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The day was bright and happy, and the few songbirds who had returned early made sure to make up for the absences of their counterparts with loud and exuberant song. Kansas had chosen to venture from his home once again, this time heading north, toward what he had heard was Acheron Peak. As soon as he drew near to the incline of the mountain, he knew there was something different about it. His father had only skimmed over the territories of Bleeding Souls, and had not yet gone into detail. So Kansas knew very little about what was found within each area. He didn’t know what exactly was so strange about this place – perhaps the warmth, or the unpleasant smell. This was all fine; but what did it mean?
He neared the stream that ran down the side of the peak, noticing its reddish tint. Well, he knew not to drink from it; he didn’t want to get that red stuff in his system. But it was certainly pretty, so he settled down beside it and stared into the swirling water. His thoughts drifted once more to Naniko, his supposes adoptive sister. She was so pretty. This was a kind of beauty that was different from his mother’s or sister’s – he didn’t know how, but it surely wasn’t the same. He went over the letters of the alphabet in his head to distract him from thinking of the alabaster girl, but that didn’t really work. He sighed and looked at his paws, ashamed, not knowing why he was feeling this way at all.
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[html]  Like my new avvie? 
It had been quite a while since she had gone out to the outer territories...at least, to these ones. Naniko tended to stick around the human city, Clouded Tears, Storm, and Jaded Shadows. Clouded Tears was where she lived, and Storm was where her siblings were. Jaded Shadows was where Lucifer was, one of her best friends. She didn't mind travelling, in fact, she liked it...just not out to these parts. These parts brought back memories.
She'd been a pup when she had gone here last--she'd been looking for her parents. It hadn't made sense to her back then that her fathers had split up and gone their separate ways; she had thought that Physe and Roman would always be together. Sure, her mother would be there too...but she had always thought that she would end up being raised by them. Both of them were so strong.
But then Roman had left, and Physe had been the only one there to keep her fed and loved. She loved him back, but it hadn't been enough; she had needed to find Roman. So she'd gone out to the peak....and had fallen off of it.
The white girl kept her eyes to the ground as she walked, trying not to think about it. It had been so painful, in the moments after the fall...and then Iskata had come and rescued her.
Naniko looked up when she heard a bit of movement, looking down the river. Someone was there, definitely, but they blended in with the snow...she couldn't tell who it was. "Hello?"
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I love it!
He noticed as his eyes traced the shape of his paws that they were much bigger than he’d thought they were. He remembered them being a lot tinier, like the feet of a kitten… now they were bulky and awkward. Kansas let one of his paws touch the surface of the reddish water, almost expecting it to burst into flame – but no, the water was just like that of any stream, albeit a bit warm. It was actually fairly nice, and he smiled as his entire foot was warmed by the churning stream.
Footsteps made him turn from the water and gaze into the sun; he blinked, as its rays were harsh on his eyes. The snow made it difficult for him to see her, but she took shape soon enough, and he was sure his heart fluttered. She called out to him, obviously having trouble seeing him, too. How strange that she had found him right then, when he’d been thinking of her. He grinned and responded happily. "It’s Kansas…How are you, Naniko?"
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[html] Wow..I didn't have this in my post log at all O_O; WHAT'S WRONG WITH ME?!
She had spent some time in Storm recently with Moon, exploring the territory and getting the feel of the pack. Storm seemed like the perfect place for little ones to grow up, so unlike Clouded Tears. Storm just felt so...connected, with their big pack den. She wasn't sure if she would enjoy living that close to the others in the pack, especially if she had a mate, but they seemed to like being around each other a lot. It was very different from Clouded Tears. In her pack the wolves were tempermental and stressed out most of the time, and the only time they ever saw each other in one place was at the pack meetings. Even then, half the pack didn't show.
But that was the way of the ghostly pack. She supposed that she had known it would be like that, that everyone would be so split apart. Laruku wasn't the type to enjoy social gatherings, and he'd spread that belief to the remainder of the pack. Naniko had tried to brighten things up by building a play-castle in the middle of the territory for the little ones of the pack, and she tried to teach the pups all she could about having fun.
The glare was enormus, coming at her from all angles, reflecting off the snow. She had no choice but to walk farther forward. But when she was able to see, she was glad that she had come forth--Kansas was down there. She could see him only a few seconds before he spoke, and her tail was already whipping back and forth in anticipation. She really did like being around him--he tended to cheer her up. Her long braid flicked along behind her as she went toward him, ending up over her shoulder as she stopped. The werewolf reached down to hug him. "Hey there! How's your reading coming along?"
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Haha, it’s fine! I’ve done the same thing before. 
He adored Storm; there wasn’t much about it that he could say he didn’t like. The pack den did feel a bit cramped at times, but as soon as springtime rolled around, he knew everyone could branch off into their own dens. He kind of hoped he would be permitted to do so, also. Kansas liked being among his family, but he would have enjoyed having a place of his own. He was tired of feeling like such a weak, young thing. It seemed like it was high time for him to grow up already. Icarus and Ember probably felt the same way. Maybe Phoenix would let them dig out their own dens next to the family one, or else have their own rooms.
Naniko was radiant, as always. She was in her Optime form, her hair in a perfect braid, giving her an angelic grace. He felt his face flush, which was frustrating; his coat was almost pale enough for his blushing to be noticeable. He didn’t understand why he was feeling this way… she was just so pretty. Kansas was relieved when she asked him about his reading; it gave him something to respond to instead of just stupidly standing there. But her hug warmed his face even more; he did manage to lift a paw and brush it against her pack, returning the embrace. "It’s going good. I have a question, though – lots of words have an 'e' at the end; what does that mean?" Oh, what if his question was confusing? He winced a little.
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She had been wondering about how Phoenix was doing. Sometimes she forgot that Kansas was related to him, to the alpha. She had met a few of the young Storm wolves, but she felt like there was more of them that she hadn't run into yet. Naniko could remember Physe talking about some wolf that Phoenix had adopted as a little sister, one of Physe's friends, too...Ember? She couldn't quite remember...but that sounded right. She thought that she might have heard that name before, somewhere else, connected with Iskata and Phoenix.
Naniko's own parents weren't around any more, but Moon had told her that they were indeed still alive. She knew that she had two other siblings, Helios and Pontiac, but she hadn't seen Pontiac in more than a year and she had never met Helios. Helios and Selene were from different litters than her, but still from the same parents.
Naniko released him after a tight bear hug, patting down his fur where she had messed it up. She hoped that he didn't think she was too childish sometimes; she was generally a very serious, secure wolf. In most situations...unless she was around someone that she really felt at home with.
"Hmmm. Sometimes the "e" is silent--it's hard to explain. Like the word "Please--P-L-E-A-S-E. I'm not sure why the E is there, exactly, but sometimes the words make more sense if you don't pronounce the E" That was the best way that she could think of explaining it. She considered it thoughtfully, looking up at the sky. "Yes, I think that's it."
She wanted to ask about Phoenix, but wasn't sure how much Kansas would know about it. "Is your dad doing okay now? I went back a few times, but he was usually sleeping"
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Sorry for the wait. Finals are soon. 
Her hug gave him butterflies; she smelled sweet, almost. He wanted to compliment her on this, but thought doing so might sound a bit weird, so he refrained. She pulled away, patting his fur down where it had been mussed by their embrace. She thought of everything – he loved how considerate and sweet she was. He didn’t find her childish at all; in fact, he adored how she acted. It made him feel special. Perhaps she treated everyone this way – he was sure she did, and this disappointed him somehow.
Her explanation made sense – the word "please" would look a bit odd if there were no “e” at the end, as would many other words like it. He was having relatively little difficulty sounding out words and writing them other than that – of course, his hand was unsteady, but only practice could help with that. Reading and writing was something that was coming naturally to him, and he was very proud of himself. He nodded to show he understood. She asked about Phoenix, and he smiled, thinking fondly of how well he had been doing. "He’s doing really good. He’s almost all better; gets up and everything. Thank… thank you for coming to help us. I dunno what would’ve happened if you hadn’t," he said, knowing it was slightly sentimental; but he was sincere.
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[html] It's okay, loff! You need to study! >
She really only spent time with pups nowadays; adults were so confusing to her. There was one person that she liked being around that was an adult, and that was Conri, her mate. He had only just returned to the pack after being kidnapped, but they weren't back together. Not officially, anyway. Naniko had spent so much time alone while he'd been gone...she didn't know if she could get used to relying on someone else again.
She smiled at Kansas, looking him over a bit. He had certainly grown since the last time she'd seen him. She wondered if he would become a bigger wolf, like her, or a smaller one. Naniko had gained her size from her father, Roman D'angelo. He was huge!
"I'm glad that he's okay. I've been pretty busy in Clouded Tears, looking after the animals and stuff. They come to me for help sometimes. I--" She was interrupted as a pair of wings brushed against her face. A small black bird sat upon the her head, just behind her ears, its claws twined into her fur. "Sorry, Miss Naniko. But I have found something interesting, only a little ways away! I have interrupted your meeting, though. You do not need to come" Naniko listened to what the bird had to say, then looked at Kansas apologetically. "I'm sorry, Kansas, I've got to go. Or..well, you could come with, if you want to. It'll just take me a minute to figure out what he's talking about. He said that there's something interesting nearby, which means that there's some injured animal close to our position. Would you like to come?" It had been hard to learn the language of the lower beasts, but this was what made it worth it. She hoped that Kansas might want to come with--she still wanted to talk to him, but if there was someone that was hurt nearby then that would have to take top priority.
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Finals’re almost over! Yay.
She told him that the animals of Bleeding Souls sought her for help, and this made him smile with interest. So, obviously, many animals knew to come to her – he found this very admirable. He already know that her healing skills were phenomenal, from seeing her help Phoenix get better. There was something so pure and sweet about her tending to the forest animals' injuries and illnesses, though somehow, he wasn’t in the least surpsied.
A bird landed on the beautiful girl’s head so suddenly that Kansas jumped, but when he saw that she was not alarmed, his grin returned… Maybe he would get to see her in action! He was in shock when she conveyed to him what the bird had told her, his jaw dropping unbelievingly. How did that work? He had just herd warbling and whistles, but she had obviously made some sense of the bird’s “language.” He nodded, glad she wasn’t leaving him alone there. ”Really? I’d love to. I can help you, if you want. Where is it?”
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[html]  Yay! I just had my psychology test a few days ago...that was Hell! D: But I got a 97%. :33 So all the studying was worth it, definitely.
She had never met another apothecary before, one that she could talk to and compare things with. So she just tried her hardest to be the best that she could be, to heal whoever came to her. Naniko had become interested in healing after finding Iskata's bag in the back of the den...after the mother had abandoned her the final time. There had been powders in the bag, and old dried leaves. A quick check in a textbook had helped her to identify them, and she researched their origins when she was bored.
"This way" She said, pointing to their left. "In...a cave? He says a cave. And sure you can come--I don't mind at all. If you don't mind coming. I mean...yes. I'd love you to be there." She made sure that the backpack was secure upon her shoulders before picking the bird up off of her head and tossing it into the air. It flew in the direction of their patient, peeping all the way.
They arrived at the cave, but she couldn't see anything. The magpie cocked its head, looking into the cave and then back out at them. She bit her lip a little, considering their options. "Sometimes they're scared when they're hurt...and this one's in the dark. I think we should go in..." Almost as soon as she'd finished saying that, though, there was movement from the cave. A large creature emerged, dragging a long piece of metal behind it. There were steel jaws attached to one of the beast's legs, and it dragged that one along the ground. That was what was making the sound.
"Oh my..." She swallowed. The black and white animal collapsed just as it reached the entrance of the cave, too spent to move any farther. "We're going to get this off of you" She told it, motioning for Kansas to come closer with her. "This is a badger, Kansas...and the thing on it's leg is an evil contraption. The humans used to put them out to catch animals. Even wolves. I'm surprised that one of them lasted this long...look, it's all rusty." But how could they get it off?
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The bird continued to talk to Naniko, giving her the answer to Kansas’ question, which she relayed to him. So… a cave… He was sure there were plenty of those around here, in such a rocky area – they were lucky the bird was willing to lead them. He followed his friend and the magpie, not really paying attention to where they were going, such was his excitement. It wasn’t long before they came to the dark cave, inside a horrible scraping sound that sent chills down the boy’s spine and melted his excitement away.
She said they should go in, and in they went – but they didn’t have to go far before the injured creature approached them itself. Naniko gave a worried gasp, and Kansas eyed the black and white animal. Its leg was caught in an awful trap. Her explanation left him confused: he couldn’t imagine why humans would want to put something through so much pain if they were going to leave it to suffer like this. He felt like crying, but he held his tears back, not wishing to seem girly and immature to the pretty female.
He looked around, as if something in the cave would help them pry the thing open. “I don’t know… maybe we…or, you, should try with your hands?” He tried not to think about how much more helpful he could be to her if he were in his Optime form.
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She wouldn't have blamed him if he'd been emotional about the animal...she was that way, too. That was one of the reasons that she had chosen healing to begin with...she couldn't stand seeing an animal in pain without knowing that she could help it. Or a wolf. She figured that any knowledge she gained from healing animals could go towards healing the wolves of the packs, as well.
Last time she'd been to Storm she had seen Pilot and had began showing him the basics of healing. Maybe someday Kansas would want to become a healer, too...and then Naniko or Pilot could teach him. Was there a rule saying that a pack had to only have one apothecary?
"Yeah. Sometimes when animals are hurt, though, they react badly when we try to help...because it pains them a lot. They get afraid." She tried to think of what to do, her mind racing. "I know. Let me see." She pulled her bag open, going through the jars with quick fingers. "These will put him to sleep. Not permanently, but for a little while." She pulled out a few leaves, crushing them in her palm. The badger was out of it already so when she put her hand in front of its nose it didn't react very much, other than to close its eyes. "I'll try."
She brushed the rest of the herbs off of her hands, going toward the injured leg. It looked horrifying...she couldn't even believe that the badger was still alive. "Sorry" She said absentmindedly to Kansas. She didn't know if he could shift or not, but guessed that he couldn't, since he hadn't done it yet. "I think if we can get the pin out, then the trap will open. It's in the side of the contraption, right there at the joint. Could you help me think of a way, though?" She rubbed her brow a little in frustration. "If they hadn't left these things behind...I wish these horrible metal things had been destroyed with them!"
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Eesh, I forgot to post in the absence thread – my friend was here visiting for a while, and I couldn’t really get on.
What she said made sense to him… if he were, say, a lot less intelligent creature, and something horrible happened, he wouldn’t know how to react to a strange wolf trying to help. He found his mind wandering, but it had made him feel better. Kansas wondered how she understood so much – he even felt a little jealous. He told himself that this was why they were friends: so she could teach him. And he was finding out that he loved to learn.
He pulled away from inside himself, and gazed at the poor badger with a reeling mind. The creature was breathing shallowly; they’d probably have to work quickly. Naniko gave the little beast a sedative; a smart thing considering what she’d told him earlier.
He leaned forward, trying to look at the leg but feeling a bit afraid to. She did this before him, apologizing as she did so… why, he wasn’t sure. He couldn’t get over how useless he felt like this, and cursed himself for not having been able to shift with Phoenix. He nodded, and gingerly walked over beside her, where the trap held tight to the mangled leg. He saw the pin, immersed in blood and metal. “Oh…huh,” he breathed. “Maybe… get your nails under the top of the pin and… and pull it out?” If only he weren’t so stupid!
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you calm the storms, and you give me rest... [ooc] My goal in life is to make Kansas feel worthless XD <333333!!! [bic] ...you hold me in your hands, you won't let me fall.
Naniko looked back at Kansas. He was right. All they had to use was their claws, really. She wished that she had brought something else with, or that she had sharper claws. She wasn't sure if she would be able to do it or not, because her paws were so huge. She nodded to him, reaching for the badger's paw. It had been a long time since she had been around something this bad, this bloody. She swallowed, reaching out and taking a hold of the trap. Sometimes the conditions that healers worked under were less than satisfactory. This was one of those times. If she'd been back at home she would have been assured that the badger would stay asleep. Back in her den, she had an endless supply of the herb needed. She could never guess how much of the herb to use with what animals--it all depended on their weight. Smaller animals only needed a small amount of the herb, and bigger ones needed a lot more. She didn't realize that she had underjudged until the creature was awake. In one motion the animal went for her, catching her in the side with its sharp teeth and ripping whatever it could grab onto. What it grabbed onto was her arm, the one that she'd broken a couple of times before. In a second everything was over, the badger scooting a few feet away before stopping again, exhausted. She clutched her arm, biting her lip. A large chunk of flesh was missing from her forearm, just below the elbow, and blood welled out from between her fingers, dripping down onto her white fur. "...ahh....I..." She couldn't think straight. The pain of it was distracting her, making her head feel fuzzy. "I need pressure on my arm" She managed to get out, gasping. The badger was forgotten, for now.
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Poor Kansy…  And your new table is pretty.
Her gaze embarrassed him, and he gave a meek smile before moving a bit closer to her. He couldn’t tell whether she thought his suggestion was stupid or useful. He figured it out well enough when she reached for the trap. Honestly, Kansas had no notion of how vicious certain animals were, and the badger, ugly as it was, seemed to him small and harmless. He was horridly proven wrong when the creature burst forward and tore at the pretty female. By the time Kansas had registered what had happened, it was far too late for him to help.
Naniko had a huge, bloody gash in her arm, and Kansas stared lividly at the badger… it just deserved to die now! However, the boy knew that he had to remember what she’d told him: the badger was in so much pain that it was frightened out of its wits. Kansas almost couldn’t look at the girl's wound… it made him want to cry even more. He hadn’t done anything. She looked horribly woozy, like she was about to pass out. Luckily, she gave him some instructions.
In the corner of the cave was a pile of soft, damp leaves. It was the only thing he could think of to use. The boy darted off and grabbed a mouthful, running back toward Naniko and pressing the leaves gently to her arm. He held them there, waiting for her to take them with her uninjured hand and better press them to the wound. Kansas wanted to shift so badly. He may have tried, but he was far too worried to concentrate on making himself change – he just wanted her to be okay.
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you calm the storms, and you give me rest... [ooc] Ooh, thank you! [bic] ...you hold me in your hands, you won't let me fall.
She tried to focus through it like she had been taught. The wound bled and bled and bled, the blood forming a puddle in the snow next to her. She closed her eyes for a moment, feeling another dizzy spell coming on, and sat down on the ground. She took her bloodied hand away from the gash for a momen to dig through her backpack, which was sitting nearby. She went through the jars rather quickly, searching for one particular herb. She found it and managed to pop the top off the container with her thumb, pouring it into her plam and crushing some of the plant into dust. She held the cut upside down, letting some of the blood drip out before flipping her arm back around and sprinkling the herb directly into the cut. Kansas was back before she knew it, helping, pressing nice, cool leaves to the injury. "Thank you so much" She said, taking a hold of the leaves and pushing them against the gash. Blood was still dripping down, but it wasn't quite as steady as before. The drugs were helping to numb the pain, which made her feel a little more clearheaded. After a few minutes she peeled the leaves back, reaching for some gauze from her backpack and wrapping it semi-tightly around her arm. She looked back at the badger, then at Kansas. "I'm going to need your help with him, holding him down for a second" She said, tying off the end of the bandage. Her arm was throbbing, but it didn't feel quite so bad any more. "If you hold him down, I can use some gauze and wrap it around his jaws so he won't be able to bite again"
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