Lahwa sniffed the ground curiously, their paws pressing lightly into the warm grass. They took in a deep breath of the air, looking around with consideration for their surroundings. The red wolf had taken a bold-step forward for themself, leaving the familiar security of tropic forest that they were born and raised in. They were a cautious creature by nature, rarely allowing the mere thought of leaving the humid forest cross their mind. It had started to get rather lonely - their siblings moving on the different areas of the world, exploring and maybe even forming packs of their own. But Lahwa had remained in the trees that were their nursery.
They didn't know what was so different about that day - that dawn a few sunrises ago that pushed them to finally venture outside of the confines they built for themself, but there had to have been something.
For now the red-wolf had journeyed all the way to the grasslands, finding themself drawn towards the tall, pale-barked trees with golden leaves dappling the grounds.
It's so much cooler around here, Lahwa remarked to herself, taking in another breath of air. It was so much lighter on her lungs, drier in her nose than the air she was used to. It truly felt like dawn despite it being later in the day. A time of day that they traditionally wouldn't dare to be awake during, lest she risk overheating. They felt a little silly for taking so long to venture out now - this was how their siblings had been living? How their family was living? The tropics are still home but I could get used to this.
The wolf gave a little bit of a shake, dislodging any debris caught in their pelt from their travel only to freeze when they heard branches crunching.
Ah. That's why I don't travel, Lahwa remembered on the spot, shrinking away from the one approaching them. Social interactions.
Kalathiel had made her away around most of the lands that she could find in the last year; yet somehow she hadn't found a way off the continent (not that she'd made much of an effort). From her memories of her youth, Kalathiel had spent much of her life on an island continent thinking it was the only place that existed in the world. Then one fateful day, the truth had been revealed to their pack. Seers had been given visions of a mainland beyond the mist that covered the sea surrounding their isle. Thinking back to those events, Kalathiel felt right at home in the Realm. It didn't much matter to her that she couldn't 'escape', since she'd spent her whole previous life 'trapped' on that misty isle. It hadn't felt like a prison then and so this now didn't feel like one either. But Kalathiel hadn't quite figured out what to do with her time here yet. She had yet to see any familiar old faces here. Not that she could remember many of them. Whenever she tried to concentrate on the names and faces of her past, so many of them became a blur like a ripple on a pond, while others remained clear.
So for now she took each day as it was. And today was no different. She had found herself in the Brightwood- an interesting place to say the least. Despite it being summer, the trees here had turned such brilliant shades of gold, orange, and red. Like beautiful flames, the canopy of leaves reached into the sky above the tree trunks. And below, Kalathiel wandered at a casual pace. Her head was lifted, eyes directed upward toward the leaves. She was taking in the sparkling sun rays through the branches and enjoying the dapple of sunlight and warmth on her back as she walked.
She hadn't even noticed that there might be another nearby. Her paw stepped on a branch, giving a loud "crack" as it broke beneath her weight. She paused looking downward to the branch. She'd been so wrapped up in looking at the leaves that the sound had startled her. Her heart had quickened and nostrils instinctively flared to scent the air, ears listening to her surroundings. Just a branch. Her mind reassured her as she let out a loud sigh. She was ready to go back on her way with little thought, and yet something had caught her attention.
There on the air, a scent. Faint. But she was sure she had detected something. Her hackles rose and her ears flicked around, straining to listen. Had she just imagined it? Was she being paranoid? The female didn't fear much but she wasn't going to let her guard down that easy. "Come out. I know you're there." She said it with such confidence that hopefully if anyone was there, they'd be fully convinced. She did in fact not know if something was there... or where. But her tone held a threatening rumble, almost like a growl. A good bluff was the best defense, she figured.
This is why I never leave the tropics, Lahwa thought to herself.
Here it was, undeniable proof that life outside of their home-range was dangerous, scary and not worth the fresh breathable air. They lowered themself to the ground, hoping to move quietly enough not to startle the other into attacking them, sweeping their tail between their legs nervously. Whatever had been in the air that convinced them to leave, they would never allow it to fool her again. She folded her ears back against her head, keeping their chin low. The red wolf didn't want to risk even the illusion of attempting to intimidate the other - if all went well, they would escape this forest with their pelt intact and think long and hard about this incident if they ever thought of leaving their sanctuary again.
She trembled a little, feeling the energy that beat through their chest bubbling to the forefront. The urge to cast an illusion, making themself look like naught but another bush in the woods; a stack of rocks even was gnawing at them, but for now, they withheld it. Sometimes they jumped the log and cast before they really needed to - they would wait until it was proven that they were truly in danger before trying any of their talents.
They shivered again, the scent of the other - a wolf they noted - touching their nose and pressed their belly to the ground.
Had she just imagined it? There was no answer when she had called out. But still something nagged at her gut, telling her she wasn't alone. Her hackles rose and she started to move slowly toward the source of the scent. It seemed to be stronger this way. She moved carefully, keeping her footsteps quiet and her pace was slow, in case something should jump out at her. She sniffed again. yes, there was definitely someone here. She paused, straightening and lifting her head. There. She could see where the soil had been disturbed and what looked like a pawprint in the dirt. Her eyes narrowed as she concentrated. In the shrubs she could see the faint outline of something. It was small. Perhaps a child? She let out a sigh. Maybe they were hiding from her. "I won't eat you," she said, matter-of-factly. "Now come on out like I said before and stop skulking around like a bandit." She spoke in an authoritative tone with a slight bit of annoyance, but the aggression had gone from her voice. She turned her head to the side, but her eyes looked from the corner to see if the other would indeed come out.
"Maybe you can help me. I'm looking for the watering hole. I was sure it was around here somewhere," she continued, her voice a little more encouraging. She was perfectly capable of finding water on her own, but this was a good opportunity to see who it was that was hiding, and she didn't mind company. "That is... unless you're a bandit after all?" She chuckled a bit at the last bit, turning once more to see if the other creature would come out.
Lahwa shivered a little, pulling their ears even more fiercely against their head fearfully. The red-wolf was usually not very aware of their own small size – a runt in the truest sense yes but they’d gotten by well enough growing up – but now faced with what they can only describe as a behemoth of a wolf, they sincerely wish they were a bit bigger. If it came down to a fight, the fire-tinted wolf didn’t even have any special abilities that could do damage. At most, they could make it easier for themselves to run away.
”I won’t eat you,” claimed the other wolf though Lahwa isn’t sure how much they believe her. That sounds exactly like the sort of thing you’d say to someone right before you attacked them – attacking isn’t eating after all.
The mental debate eventually came to an end however – they were entirely too stressed out by the concept of being mistaken for a bandit and brutalized or killed just because they’re hidden. The smaller wolf reluctantly crawled out of the bushes, wishing they could vanish into the day’s mist or that they’d at least picked up a combative talent.
A small wolf crawled out of the bushes before her and Kalathiel's demeanor relaxed. They didn't seem like too much of a threat. "There now, that's better," she said reassuringly. They were a small thing in comparison to Kalathiel's height but Kalathiel usually didn't dwell too much on that sort of thing. Her eyes scanned over the other creature quickly, looking for any obvious signs or markings that would give her any information but she found little to go on. Reds and brown hues marked their fur but she could find little else of note. Kalathiel's ears flicked absentmindedly - the little ruby earing on her ear flipping with the movement. What to do. What to do. Now that she had determined the other wolf wasn't a threat and her curiosity was sated, what was she supposed to do now? She'd demanded the other wolf appear before her but she hadn't quite thought through the next step after that.
Her lip twisted up into a thoughtful expression. "So you're not a bandit then," she addressed the red one again as she continued thinking. "So what are you? You gotta name or am I just going to call you 'not-bandit' every time I see you?" Her voice was casual, careful not to be too threatening - as it appeared the other might still be timid toward her actions. "I am called Kalathiel." She shifted her weight to the side, so not to be so direct with the red one and finally lowered her hips to the ground in a sit before looking back over to them. "You're pretty good at hiding though. That's a real talent."
Lahwa’s ear twitched nervously but considered it a good sign that the other wolf hadn’t immediately lunged upon revealing themself. They felt even bigger now that Lahwa wasn’t hiding in the bushes, watching them from the sides but rather looking straight up at them. Being out of the risk of being attacked for being suspicious, they didn’t stop the frightened whimper that slipped out this time. They allowed their eyes to scan the red ruby in the she-wolf’s ear - that had always been a bit fascinating to Lahwa. Their own parents had been rather old-fashioned - no one in her litter had worn fabrics or dressage like they’d seen on many of the creatures roaming the lands. They’d always wondered how it would feel to wear some of them, but their own nerves had left them too uncomfortable at the idea of approaching anyone.
”...I’m Lahwa,” they murmured softly, peering up. They almost added that they were from the muggy forest - that way if they were trespassing the other would know it was unintentional - but remembered at the last moment that it would be foolish for them to reveal their home. Hiding in the bushes and letting branches and leaves brush over them may have already disguised the most obvious parts of their scent, so there was no reason to offer additional information.
She tilted her head a little, slightly confused by the praise for their abilities. They weren’t expecting that - the other had sat so it seemed genuine enough. Their flattened ears slowly lifting a bit - maybe this wolf was friendly?
Lahwa? Kalathiel's pricked with interest as the other finally spoke. Her eyes continued to scan over the other wolf until at last she let out a relaxed sigh. This one seemed to be of little consequence. They didn't seem to be a threat nor did they seem to be eager to be friends. They simply were. But some wolves reacted that way, especially small ones who came face to face with a giant like Kalathiel. "Well, practice makes perfect," Kalathiel mused thoughtfully, her voice still pleasant and friendly. "It's easy to hide when you're, well you-sized. But someone like me..." she crouched down, pretending to get into a hiding position. "- well you can see how that might be difficult. " The other wolf didn't seem to be super talkative though, making Kalathiel struggle to find conversation with them . Kalathiel wasn't the most friendly of wolves either but something about this one put her at ease.
"So..." she started, her word drawing out with an inquisitive tone. "What is Lahwa doing out here?" It wasn't really any of her business but Kalathiel was curious. Maybe there were others around nearby she should be concerned about, or perhaps the red wolf was simply out exploring on their own.
Lahwa twitched a bit nervously at the analytical eye they were being given - what was the other looking for? They wasn't sure if they wanted the she-wolf to find it or not, if the trait she was looking for was a positive one or a negative one. She still hadn't attacked though, or even bared her certainly larger and sharper teeth so they took it as a victory in that form. They cautiously moved themself from outright crouching in fear into a more comfortable position on her belly - still a bit too intimidated to consider standing in front of the giant before them but at least they could shift to keeping their hindlegs settled just to the right of themself.
They were slightly more prepared for movement this time, keeping their flinch pretty minute in nature as she watched the larger wolf tried to mimic the way they'd hidden. Lahwa couldn't help the tiny giggle that escaped their muzzle - no, a giant of Kalathiel's size would certainly not be doing any brush stalking any time soon. Lahwa reckons the massive she-wolf would look more at home among the mountains, pretending to be a fuzzy boulder over attempting to conceal their muscular form within the trees and branches.
"... I am just curious," Lahwa confessed, watching the other. They shuffled a little, bringing her forepaws closer to their own chest as their nerves danced through their pads again. No need to lie and potentially make her believe that there was an invasion or a new pack of wolves moving into the Brightwoods to stay. "It's... different from home. Not as wet - I think I like it."
They winced immediately at their choice of words - they shouldn't've added that last part. That would make it seem like they're invading the larger wolf's territory with intent to stay forever. Not that the idea didn't appeal - being a smaller wolf, the less dense brush would make it harder to hide but given they were a decent climber, it wouldn't be too difficult. The idea was certainly a positive one but not if they would be trespassing!
--- Speech.
