merely stood for a second, trying to keep his eyes on her as she feinted to the left, and doing his best to keep his body between her and his tail. She was quick, though, and the large youth had a little trouble with keeping up.
Luckily, though he was unable to sufficiently protect his tail, the girl's swiftness didn't prove to be as dangerous as it could have been. As her legs twisted into knots her body kept moving, momentum pushing her forward into the boy's shoulder. He made a heavy "Oomph" sound as she collided with him, and was knocked back onto his side. Beppe felt the pressure of the other's body on top of him even as he lay on the ground, so rather than scurrying to get up he laid there, not wanting to remove the cushioning between Empusa's head and the hard ground. He did, however, tuck his tail tightly in between his legs.
"Not this time, little French dog." He laughed and, panting, laid his chin out across the snow. Though the weather was chillier here, he figured he stayed warmer than he did in Italy. All the playing made his heart beat fast and his blood warm up.
[/html]
[html] haha ^^ Happy Singles Awareness day! It's Dierdre's birthday
She wasn't very good at playing, really; Beppe and another pup, Merit, were the only ones she had ever tried it with. Empusa seemed like a fairly swift coyote, especially for her age, but she had a lot of faults. Clumsiness was definitely one of those. She'd jumped off of the couch at the house and had landed funny on one of her legs (thank goodness nothing had been broken), and since then had never really regained her balance. Not in the same way as before. The leg didn't hurt, but it gave out sometimes. Perhaps that was a part of it.
She knew the second her leg twisted underneath her that something was wrong, and braced herself for a hard fall--but she was pleasantly surprised. What she fell on top of wasn't hard at all--it was soft. And fuzzy. And dark. She'd closed her eyes as she had fallen, but now she reopened them. "You caught me! Like a..damsel in distress!" She grinned. "Zis seat---it is tres comfortable"
Maybe it was innapropriate for her to be laying on him like this, though. Did he not like it? Empusa thought about it, but decided that it didn't matter. They were friends! He wouldn't mind. "But now I do not know if you are letting me lay on you or if I have you pinned" She teased. "I apologize--I am very clumsy"
[/html]
[html] hehehe yay
And the sun will set for you
The snow felt good as it sifted its way through Beppe's black fur, sticking against his skin and cooling him off a little. He smiled as they laid there, eyes just taking in what lay around them now. The sky, unlike the swirling gray mess that often hung up there, was bright and blue, and perhaps he could even hear some winter birds singing. Now that the blood wasn't pounding in his ears he could hear Empusa's heartbeat, and her breathing as well. The wind rustled the trees in the distance gently, blowing snow off of them. For the first time since he and his mother had slinked off the ship, he felt part of something, as if he was one with the land. This, perhaps, was home. This was how he was meant to feel.
Beppe laughed as the coyote girl made her joke, unsure of what a damsel in distress was, but knowing that the tone in her voice made him feel like laughing. "But, a seat? Is that all you think of me!" He half barked, half cried. The smile stayed on his face as he continued to peer across the earth, enjoying the change in perspective.
"It is not that you have me pinned that I am lying here.. It seems as if the earth has reached to me and grabbed me and now this snow is holding me as hostage." He winced, painfully, doing his best to made this game as real as possible. "And clumsy? Not at all, I think. It is a good tactic... But perhaps you could tell your good friend the snow to let me go, for he is beginning to grab not just my hair, but my skin, and it is getting to hurt!"
[/html]
|
