[html]
Private. Word Count: 359
He was feeling peculiarly calm today, despite the darkening weather and the multitude of issues he had yet to solve. Now, his two legs carried him across the rocky land, and he hummed as his eyes searched the ground. His voice was strong and the melody crude, but exotic-sounding. It was a song he had learned from the elders of the old AniWaya tribe, and in these lands he was the only one to know it. That, however, was not on his mind at all. No, his mind was quite blank as his gaze traveled here and there, before finally settling on something. "Ah!" Bending down, his red-furred hand reached out and picked up a piece of flint; not what he had been looking for, but he should keep it anyway. It was such a useful thing, and it was probably good thing to have another one as backup for when the real winter chill set in. Quickly putting the stone in the pouch in his belt, he continued his search and his humming. He should go closer to where the old human buildings stood afterwards, and search for the other kind so he had a full pair. He had no name for the stones and metals, but he knew what they looked like when he saw them. He trod carefully to avoid the sharper rocks that littered the ground, slowly moving in one direction. What he was really looking for, were stones suitable as arrowheads. Sure, he could chip them and shape them, but he was in that sense quite lazy. No, it was good to find stones that had potential to begin with, instead of giving himself more work than needed. In not long he had a formidable collection, and a few could be fastened to arrows straight away and adjusted later. Sitting down, he pulled thread and a knife from his quiver and started adjusting and tying the stone to the tip of the unfinished arrow. It'd need stabilizers too, but that could come after. Still he hummed, generally in a good mood. That kind of day seemed to dwindle in numbers the older he got.
[/html]
[html] Ty was out in neutral territory, not for any particular reason, just because being in Phoenix Valley for too long had bored him. He had simply gone where the winds had taken him, aimlessly wandering from the Valley to who knows where, although Ty had enough conscious thought to avoid inferni, as he remembered what happened to Xeris. Ty's aimless quest landed him in a rather rocky area, with the wind blowing away at his back. It was still technically autumn, but Ty felt the winter chills closing in on the area, of course being in North America meant the winter chills were always an ominous sign of what is to come.
However, as Ty walked, he began to smell something in the air, something that was familiar, yet unknown to him. He knew this smell, and yet he did not. This was the smell of another wolf, but one he had never met in a territory he had never visited. Always the curious one, he pressed on to see if he could meet this mystery wolf, be it friendly or hostile.
When he eventually did find the other wolf, he was rather impressed and startled by it's appearance. The headdress, the markings, the bow and quiver on it's back, he had not seen a wolf like that in these parts, which made him all the more curious about what it was doing out here. Ty would have darted behind some bushes if the creature made a move, but if Ty could smell the wolf, chances are the wolf could smell him, and so far, it hadn't made any move to kill, so Ty could only assume it was peaceful, at least for the time being. He noticed that the strange wolf was picking up peices of rocks and such from the ground, what was it doing? Ty's curiosity was getting the best of him, and he decided to call out to him. "Uhhh....hi." He said abruptly to the wolf when he got close enough. "It's not really my place to ask, but I;m kind of curious about your activity...what are you doing anyway?" He asked.
[/html]
[html]
Word Count: 369
He was in neutral territory, and scents of others came and went; Dawali didn't pay them much attention. It wasn't that seldom that he traveled a little outside of the village to find things he needed or to explore something on his own. Most of the time it was not a good day to be alone, but today it was. No bitter thoughts of past failures, and no twisted images of Ember turning her back on their friendship. The scents of strangers lingered in his nose, for as every normal wolf he had a keen nose, and he didn't pay them attention. Their presence was, in a way, a spice to his experience of these unclaimed lands, the lands of the traveller and the loner. But, of course, he had noticed how the male had come closer and closer to where he was. He was not threatened: he was close enough to AniWaya, and his legs were long and well-trained. He could make the run home. After all, he had made the run home from Halifax, wounded. But he didn't like to think about that.
When the male arrived and greeted him, Dawali merely looked up and gave him a short nod. Not an impolite gesture, but just a signal as if to say "Hi, I see you. Can I help you?". After all, Dawali was minding his own business, so why shouldn't this other person do so too? The words that exited the other male's mouth, however, seemed to be fully aware of this, and Dawali softened up. Giving a small smile, he explained just as he spotted and bent down to pick up another stone suitable for an arrowhead. "I'm collecting stones for making my arrows." Opening his palm, he revealed a jagged stone shaped vaguely as the number eight. "This one is easily made into a sharp and fatal arrowhead.", he explained, bending his other hand behind his back into the quiver, finding one of the to-be arrows and placing it over the stone so the male could see what he meant. "Name's Dawali. Who're you?", he asked bluntly. Slowly, he was growing back into the man he used to be; a person of fewer words.
[/html]
[html] Hearing the explanation, Ty seemed rather surprised, actually repeating some of the words with interest. "Rock for arrowheads huh?" He asked as he knelt down alongside the wolf. He had seen bows and arrows in use before, and the device all around fascinated him. Before he had ever come across a bow or a firearm of any sort, Ty had never even considered killing something without even having to run after it. However, that was until he saw a bow in use once, when he had been out in the woods with his nomadic pack of mercenary wolves. They were hungry one night, and none of them had been able to catch anything in the area they were in, when he saw one of his pack mates attempt to make a makeshift bow and arrow out of some rope, sharp sticks, and feathers on the ground. When it was made, he snuck out a little bit from the pack, drew the bow, and shot down a duck. Since then, Ty had been intrigued by instruments of that sort, items that could kill from a distance, but he never knew anyone else since then that had really used bows, until today that is.
Now at eye level, watching him pick up stones, his ears perked up once his name was asked. While he used to deal out his full name when asked this question, however, this was very informal, there wasn't much reason to be formal here. Looking at Dawali, then back at what he was doing, he replied with a one word answer "Ty." which was followed by a simple long silence. Ty really didn't have much to say, so he simply continued to watch in silence. After a bit, he noticed what kind of size and shape stones the wolf was looking for, and after he concluded that, Ty began to look for rocks of similar type. Eventually, he found a fairly pointy, and what Ty thought would be a similar size as Dawali was looking for. Reaching down and picking it up, he handed it to Dawali and said "Hey, would this work?"
[/html]
[html]
Word Count: 321
The stranger seemed interested, and Dawali elaborated willingly, half a smile on his face. He liked talking about his bow: he was skilled with it. "Yeah, I've run out, and also bored. You can never have enough arrows, I guess." He chuckled. He wasn't really bored. There were plenty of things to do back in the village, but it meant facing certain individuals. Oh, what a social coward they had for a leader, but it was all Ember's fault. And he knew that she could do what he did not — she was smart. Why she had a thing for him, he could not understand. The stranger introduced himself and Dawali smiled again now, giving a little nod as he replied. "'Pleasure." This Ty reminded him of the old Leland, in a way. He seemed laidback, and so the Chief did not finish the phrase. He'd know what he meant.
The other began studying the ground around them, and so Dawali continued his work, doingt he same. He was just about to bend down to pick one up when Ty called out, and Dawali took one step over to him as he hwas handed the stone. Indeed, it was a good stone for an arrowhead, requiring little work. "Yeah, this is exactly the kind I'm looking for. I can always cut stones, too, to fit, but I'm lazy so I'd rather try to find some that are shaped closer to what I want by nature." His cream-tipped fingers turned the rock over and compared it to the ones he already had. Yep, it was the same type of stone, too. There was a lot of that lying around in this area, and it made his job easier. Lifting the stone a little as if showing it to him, he smiled at the other male. "Hey, thanks for this. I can show you how I make it into an arrow if you want."
[/html]
[html] ooc:Apologies about this being so late, I've had finals week, and that pretty much took all of my free time.
"Yeah, I can only expect that would happen," Ty commented about Dawali not ever running out of arrows. "what with them being shot into things and otherwise losing them...that must become a pain in the ass after a while isn't it?" He then chuckled slightly as he continued to watch the wolf look for arrows. He smiled in satisfaction when Dawali commented that he had found a good arrowhead, he seemed gratified that he was catching onto this. Ty listened when Dawali commented on how he could cut rocks but was too lazy, to which he could only give a light chortle. "But doesn't looking for the rocks take more time then simply cutting your own?" He asked as he sat down on a particularly large stone, his gold and blue eyes darting around looking for more arrow shaped rocks.
His eyes jolted back to Dawali when he heard him speak again, and made a slight gleam when he was offered the chance to learn to make arrows. His tail rose up and wagged as he grinned with a bit of curiosity and enthusiasm. "I...I'd love to learn." He responded quite gratefully. "If you have the time of course. I'm not going to make you go out of your way to teach me how to make an arrow. I've never actually got the chance to use one, and I've only seen them from afar."
[/html]
[html]
Word Count: 578 - SoSuWriMo
Ty stated the obvious and Dawali joined in on his chuckle. True, it was a pain in the ass. Although Dawali had never heard the expression before, he didn't have to think hard to understand what it meant, and it was rude enough to amuse him. Chuckling a second time, he replied with a grin. "Yeah, a pain in the ass." The words felt alien on his tongue, yet strangely fitting for the subject. Though, for the prey he hunted with them the arrows were a literal pain in the ass, and that thought only made him chuckle again. A moment of silence passed, and Ty stated the obvious again, throwing Dawali's vocal chords into another chuckle. He gave it a moment's thought before he replied, not really certain why he preferred looking for them instead of making them. "Yeah but it just feels less boring when you're moving around, I suppose. Sitting down hitting one rock with another gets old pretty quickly." Half a smile shot at Ty and the Chief directed his gaze downwards again, found another suitable stone and picked it up. It was quickly put in one of his belt bags to be made into an arrow later.
The other male seemed to like his idea, and the Kalona grinned at him as he reached for his belt pouch. In it he kept all sorts of things, among them sinew and thin rope. "Sure!"One could never know when a little piece of something like that could prove useful. Holding the rock and sinew in his hand he looked at the ground around himself for a suitable stick, but found none. Though, there were many unsuitable ones, and he picked up one of those instead. "Now, you wouldn't want to use this kind of stick, really, because this one is crooked and also quite rotten and thus heavy. What you want is a dry, light, straight stick, but I can't see one so I'll show you on this one." His fingers quickly fastened the sinew around the rock so that it held it from four directions, forming a cross on either flat side of it, and with two long bits to spare, one on each side. Getting his crude and home-made knife from his belt, he put it to the one end of the stick and carved out a piece of it to fit the arrowhead in. "So I fasten the thread to the head, and then I can either carve a hole in the stick to fit it in, or just tie it on as it is. I prefer making space for it, as it gives a more stable arrow." An arrow with the head simply lashed on would often pull in a certain direction. It was quite handy to have arrows that flew straight. "Then I simply lash it on, like so..." His fingers moved slowly as he fastened the rock to the stick, first with the sinew around the rock itself, and then with an additional piece of string, tied across the other lashes to keep them in place and strengthen them. "It's useful to tie more than you think you need; after all, you want the arrowhead to be able to survive and actually damage the prey, instead of just falling off." He gave a chuckle at that point, and now looked up to study the other male. "I can untie it if you want to give it a shot?"
[/html]
[html] Ty didn't say much besides the occasional "Ah." or "Uh huh." to Dawali's instructions. Most of his focus was kept on the movements and motions Dawali made while making the arrow, he knew mimicking those motions at least he could make a decent effort. He didn't want to miss a step, of course, now that Dawali was showing him, it didn't look too hard. There wasn't a lot of steps to making an arrow, you just needed a sharp rock and a stick, and Ty could only assume one needed feathers as well, like most arrows he saw did, though he didn't quite know why. Perhaps it was just ascetic, or to fly straight, Ty really didn't know, but he hoped he'd find out. He kind of hoped he took a
When asked to try, Ty grinned and said 'Sure, I'll give it a shot!" as he took the untied arrow from Dawali. Looking at the rock, the stick, and the string, Ty suddenly got the jitters. Why? Perhaps it was just trying something for the first time, but it wasn't horrible, and Ty could still concentrate. Grabbing the stick, Ty brought the rock on top of the stick and tried to hold them together while placing the string around it. unfortunately he did not have the dexterity in his hands as Dawali did and dropped the arrowhead, causing him to get slightly embarrassed. He chuckled nervously as he reached down and picked up the rock and tried again making sure the rock was secure this time. Tying the string around the rock and the stick, Ty did it slow so he did not screw up. Of course, he did not tie the string tight enough to keep it together and the arrow fell apart in his hands. He now was getting slightly frustrated, but he thought to himself 'hey, third time's a charm'. So, with a bit of focus, he lashed the rope around again, this time tightening it with each turn of the string, making sure it doesn't fall apart. The arrow this time came out good, the rock was tightly fastened to the stick, which made Ty smile in contentment and say "hey, is this right?"
[/html]
[html]
Word Count: 678 - SoSuWriMo
Ty listened carefully to Dawali's explanation, and seemed eager to start when he handed him the materials for an arrow. Making sure not to comment his attempts as he tried, Dawali simply stood and watched, sometimes nodding without sound when he did something right. When he had taught others to do things before, he had always commented along the way, but found that most of the time if the one he was instructing was a grown male like himself, that he would not appreciate the added info. So, Dawali had learned to keep his mouth shut and instead be available for questions instead. The arrowhead fell to the ground once, twice, and the first time his new acquaintance looked embarrassed. The second time he looked frustrated, and Dawali had to fight back a little smile. No matter, it was amusing, and the impatience in a learner was always fascinating to him. He knew it in himself, too, and remembered well the time Ember had tried to teach him how to fish with a human fishing pole. Oh, the shame and the blushes when he failed miserably. Weeks later when his daughter had caught him practising he had been just as useless, but luckily for Ty the third attempt seemed to go better for him. The Chief smiled as the other male finished his work now working slowly but purposely, finally managing to fasten the arrowhead to the stick. Nodding, and now that Ty asked him for feedback, Dawali took the arrow from his hands and touched the stone, checking how well it was fastened. The lashes held the movement, but on impact this arrow would likely not cut. Still it would give a painful bruise before it fell to the ground. It was pretty good for a beginner's arrow; many struggled much more than that with lashes such as these, and getting it just right could take years of practice. "Yeah this is pretty good - though the arrowhead probably would fall off if shot at something, instead of piercing the skin of the prey. But, I also usually make a cut on either side of the stone, around here and here.." the red wolf male pointed to the side of where the lashings were on the stone, and continued; "and then I lash into those cuts; that way the knots hold the stone more firmly in place. And also this stone is rather crude, so it would be hard to make it into a usable arrow for piercing as it is. It'd have to be moulded a little better first. This stone is a tricky one." Even if Dawali had tried to make an arrow from this, it would have run the risk of falling apart on contact, simply because it had to be worked with first.
Dawali changed his holding point on the arrow, and pointed at the end of it with one red-colored finger. "The the last part of an arrow is adding feathers or other light and flat things to the end of it. It stabilizes them in flight, and also makes them heavier on the back of the arrow so the arrowhead doesn't pull downward as much. You just slice a groove in the wood with a knife or something sharp, and then fasten half an arrow in it with something sticky, like sap. You need four halves of feathers, and the two feathers you use should be roughly the same size." Smiling, Dawali pointed to the arrow as he spoke, turning it and indicating how and where the four halves of feathers would be placed. He had no feathers with him except the ones in his mane, and so he could not demonstrate this as he would have had he had the materials available. Smiling, Dawali's yellow gaze rose to Ty's face, checking to see if he was grasping the concept. "If the stick is straight and light, and the stone arrowhead not too heavy, the arrow with its feathers placed correctly should fly quite straight, and be easier to aim with."
[/html]
[html] Hearing the reply from Dawali Ty frowned and nodded in understanding, seeing it was probable that his first arrow would not be a lethal one. After all, he had messed up twice before he even made this one, it was a wonder it was keeping together at all. He was happy that dawali complimented it however, that was a good sign that he might have some talent with the sport. However, he listened intently on the tip Dawali gave about better ways to lash arrows, because any tips would be helpful for future tries on bow and arrow making. The tip was overall helpful, it made a lot of sense to cut extra ridges for the rope to go in. Smiling as the tip was told, he nodded afterward and said "That's a really good idea, I'll be sure to keep it in mind!"
That's when Dawali began to explain how to use the feathers on an arrow, and it did one of the many things he suspected them to, although it waasn't the first thing he had thought. It stabilized the arrow, making it fly straight to it's target, he figured the decorations of the arrow simply make it aesthetically pleasing, which made senses even more, as many weapons were very decorated, though still quite primitive. Who would have thought that nature's simplest of materials would combine to make such a deadly projectile? This made Ty all the more curious about the weapon. Watching Dawali's hands, he noticed the placed where the feathers would go as Dawali pointed at them, but how would they get in there? He can't imagine it would just be just ropes or anything, but what?
Nevertheless, more explanation was needed, the wieght of the arrow was also an apparent factor, which again, made sense. Ty again resorted only to listening to the elder wolf, though somewhat intrigued about the feathers on his head, he wondered why he wore those? Decoration? Markings of prestige? Warrior trophies? He didn't know, but he had to concentrate on the man's explanation. It was the more Ty focused on the lesson, the more he realized how out of touch he was with learning things.
words: 365
[/html]
[html]
Writing from work - I love my job ;D Word Count: 513 - SoSuWriMo
Dawali smiled, satisfied with his own effort and glad that Ty was still interested. He'd been told that he could be a drag when explaining things, always using too many words and saying too many things at once, confusing the student and making them lose interest. It seemed he was not doing that today, and every time anyone he taught something seemed to manage to hold on to their enthusiasm the Chief was glad. He believed that knowledge was the key to lead a good life; craving it, obtaining it, keeping it alive and at all times sharing it. He was not so selfish that he would keep his experience from others, nor was the history and wisdom passed on from his ancestors his to keep a secret from the world. It had to be shared, taught and revered, else how would anyone survive after them? The land they spent their short lives nurturing was a gift to their children, and there was no room for selfishness then.
He made a good listener, the stranger, and as the Kalona went on explaining the workings of the little device (for it was, though it looked simple, in reality quite complicated) he found himself carried away. The bow was not his own invention, nor was the arrow, but during one summer his uncle had taught him how they worked and how to build them. A master craftsman, the male had undoubtedly known a lot more than he taught the then quite young Dawali, though that piece of knowledge had served the Chief well throughout his life, and still did. Hopefully, the old uncle was still alive and well somewhere, where his two daughters kept track of the old tribe. He rarely thought of his family, but when it came to the things he knew in life there was no ignoring their influence. The Chief's face was mild and his hands gesticulated carefully, controlled, as he spoke of the workings of the arrow. Perhaps Ty wanted to know how to make a bow as well, though that was not something Dawali could teach him here and now. Suitable materials were not around, but they were abundant in the village, for Dawali had collected them. Acting on impulse, he decided it would be good to have a friend in every pack, and Ty seemed like someone he could easily be friends with. Pausing a moment after finishing his explanation, he smiled brightly before continuing with his offer. "Of course, an arrow isn't much use without a bow. 'Can teach you to craft one of them as well if you want, but I can't do it here... No good materials, see?" His hand swung outward as if pointing towards all the bits of rotten branches that littered the ground, all unfit for a bow. No, he needed something young; sturdy, yet flexible. It would have to be able to sustain the strain of use over and over, to bend out of shape and back again. No easy task for something as rigid as wood, Dawali had always thought.
[/html]
[html] Ty's ears remained perked as he listened to the cheiftain's explanation, although some of his attention turned to the wolf's exquisite headdress, it truly was a fascinating item. What was it for? Why did the wolf wear it? the questions swarmed in Ty's head, but not so much that he had to ask, as he still was paying attention to the wolf's instructions.
However, it came to pass that Dawali told Ty that there weren't good enough materials around to make a bow, so he couldn't really do it. Ty's tail drooped slightly in discontent, but it wasn't long before Ty had an idea to help himself make bows, somehow making it much more effective then Dawali simply going home and find materials to make, then bringing them to Ty.
"Hey, Dawali." Ty interjected, attempting to explain his idea to Dawali. "What if you just tell me where what materials you needed, and I'LL go find them, and meet you another time to help me finish? I mean, it's not like I'll not learn, this will help me figure out how to find the materials myself when I want to make my own bows, won't it? What do ya say?"
Sitting down, he waited for the older wolf to give him a response.
words: 213
[/html]
[html]
Word Count: 357 - SoSuWriMo
Ty came with a suggestion, and Dawali nodded politely as he listened. It was a good solution, but there was a catch; just finding a good piece of wood for the bow wasn't really that easy. Then again, what harm could it do this one to look for it? He would learn the hard way, how to find these pieces of wood, but he would still learn it. Better than if Dawali simply told him how to do everything, for knowledge was only knowledge when information turned into experience. Dawali could reveal it all, but it would be worthless words unless Ty tried it himself. So, though the stuff he found might not work the first time, he would learn it in time. Red ears perked upwards as he replied, quite liking the idea. Dawali was always happy when he could share some knowledge or skill. "Sure, that could work!" He paused to nod again, eagerly, before continuing. "What you need is a fairly strong, but still young and flexible piece for the bow. Then also some leather and string, but I have all that in AniWaya, so you needn't bring it. You should get yourself a knife, though, if you don't have one already." He didn't make bows that frequently, but he found that once you got the feel of the wood in place, it wasn't too hard. The triciest part was really an insignificant part; the leather holding area. He liked to fasten leather where he held the bow, otherwise the hand could quickly become sore. Otherwise it barely had a function, though for some it also served as a reminder on where to exactly hold your hand. A little off-center and the arrow might go in the wrong direction. "I'll teach you how to shoot it, too, if you want." A twinkle entered his eye and his face took on more of a joking than a serious appearance. "That is, if it will be able to shoot arrows at all." He winked, certain that Ty would not be offended by his harmless joking. He seemed like a person Dawali could easily become friends with.
[/html]
|
