Delta's investigations took him further from the lake's center, scooting cautiously along the lakebed to make sure no predators were swimming past before darting up again to float in open water. The currents felt different in the lake, a consistent pulse thrumming out from the twin waterfalls and pushing all around and against his whiskers in ways the river's simply couldn't. The cove's water had been much gentler than this, and saltier as well. Delta couldn't decide which of them he preferred, though he found a small smile creeping onto his muzzle as he took breaks between his anxious leering to spin and twirl through the water.
Slowly, his antics led him further towards the shoreline. The water was still rather deep here, several yards from where the lakebed would rise and turn into proper shallows, but a series of long, dark boulders piled from the earth to rise above the water's surface. They cast a hazy shadow over the water as the sun glinted overhead, and Delta missed the shape of the tiger slinking across their flat tops as he shimmied his way through underwater crevices in the stones to explore. Clouds of minnows scattered as he twisted and turned between the rocks, rubbing his muzzle up and down algae and aquatic stems to mark his scent before finally pulling himself back out into the open water with a tiny, rasping giggle.
He liked it here. It reminded him of home.
Delta didn't see the swipe, but he felt the water break above him like a strike to his whiskers. Instantly he whirled backwards, instincts taking reign as he lashed his tail hard and dove with all the speed he could muster. He hit the earth hard and pressed himself down against the lake's sandy bottom, shuffling his fins wildly to hide himself beneath the earth as his dark eyes scoured the water's rippling surface above. His heart thudded wildly against his ribs, thoughts of play abandoned as he attempted to hide himself from whatever had struck out from the land.
He wished then, desperately, that the water was not as pretty and clear as it was. Go to the rocks! he thought, hide in a crack! But he couldn't move; instinct told him to hide and freeze now, and his whole body felt like lead. With his brow peeking above the sand, he struggled to make shape of what was crouching above him past the stone's shadow and the sunlight's rippling glare. Was it one of the land predators that had tried to eat him before? The huge, shaggy beast with brown fur and tiny round ears? Delta shuddered at the thought and pressed himself further down, not wanting to be on the receiving end again of those frighteningly long claws again.
DICE ROLL: Stealth
Success: Delta buries himself successfully beneath the sand. He clearly dove down to hide, but can Saira find him?
Failure: Poor guy tried his best, but he's totally visible still in the clear water.
Slowly, his antics led him further towards the shoreline. The water was still rather deep here, several yards from where the lakebed would rise and turn into proper shallows, but a series of long, dark boulders piled from the earth to rise above the water's surface. They cast a hazy shadow over the water as the sun glinted overhead, and Delta missed the shape of the tiger slinking across their flat tops as he shimmied his way through underwater crevices in the stones to explore. Clouds of minnows scattered as he twisted and turned between the rocks, rubbing his muzzle up and down algae and aquatic stems to mark his scent before finally pulling himself back out into the open water with a tiny, rasping giggle.
He liked it here. It reminded him of home.
Delta didn't see the swipe, but he felt the water break above him like a strike to his whiskers. Instantly he whirled backwards, instincts taking reign as he lashed his tail hard and dove with all the speed he could muster. He hit the earth hard and pressed himself down against the lake's sandy bottom, shuffling his fins wildly to hide himself beneath the earth as his dark eyes scoured the water's rippling surface above. His heart thudded wildly against his ribs, thoughts of play abandoned as he attempted to hide himself from whatever had struck out from the land.
He wished then, desperately, that the water was not as pretty and clear as it was. Go to the rocks! he thought, hide in a crack! But he couldn't move; instinct told him to hide and freeze now, and his whole body felt like lead. With his brow peeking above the sand, he struggled to make shape of what was crouching above him past the stone's shadow and the sunlight's rippling glare. Was it one of the land predators that had tried to eat him before? The huge, shaggy beast with brown fur and tiny round ears? Delta shuddered at the thought and pressed himself further down, not wanting to be on the receiving end again of those frighteningly long claws again.
DICE ROLL: Stealth
Success: Delta buries himself successfully beneath the sand. He clearly dove down to hide, but can Saira find him?
Failure: Poor guy tried his best, but he's totally visible still in the clear water.