Post by Sohtoh on May 29, 2009 22:54:40 GMT -5
Starring:
Roscoe - Male Whitetail Deer
Tix - Female Whitetail Deer
Mehira - Female Whitetail Deer
Nashota - Female Lynx
Setting:
Starts in the Maple Glade, goes through Deepening Woods, Thickening Forest, Dense Undergrowth, Fallen Log, Calm River, Swampy Marsh, Reedy Pool, and ends at the Tranquil Pond.
Without much of a grin or any other form of emotion, the buck led the way east. Where were they headed to this fine morning? Anywhere but here. He had explored the areas around his glade for weeks, and had ran out of luck after finding only a small number of does. Perhaps more deer were near a more suitable body of water? A pool and pond he knew of, they could travel to. It was a long journey, but would only take them a few hours if they were not distracted in their quest. Head held high, the Prince walked along without a word, his attention focused solely on getting to the swampy area quickly and most importantly, safely. The dark buck gave a quick glance back at the doe, but otherwise kept his red eyes forward. Silent and non-approachable as ever, Roscoe was.
Following along behind, the young adult was easily able to keep pace with Roscoe as her long, slender legs stretched out one after the other. It was quite customary now for Tix to walk with a graceful, proud stance; the Prince's posture had impressed the doe to the point of imitation. She offered no word of conversation to the male as they crossed through the trees but her senses were quite alert. Small ears constantly flicked to and fro, her black nose inhaling deep the scents surrounding them. She had no quarrel or question about where they moved to, so long as Tix was able to stay beside Roscoe throughout the journey.
As the morning wore on, Mehira had traversed throughout the forest, keeping to the shadows and scenting the wind often for signs of predators or other deer. Now that the sun had made its way well into the sky, the doe has decided to start circling back. Her eyes and ears miss nothing and her hooves don't make even the slightest sound as she walks. After a while, she realizes that she's approaching the meeting area that she and Roscoe had settled on. She hoped that he had better luck than she did. Within another twenty paces, she pauses and hold her head high, scenting the breeze. Ah, so Roscoe has made it already! The scent of another deer floats along with his, and Mehira grins. He /had/ found someone! She presses on through the forest, eventually stopping alongside a large tree, its bark still wet and very dark. The doe stands out against the deep brown, and with any luck the other deer will see her soon.
As their journey had continued on, Roscoe found himself looking back at Tix fewer and fewer times. He figured that by now she would be used to his on again off again conversational nature, and today happened to be off again. The velvet antlers protruding from his head all the sudden tilted back, as the Prince caught a whiff of something familiar; Mehira, the younger doe. The two had began walking about very early this morning, splitting up so that he could go in search of Tix, since he had a vague idea of where she had been resting. The deepening woods where the pair of Tix and himself was the meeting place that Roscoe and Mehira had agreed upon meeting later, so it was no suprise that he'd caught her scent. Looking back at Tix, he motioned his head forward. "Come, there is another doe that you should meet." he said quietly, and followed the adolescant's scent.
Tix allowed herself to relax in the pleasant warmth of the late morning, finding more interest in her surroundings rather than Roscoe himself. Quite assured that he would be first to warn her of incoming danger, the doe occasionally let her guard slip, just enough to ensure she was keeping pace and maintaining the graceful appearance she could muster. The scent of Mehira drifted through to Tix a split second after Roscoe had recognised it, and her ears suddenly perked forwards, curious. ".. Another doe.. ?" She questioned the Prince as he motioned forwards, her dark eyes blinking quickly. The one he had spoke of a few nights ago, perhaps? A simple nod is given from the brown-pelted female as she follows along in Roscoe's trail, keeping her eyes alert for a sign of the other Whitetail.
Mehira remains where she is, standing out perfectly against the tree. The others are sure to pass this way, so she simply remains patient. Another breeze blows past, and the scent is stronger now. The adolescent stretches her neck out and holds her head high, not to scent this time but to watch for movement. When she sees it, she offers a few bleats in their direction to get their attention. She decides to wait to move until she's sure Roscoe has seen her.
Red eyes wary and ears flicked upwards, Roscoe waits for any sign of the doe to appear; and he sees her first. Sticking out like a sore thumb against the trees that she stood by, and her bleats afterwards confirmed her location. Normally, the buck would've chastised the poor doe for bleating like that, especially where predators could be lurking. But, it was in the middle of the morning. A rather safe time for deer in general. Glancing back at the darker doe, he spoke again. "That is her. She's a young one, named Mehira." he offered the name of the other female, and continued his medium-paced stroll towards her without much of a greeting. Truthfully, he wanted the two does to talk amongst themselves, and leave him out of it. He was their protector for the day, not someone to converse with.
The bleats naturally catch Tix off-guard, since she is so unaccustomed to hearing it. It had been a long time since she last made any other noise aside her usual talking. Flicking her ears forwards and peering through the woodland, the sight of Mehira comes into view and warily Tix follows the Prince's steps towards her. Younger? A sign of relief sweeps across the female's eyes and with a curteous smile the older doe bowed her head in greeting. Meeting a younger female of her own species seemed to prove less of a confidence issue with Tix as she carried on walking, approaching Mehira slowly. Her dark eyes sparkled warmly as she came to a halt before Mehira, extending her neck to gently sniff at the adolescent's pelt. ".. You must be the doe Roscoe spoke of.." Tix calmly speaks, turning a glance on the Prince to confirm her statement, ".. It is a pleasure to meet you, Mehira.".
Mehira immediately moves away from the tree as soon as she knows she's been spotted. No sense staying in plain sight when it's not needed. The doe bows her own head in greeting and grins. "Pleasure's all mine." Just as she's about to ask the fellow doe her name, Mehira remembers Roscoe. "Oh! Please excuse me a second." With that, she turns to the buck and stands proud, clearing her throat and making a report. "No other deer in my neck of the woods, sir. I searched the entire area, and unless they're /really/ good at hiding, there weren't any there. I even asked a woodpecker I came across if he'd seen any, but he said he hadn't either. Nothing else to report." She awaits Roscoe's response, planning to chat with the other doe once he's made his opinion known.
Standing silent and stoic as was usual for him, Roscoe says nothing to either of the does for the length of their meeting. A simple nod is given toward Tix in regards to if he had spoken of Mehira before or not, and the same nod is given to Mehira when she informs him that she had found no other deer where she had searched. A nod and nothing else. In fact, he looked away and flicked his ears about to decide in which direction to go. East seemed good, towards the thickening forest. They would skip past the lush clearing that way, in an effort to prevent the does from grazing too long. He trusted them to follow, but perhaps he didn't trust them enough yet. Still without a word, the Prince picked up his hooves and began moving further eastward.
Tix seemed surprised when Mehira excused herself to talk to the Prince. Sure he was the only male, so he was bound to recieve a lot of attention.. But was that a spark of jealousy then? No.. It couldn't be! Tix merely smiled throughout Mehira's report to Roscoe and stood to one side, watching her. When the stag did not respond verbally and carry on walking, she was fast to pick up the pace and carry on walking. She spared a glance to the younger female but made no other effort to talk. Maybe Tix wasn't interesting enough for Mehira? Well, there were always more does out there, hopefully. As the trio set through the thickening forest, the older female lifted her head and gracefully stepped along beside Roscoe, although slightly loitering behind him slightly in a sign of respect for the male's authority. She remained silent throughout the journey, with her senses picking up again to alert her of predators and danger.
Soon as she gets Roscoe's (non)response, she shrugs and falls back in line with Tix. Dropping her voice to a whisper, she strikes up a conversation, and revealing her intentions as far as turning her attention toward the buck. "Sorry about that, just wanted to get it out of the way. Figured he might be interested in what I found out there. Huh, a whole lot of nothing, unfortunately. So what's your name? Did Roscoe just find you today?" The adolescent keeps her wits about her, but since Roscoe is apparently in "leave me alone and let me watch for danger" mode, she allows herself to focus on the other doe, trusting him to do all the watching since he obviously wasn't interested in any of the conversing.
Having been paying very little attention to the emotions of the does, it would've flown right past Roscoe if Tix had become slightly jealous of Mehira. Though, he did speak up for a moment. "We'll be heading to the undergrowth soon. When we do, keep alert." he said rather dully, figuring that the undergrowth would be a good place to find other deer, especially on a day like this. With the sun beating down, the branches and bushes would provide them with good shelter. Then again, perhaps he had missed an opportunity by skipping out on the clearing. Saying nothing else, the male flicked his tail and ears, and picked up his pace in order to climb up a rather steep hill, and made his way further south toward the undergrowth.
As the forest and undergrowth grows thicker, Tix's sense of direction seems to be lost. Having not ventured far from the vunerable clearing where she had spent the last phase of her life growing older, moving into such a dense area seemed a lot more worrying for the female. Avoiding a bush and almost bumping into Mehira in the process, the doe suddenly remembers that Mehira had spoke to her. "It.. It's alright.." Tix quietly replies, seemingly afraid that her chattering might get her a scolding from Roscoe. Glancing around as commanded beforehand, Tix narrowly avoids stepping on a branch and continues talking in a hushed tone. "I.. um.. Me and Roscoe met many days ago. He.. He just never took me out on these walks before.." Whether it was for her safety or just for convenience, Tix wasn't sure.
Mehira nods, glancing about as she ducks into the undergrowth. "So he didn't find anyone new today, either. Ah, well. I'm sure we'll hit a streak of luck sooner or later." The doe grazes her leg on a patch of thorns, and grits her teeth as she pulls it free. "This is the first walk I've been on too. Pity we've got to go through all this shrubbery. Wonder where he's taking us?" Mehira briefly considers rearing up so she can see how far this undergrowth goes for, but doesn't dare incur Roscoe's wrath. She'd like to avoid getting the stink-eye today, thank you very much.
The Prince of course hears the does conversing behind him, and gives the duo a few backward glances along the way, but still says nothing. Gracefully stepping over fallen logs and branches, and ignoring the slightly painful thorn bushes that wrapped around his hooves and legs, Roscoe keeps his mouth shut up until Mehira questions where they're going. This, he answers. "We're going to a pond. Now hush." he remarked calmly, and told the both of them to hush in regard to their complaining of the thorns and bushes. It was a quicker way to the fallen log; a rather principle area of the forest. Head still kept high above the two does, the buck cleared his throat, for shortly they would arrive at the log.
Clearing through the bushes leaves Tix with making just a sigh of relief. She didn't mind being told to hush; she knew that silence was a key factor in keeping safe and being able to spot out any other deer. As the three of them come into view of the large log, Tix lets her attention wander away from Mehira to eye the fallen vegetation. A seemingly pained look crosses the doe's face as she looks at the dead tree, but the small flower growing beside it doesn't yet go unnoticed. Tix carefully makes a turn to respectfully walk around the log, not wanting to disturb it's resting place or not disturb any creature living inside it.
Mehira is tempted to pull a face and stick her tongue out at Roscoe, but doesn't. Her attention is quickly caught by the tree anyway, and she sniffs at the bark. A look of sadness crosses her face, and she follows Tix around it, head lowered in respect to the fallen giant. Mehira had always liked trees, and could never stand to be out of the forest for too long. Meadows were nice, especially the ones with bushes or long grass to hide behind, but nothing compared to a forest. Her nose brushes the flower, and she smiles a bit. Hopefully the next time she passes here there will be many such flowers. Returning her gaze to Roscoe, she continues to follow, eager to see this pond.
Unlike the two females, Roscoe held the fallen tree in no regard. It was just an obstacle to be overcome, in his eyes. And overcome it was. Leaping over the large log, he landed with a soft 'thud' on the other side, not losing his composure throughout his jump. Silently carrying on, he looked backwards to make sure that the two does were still nearby, and was glad that they were. They had even fallen silent, just like him. This bothered him slightly, as he hoped he hadn't put them into a sour mood. With a light sigh, the Prince spoke to the both of them. "You two should like the pond. I've only been there once, but I enjoyed it." he said quietly, but loud enough for them to hear. The trip through the area where the fallen log had rested was as short lived as the other areas, as the buck continued leading the two fellow deer east, towards the river.
Watching Roscoe leap over the log, Tix let her mouth fall open in horror. How.. Could he? Did the stag have no respect for the fallen tree? The doe's mouth closed and her eyes narrowed into a glare. She had just lost from respect for this "Prince". Not even royalty should think of themselves above disrespecting the dead! Tix ignored Roscoe's words and she shakes her neck in dissaproval, looking to the other doe to ensure that she's still keeping up. The curious look that Tix gives Mehira is questioning: Was she taken aback by Roscoe's lack of respect as well?
Mehira freezes with one leg in the air as she watches Roscoe's leap. Her eyes narrow a bit and she pulls a wry face, but she pretty much shrugs it off, unsurprised. She glances to the other doe, and sees that she's not the only one unimpressed with the lack of respect. Must be a male thing. She breaks into a silent trot to make up the gap caused by her pause, stopping behind the older doe. She says nothing, but she does give Tix a knowing look. She'll bring it up later when the two are alone, so as not to cause Roscoe to get angry. Perhaps later they can broach the subject with Roscoe himself, perhaps he simply did not know about such matters, in which case he could be educated and all would be well. For now, she simply waits to see what Roscoe wanted to do about the river that lay in front of them.
Had he cared more about the does at that specific time, he would've looked back, asked them what was wrong, and explain himself about jumping over the log. However he didn't care much about /them/ right now, exactly. He wanted them to follow him, to help him search for more deer, but their emotions and concerns were put on the back burner for the time being. In unfamiliar lands like these, the Prince had to be engulfed in his senses, to find his way to where they were going. Travelling further to the east, they would have to cross the calm, shallow river. Not looking back to warn them, he simply walked in to the water, his hooves stepping into the cool liquid with hardly a sound. Only rippling echoes were made by his pace, as he didn't lift his hooves out of the water again, just strided through it.
As the three Whitetails approach the wide river, Tix takes a final glance back at the log they had passed and then turns her attention forwards to the river. Sudden awareness places Tix in the thought that she hadn't actually drank much since her first encounter with Roscoe. Allowing Mehira to go ahead and seemingly not caring if the Prince moves on either, she lowers her head to drink deeply from the water. She lets herself be sustained, even if they're travelling to a pond. Lifting her head, glistening water drips from the female's muzzle as she slowly steps into the water, going slowly with no real effort to catch the others up.
Mehira blinks confusedly as Roscoe simply walks into the water, and only then bothers to look ahead of him at the center of the river. Well, duh! The water's barely moving, there is no need for any scheming to get across. How convenient! She's had a drink recently, but isn't one to pass up the chance for cold, sweet riverwater, so she too drops her head momentarily to suck up a few mouthfuls. She then makes her way into the water, shivering a bit at the difference in temperature. The air may be warm, but it will be quite some time before it's been warm long enough to heat the water. With her tail flicking side-to-side behind her as some gnats tickle her haunches, Mehira continues to follow Roscoe until she's across the river and into... a swamp? Ew! A frog startles and leaps into the muck a few feet away, and the doe wrinkles her nose. Well, at least they can wash the filth off when they get to the pond.
Eyes still only half open, the rather relaxed buck turns his head, and only sees little Mehira there by his side. With a blink, he lifts a hoof and turns his head further, seeing Tix still dawdling in the river. With a furrow of his brows, he calls out to her. "Tix, we must carry on." he said rather loudly, making sure that his voice carried to her, since she was a good distance away still. He hadn't even begun to think that he'd upset her in any way, as to him, the log was just a log, and nothing more. Placing his cloven hoof back onto the ground, only then did Roscoe fully realize that they had arrived at the swamp. His hoof sinking into the saturated, muddy ground, he lifted his hooves more to move forward, but did move forward just as gracefully as ever. The swamp was thicker and harder to get through, but soon they would be at the moor, and be one step closer to the pond. His eyes, ears and nose alert, now was the time that he began looking about more and more for other deer, but nothing came to any of his senses.
Tix lifts her head as Roscoe calls out to her and slowly she pulls herself out of the water. Meeting the marsh underfoot doesn't seem to speed her up though. Making no effort to retain her previous graceful pose, her legs pull forcefully through the sticky mud and eventually free onto the dryer land of the moor. She's still some distance behind the other two, but stepping onto the moor gives Tix more freedom to speed up. Choosing to do so, the female composes herself and lets her long legs pace her along more smoothly. Her head held high, she doesn't choose to speak or look at either of her travelling companions.
Mehira isn't paying much attention to Tix either, other than pausing to let her catch up. She's just glad to get through the swamp and onto the moor. She stops short at one point, having walked right into a huge swarm of gnats, and stumbles forward shaking her head. Arrgh! One got into her ear! Speeding up to a trot, the doe quickly ditches the bugs and retreats to Roscoe's shadow to attempt to dislodge the offending insect. She looks rather goofy attempting to shake the bug out, but she doesn't care. It itches. Soon, the bug is gone and Mehira can concentrate on getting the hell out of this area.
Roscoe had always rather enjoyed swamps. Aside from the bugs, they were a good place to hide out and rest, especially in the summers back home. Perhaps the bugs would be a little too much in these new lands, but the Prince enjoyed the moor while he could. Pressing on though, the smells that gave off all signs of a pond wafted through his nostrils, and he knew it was close. With a tiny, hardly noticeable girn, the buck switched directions and headed south. He glanced back yet again at the two does, but still didn't seem to catch Tix's sudden mood change. Hopefully when they finally arrived at their destination, he would.
As Tix follows in from the moor, shaking her own bugs away, her eyes adjust to the large body of water before them. The willow tree is easily noticed first and Tix can easily picture herself resting under it later. Her attention seems to be everywhere else but looking at Roscoe. No other deer around? Oh well. Tix seems to not be bothered by this fact as she wanders down to the edge of the water, gazing down as the water laps at her cloven hooves. Thoughts gather in Tix's mind and she lets herself be isolated for the moment, letting the Prince and Mehira do their own thing.
Disappointed at the lack of other cervidae life here, the Prince closed his eyes with concerned brows, and shook his head. All this way, and there was nothing. Just bugs, frogs, and other pests about the place. Were the does that he had met here the only ones he would meet? Quite happy with his company for the time being, he was beginning to lose hope in this place. His eyes remained closed and that concerned look remained on his face for quite some time, ears back in some sort of regretful or depressed form, but his back was turned to Tix. The other doe was gone, adolescant though she was, she had probably hopped off to look around the area. Eyes opening, he turned around slowly and glanced at the older female. "I apologize.. for bringing you all this way."
Finally lowering her head after regarding the water for so long, the doe allowed herself the pleasure of another drink. Her ears tilted backwards and seemed to disregard the idea of predators; out here in the open there was little chance a predator would spring on them without being noticed first. Finally turning her eyes onto Roscoe as he talks, the doe lifts her head and shakes her head slowly. "It's fine.. Honestly. I'm glad to have seen more of these lands.. Even if brief." Her last phrase is a little quieter. Pawing gently at the dirt, the female looks out across the other banks. It seems she wants to look anywhere but directly at the Prince.
Worry had now consumed the Prince. Though he hid it well, he was greatly worried that they were the last of the whitetail population in this area, and he sighed heavily. He did have hope reserved somewhere in his being, but for now, he gazed somberly down at the reflection of his chest up to his face in the pond. Letting his eyelids return up to their half-open state, Roscoe finally noticed the change in the doe's attitude. "Is.. something wrong?" he asked in another concerned tone, walking over to her slowly.
In his speculations about what had happened to the whitetails here, he couldn't help but think of his home herd in the back of his mind. Had they survived the human intrusion? Had they gone ahead and moved out ot that area? He wondered, but he would never know. Going back was not an option. Roscoe had taken the responsibility of the does' lives and well being in his hooves, and took his position as lead buck here seriously. Though, he certainly did miss the milder weather. With a blink at Tix's sudden lift of her muzzle to his, he let out a huff of breath, knowing something was wrong with her. "You haven't talked since before we passed by that log, and you expect me to believe nothing is wrong?" he asked with a light hearted chuckle, "You must think think of me as just another dumb buck, then?"
Tix let her muzzle push forwards and eventually it came to the point where Tix was standing quite close to the Prince, trying to nudge her head securely beneath his. In all honesty she was trying to reassure herself at the same time, but it clearly wasn't working. "I-I've just been thinking.. That's all.." Maybe lecturing Roscoe about his respect for the dead wasn't the best thing to go on today. Flattening her ears down and sighing lightly, the doe turns her attention towards the gently rippling water instead. "I.. Don't know any other males.. You're the most noble and handsome stag I know.." She smiles a little, letting her eyes close to full appreciate the attempted embrace.
It took him a minute to respond, being so lost in all of his thoughts. The contemplative, rather melancholy Prince finally did respond though, by putting his head on top of hers an a reassuring manner. He was still oblivious to the fact that his leap over the log had offended her, and if she didn't mention it to him, he would never be any the wiser. Trees were somthing he respected to a point, but old, dead, fallen logs were not. A cloud hovered over the bright light of the sun, and with a glance upwards, Roscoe noticed the threatening nature of that cloud. Very early this morning at around dawn, it had rained as well. Perhaps the storm was coming back. What luck. With a gloomy roll of his eyes, Roscoe removed his head from hers, but did manage a grin at the compliment. Unfortunately for the female though, the Prince's reclusive mood had returned, and he stepped away from her again.
After the stag moved away, Tix found herself staring at the water again, unaware of the approaching cloud cover. "It's just.. The log earlier.. You-.." Tix cut herself off shook her head. Was there any point? Obviously the buck had his reasons for disregarding the fallen tree. Maybe rather than lecturing, she should have just tried to understand him instead. "It.. I.. S-Seeing you leap over that tree.. It.. I have r-respect for the d-d-dead.." It seemed to be taking a lot for Tix to actually say her feelings out loud. Her ears were clearly flattened and she was visibly frightened by talking her mind. "Y-you.. It.. It upset me.. T-to see you.." Unable to finish the sentence, Tix finds herself backing off quickly, scared that the Prince would shout. A glance is shed to the path behind her, her dark eyes looking for an escape route. Her fear of the stag, the previous primitive fear which had prevented her from talking to him on their first meeting, seemed to have returned.
The doe's fear was well placed, since the already rather irritated buck didn't take very kindly to her insinuation that he had no respect for the dead, nor to her stuttering. Red eyes narrowing upon the female, he took a step closer to her, and lowered his brows. "I have more respect for the dead than you'll ever have in your life." he said in a near-threatening manner, the mention of 'dead' bringing up painful memories of his own father's death. "It was a log, and that log has been there for years. Just because I jumped over something, does not mean that I don't respect it's place here." his voice lowering, his brows raised again, and he shook his head, disappointed in himself, but also at Tix. This whole trip had gone wrong, and he wished he hadn't offered for either doe to come along. Without another word, the Prince turned his back and stepped into the large pond slowly, the first small drips of rain being felt upon his back."
The tone of Roscoe's voice was all that was needed for Tix to totally break down. She knew that trying to lecture him wasn't going to work, and furthermore his retort simply terrified her. She didn't want to accept his own beliefs of the fallen tree being 'just a log' and she shook her head in response. He wouldn't have seen it though, since he was already stepping into the pond. The rain was appropriate it seemed as they seemed to form tears running down the female's elegant muzzle. Turning her head away, Tix remained silent and her body followed suit as she began to trot away, back in the direction of the moor. Perhaps Roscoe would do better finding a doe who was a lot more understanding of him.
Ears perking up, he couldn't sense the doe at all after a moment, and looked up to see her trotting away. Just what he needed.. an imperfect ending to an imperfect day. With a gruff noise, the buck backed up out of the water, and broke into a full gallop after her. It was his fault, for becoming rather angry with her; though that was /not/ his complete anger. In fact, her running off put him in a more irritable mood, but knew that yelling at her or raising his voice proved to be very ineffective. The rain coming down harder with each of his steps, the Prince finally caught up to her, and stood in front of her path, but didn't say anything. Instead, he just caught his breath from his gallop through his nose, his chest puffing and making him appear slightly larger. Staring down at her, he showed no anger, but still didn't speak.
Tix flicked her ears backwards as she suddenly became aware that Roscoe was following her, and that simply worried the female even more. Was he angry at her for trying to leave? Was he so desperate to keep any doe he could find? Pausing in her tracks as the Prince blocked her exit, Tix too remained silent, staring at the buck with the lack of confidence to speak. No.. She couldn't let her fear overcome her this time.. Slowly, the doe tries to sidestep Roscoe and continue, although her eyes remain fixed upon Roscoe. Knowing that he was stronger built terrified the poor female, and she was well aware it was well within his power to force her to stay, even if by force.
Again, the doe was right. If words didn't work, he would make her stay by force. The sad fact of the matter was that he /was/ desperate for does. Though, he had a soft spot for Tix and didn't want to have to force her to stay. With the rain beating down on both of the deer, Roscoe finally spoke. "I'm very sorry, but don't leave.. it's not safe out there and.." he furrowed his brows again, blocking her sidestep as well, "I like having you around." he finished his sentence, but scraped one of his front hooves against the saturated ground to at least let her know that she /wasn't/ going to leave. Flicking his ears forward, he hoped to show her that he wasn't trying to be aggressive but rather defensive of his tiny herd.
With the rain now belting down at it's strongest, Tix is still clearly terrified as Roscoe once again steps in to block her. Her eyes turn from him to the area beyond, knowing well that if she bolted now for whatever low foilage she could, the Prince would easily lose track of her in order to preserve his antlers. His words are regarded carefully, and Tix tries to shake off the idea of it not being safe. "I.. I've survived months alone whilst I was younger.." She mutters in reply, turning in the other direction and stepping back. It seemed his defensiveness wasn't coming along well at all.. His attempt to make her feel better was ignored and with a graceful spring Tix tried to bound off again, although at this distance between the two Whitetails, it would prove futile that she would make it very far.
Though he hated to show his aggressive side, if Tix was going to threaten him with her dispatch from the herd, then he had little choice. His words didn't help to calm her, so it was onto his second plan. The rain annoyed him, but it didn't stop him. With his brows furrowing angrily, the buck too chased after the doe, and aimed to keep her with him at all costs, even if a wound was that cost. Bounding quickly after her, he caught up after a few moments of chasing. At her side, he lifted his head quickly, viciously, to show that he would use his antlers if he had to. So far, he didn't have to. But he did quicken his pace even more and stopped in front of her again. "Stop running!" he demanded, and stomped a hoof, "I'm not going to chase after you forever!" he said in a calmer, but still loud tone. His ears pinned back and his eyes widened, he certainly did look irritated. A peaceful day at the pond had turned into a stormy chase through the mud.
Dashing through the now muddy ground underfoot, Tix was rapidly becoming more frightened by the idea that Roscoe was going to hurt her if she didn't keep away from him. A puddle splashed beneath her hooves and stained her coat in muddy water, but it didn't hinder the young adult. As the Prince caught up to her flank, Tix's eyes widened in horror when she noticed that he had intent to use his antlers; something the doe was clearly not wanting. Her form skidded to a halt as he once again blocked her path, and almost instantly she withdraw backwards, heaving for breath and cowering low. It didn't take a genius to tell that Tix was terrified, and getting even more worked up with the passing seconds. All instinct told the female she didn't want to be near the stag - not when he was irritated like this. So once again, turning on haunches the doe made a panicked dash back towards to pond, although in truth her scared mind had no idea of where she was trying to escape to anymore.
Times like these, he really wished that he was a predator of some sorts, so that he could more easily show his frustrations by growling, or get her to stay still by using claws or fangs. But times like those never did last long, for he would always come back to his senses. It was certainly clear to the Prince that Tix was deathly afraid of him right now, but he couldn't quite make out /why/ she was so afraid. She should've known by now that he wouldn't ever want to hurt her.. and that her running was only exacerbating things. His pride wouldn't allow him to apologize again, so he would not do that. Instead, he would continue to chase her until she submitted. And so he did. As the female turned around and ran away again, the male let out another low sound, and booked after her. Fast though she was, he was faster, and stronger. So this time, he didn't hold back. Though it hurt him to do so both mentally and physically, the buck caught up to her side again and rammed into the doe's body with his own, wanting to knock her into the mud surrounding the pond. Then, and only then, would he begin to talk things out. Until then, he had to show his dominance.
Again the doe splashes through the mud and rain in a frantic attempt to escape, and once again her lack of speed proves futile. Unable to form any idea of how to actually regain her thoughts and composure, let alone try to escape, Tix frantically made for the pond in hopes that the stag would be disabled and unable to keep up with her if he got stuck. Her plan doesn't even lift off however as Roscoe easily keeps pace with her. The attack comes unexpected and remarkably, Tix doesn't make a sound as her weaker body is sent crashing into the mud. She makes no move to stand, and instead lays there in a trembling wreck, heaving for breath and staring at the Prince as if he were a predator about to make a killing blow.
Finally, she stopped running. His plan worked just fine, and he stood over her, his chest puffing in and out once again as he caught his breath. It wasn't a very tiring chase, but he hadn't run for anything like that in a while. With his brows furrowed once again and his face showing nothing but pure rage, he let out a huff of breath from his nostrils, and glared down at her. "Are you quite done making a fool of yourself?" he practically spat at her, and his expression faded into that of apathy, no longer in an aggressive state of mind but still hovering above her, in case she had any ideas about running again. The dark pelted male shook his body in order to get the rain water off of his shedding fur, regaining his regal composure afterward.
Stuck in the mud is taking to a whole new level with Tix as she finds herself physically restricted by the wet soil. In a mental sense, she isn't sure how to act right now, since she's still contained with a great amount of fear and shock. In desperation the female Whitetail pulls her legs, although they are not easily going to get free anytime. Trust her to make such an awkward landing! Panting and looking around frantically, it seems that the last thing Tix has on mind is to reply. When her eyes finally land on his hovering form, she cowers low beneath him, her ears pulled back and her entire dark-pelted body shaking violently.
Unbeknownst to everyone, including herself most likely, a lynx creeps through the cattails. Though she's moving as quietly as possible, she's not hunting the two whitetails. In fact, she's probably forgotten why she's being quiet, and it's also likely that she's unaware of the deer at all. In fact, she abruptly breaks the silence by saying, "Your stalking is so quiet today. Why, thank you!" About the same time she wanders out of the cattails, still quite some distance from the deer but clearly visible.
Just as the buck was about to delve into some hardcore apologizing to the poor doe that he had chased around until she had nearly passed out from fear, his ears perked up, and he caught a whiff of somethind dreadfully unfamiliar. Nose raised high into the sky and his eyes and ears ever alert, it didn't take him long at all to see and hear the lynx in the background. At least, it looked like a lynx. From this distance, he couldn't tell if it was a bobcat or a lynx. Either way, it was a predator. A small one, but Tix had become stuck in the mud during their chase. Still very keen to the feline's presence, he leaned his neck down, and started to nudge Tix very gently. "You have to get up.." he whispered, but gave no reason yet. "Get up.." he encouraged once more, and continued to try and help her get out of the mud.
Tix seemed to calm a little further as her predicament in the mud left her only the option to try and settle down and regain her thoughts. Her heavy breathing slowed somewhat as she continued to stare at the stag looming above her. However, with her still in such a panicked state, the doe becomes quite unaware of anything around her aside from Roscoe. In fact, it seemed her hearing and scenting had a total shutdown in regards to the presence of the lynx. As the Prince leant down to nudge her, Tix began to wheeze and breath heavily again, struggling and whimpering in fear. Tix was deathly afraid that his nudging was going to resort to more violence, and it gave her more reason to just get even more stuck in the mud from her attempts to crawl away.
Abruptly spotting the two deer, the lynx pauses mid-stride and her eyes go wide. "Aranck, lord of the stars and Magena, the queen of the night!" she exclaims, bowing her head humbly. But when she looks up again, she says, "No, we're mistaken. You're just two ordinary deer, and we aren't hungry." She starts to laugh at her silly mistake but it quickly turns into a hacking cough. "Excuse me," she says at the end of her coughing fit, "But the swallows have been putting nasty herbs in my food." Her gaze wanders over the two deer again, resting on Roscoe before she abruptly turns her head again, as if suddenly shy.
"GET UP!" he yelled at the doe, and nudged her as hard as he could without harming her, getting very, very frustrated with the doe. But after his yell, he remembered that anger only made her more scared, and that he had given away their position in the pond even more, though the lynx seemed to be right there, Nudging Tix even more, he moved away from her and took an aggressive stance in front of the lynx. Even if this little cat wasn't going to try and eat them, he didn't want it anywhere near them. His hooves moved shoulder width apart, and he lowered his head, shoving his velvet-coated antlers at the feline. "Get away from us.." he said in a low, threatening voice, his red eyes fixated upon the predator.
The single yell was all that was needed for the doe to break free of the mud. For all the wrong reasons though! Swiftly and naturally the doe's legs were under her and forcing the female to stand, at which she didn't waste a second. With the mud sticking to her sides and weighing her down, Tix's tail flared up in the danger signal and her body turned in a bolt of fear. With her senses still clogged up from the panicked moment, the poor female had no idea that the lynx was even there. To her, Roscoe was the main enemy here. Using her long legs to gain an advantage, Tix ducks beneath the cover of the willow tree on the eastern side and spares a glance backwards. When she realises that the Prince is not pursuing her she pauses in her tracks and stands off in the distance, her ears perked and her senses regaining to try and track the male. Still visible where he had left her, the scent of the lynx finally wafts in Tix's direction. Eyes widening in alarm, the female is unsure whether to keep on running or stay to ensure that Roscoe is fine.
Nashota shys away a few steps, but probably not nearly enough for the buck's peace of mind. "Playing hard to get, eh?" she says with a knowing smile and a wink. "Oh, and good morning Nashota, how are you? I'm fine, thank you!" she adds, her voice turning quite pleasant. She sniffs the ground in front of her forepaws, selects a blade of grass, and starts to consume it. Then she starts grooming a forepaw, blissfully unaware of how angry she's probably making the buck.
Not only had Tix gotten away from him again, but this lynx was either just playing dumb with him. or just .. well, crazy. His nostrils flared and he let out another gruff breath from them, glaring at the smaller beast as he lifted his head, and looked toward Tix. With a relatively saddened look on his face, he lifted his hooves out of the mud, not bothering to chase her anymore. She wanted to be out in the forest with no one to protect her? That was her choice. His head held very uncharacteristically low, he slinked off into the distance, the rain and swamp water washing some of the mud off of his hooves.
The doe seems to calm down much more rapidly without the Prince near her, and in the process she becomes quite aware of the situaton. Dreaded realisation dawns on the doe as she becomes aware that he had been trying to protect her after all. More than ever now did Tix want to follow the stag, but with the presence of the lynx, she dared not to. Her only option now was to turn and leave. With Roscoe rapidly moving off into the distance, Tix let her safety become forfeit as she bleats out to him in hopes that he would hear her through the rain. Thinking that he would not regardless, Tix turned her soggy form about and began heading north back towards the moor, in hopes that she might find a way back to her old home.
The lynx watches the buck start to walk off, and for whatever reason that attracts her attention to him. "You know, we saw a lot of other does in the forest to the west of here. You might want to check it out," she says casually, before adding, "Hmm, I'm thirsty." She stands up and approaches the pond, glancing at her reflection with a quiet purr before she licks at the surface. "We don't have anyone ourselves, do we?" she says with a sigh.
Had he not come from the west himself, he probably would've gone back in search for them. Tix was just one doe anyway, he didn't see why he was so upset over losing her again. After all, he still had the other four, though he hadn't seen three of them in a great deal of time. With a near silent sigh, the regal buck slowly lifted his head, and ultimately forced any thought of the doe out of his mind. Just like when he left home before, shoving any thought of his previous herd away. He was quite capable of bitterly forgetting certain deer, even if his memories of them did pop back up later in life. Ears pinned against his head, his gait quickened, and he wandered into uncharted lands to the southeast. At nearly a full gallop, the buck was out of the pond in no time, and hadn't many plans on returning to that dreadful forest.
Roscoe - Male Whitetail Deer
Tix - Female Whitetail Deer
Mehira - Female Whitetail Deer
Nashota - Female Lynx
Setting:
Starts in the Maple Glade, goes through Deepening Woods, Thickening Forest, Dense Undergrowth, Fallen Log, Calm River, Swampy Marsh, Reedy Pool, and ends at the Tranquil Pond.
Without much of a grin or any other form of emotion, the buck led the way east. Where were they headed to this fine morning? Anywhere but here. He had explored the areas around his glade for weeks, and had ran out of luck after finding only a small number of does. Perhaps more deer were near a more suitable body of water? A pool and pond he knew of, they could travel to. It was a long journey, but would only take them a few hours if they were not distracted in their quest. Head held high, the Prince walked along without a word, his attention focused solely on getting to the swampy area quickly and most importantly, safely. The dark buck gave a quick glance back at the doe, but otherwise kept his red eyes forward. Silent and non-approachable as ever, Roscoe was.
Following along behind, the young adult was easily able to keep pace with Roscoe as her long, slender legs stretched out one after the other. It was quite customary now for Tix to walk with a graceful, proud stance; the Prince's posture had impressed the doe to the point of imitation. She offered no word of conversation to the male as they crossed through the trees but her senses were quite alert. Small ears constantly flicked to and fro, her black nose inhaling deep the scents surrounding them. She had no quarrel or question about where they moved to, so long as Tix was able to stay beside Roscoe throughout the journey.
As the morning wore on, Mehira had traversed throughout the forest, keeping to the shadows and scenting the wind often for signs of predators or other deer. Now that the sun had made its way well into the sky, the doe has decided to start circling back. Her eyes and ears miss nothing and her hooves don't make even the slightest sound as she walks. After a while, she realizes that she's approaching the meeting area that she and Roscoe had settled on. She hoped that he had better luck than she did. Within another twenty paces, she pauses and hold her head high, scenting the breeze. Ah, so Roscoe has made it already! The scent of another deer floats along with his, and Mehira grins. He /had/ found someone! She presses on through the forest, eventually stopping alongside a large tree, its bark still wet and very dark. The doe stands out against the deep brown, and with any luck the other deer will see her soon.
As their journey had continued on, Roscoe found himself looking back at Tix fewer and fewer times. He figured that by now she would be used to his on again off again conversational nature, and today happened to be off again. The velvet antlers protruding from his head all the sudden tilted back, as the Prince caught a whiff of something familiar; Mehira, the younger doe. The two had began walking about very early this morning, splitting up so that he could go in search of Tix, since he had a vague idea of where she had been resting. The deepening woods where the pair of Tix and himself was the meeting place that Roscoe and Mehira had agreed upon meeting later, so it was no suprise that he'd caught her scent. Looking back at Tix, he motioned his head forward. "Come, there is another doe that you should meet." he said quietly, and followed the adolescant's scent.
Tix allowed herself to relax in the pleasant warmth of the late morning, finding more interest in her surroundings rather than Roscoe himself. Quite assured that he would be first to warn her of incoming danger, the doe occasionally let her guard slip, just enough to ensure she was keeping pace and maintaining the graceful appearance she could muster. The scent of Mehira drifted through to Tix a split second after Roscoe had recognised it, and her ears suddenly perked forwards, curious. ".. Another doe.. ?" She questioned the Prince as he motioned forwards, her dark eyes blinking quickly. The one he had spoke of a few nights ago, perhaps? A simple nod is given from the brown-pelted female as she follows along in Roscoe's trail, keeping her eyes alert for a sign of the other Whitetail.
Mehira remains where she is, standing out perfectly against the tree. The others are sure to pass this way, so she simply remains patient. Another breeze blows past, and the scent is stronger now. The adolescent stretches her neck out and holds her head high, not to scent this time but to watch for movement. When she sees it, she offers a few bleats in their direction to get their attention. She decides to wait to move until she's sure Roscoe has seen her.
Red eyes wary and ears flicked upwards, Roscoe waits for any sign of the doe to appear; and he sees her first. Sticking out like a sore thumb against the trees that she stood by, and her bleats afterwards confirmed her location. Normally, the buck would've chastised the poor doe for bleating like that, especially where predators could be lurking. But, it was in the middle of the morning. A rather safe time for deer in general. Glancing back at the darker doe, he spoke again. "That is her. She's a young one, named Mehira." he offered the name of the other female, and continued his medium-paced stroll towards her without much of a greeting. Truthfully, he wanted the two does to talk amongst themselves, and leave him out of it. He was their protector for the day, not someone to converse with.
The bleats naturally catch Tix off-guard, since she is so unaccustomed to hearing it. It had been a long time since she last made any other noise aside her usual talking. Flicking her ears forwards and peering through the woodland, the sight of Mehira comes into view and warily Tix follows the Prince's steps towards her. Younger? A sign of relief sweeps across the female's eyes and with a curteous smile the older doe bowed her head in greeting. Meeting a younger female of her own species seemed to prove less of a confidence issue with Tix as she carried on walking, approaching Mehira slowly. Her dark eyes sparkled warmly as she came to a halt before Mehira, extending her neck to gently sniff at the adolescent's pelt. ".. You must be the doe Roscoe spoke of.." Tix calmly speaks, turning a glance on the Prince to confirm her statement, ".. It is a pleasure to meet you, Mehira.".
Mehira immediately moves away from the tree as soon as she knows she's been spotted. No sense staying in plain sight when it's not needed. The doe bows her own head in greeting and grins. "Pleasure's all mine." Just as she's about to ask the fellow doe her name, Mehira remembers Roscoe. "Oh! Please excuse me a second." With that, she turns to the buck and stands proud, clearing her throat and making a report. "No other deer in my neck of the woods, sir. I searched the entire area, and unless they're /really/ good at hiding, there weren't any there. I even asked a woodpecker I came across if he'd seen any, but he said he hadn't either. Nothing else to report." She awaits Roscoe's response, planning to chat with the other doe once he's made his opinion known.
Standing silent and stoic as was usual for him, Roscoe says nothing to either of the does for the length of their meeting. A simple nod is given toward Tix in regards to if he had spoken of Mehira before or not, and the same nod is given to Mehira when she informs him that she had found no other deer where she had searched. A nod and nothing else. In fact, he looked away and flicked his ears about to decide in which direction to go. East seemed good, towards the thickening forest. They would skip past the lush clearing that way, in an effort to prevent the does from grazing too long. He trusted them to follow, but perhaps he didn't trust them enough yet. Still without a word, the Prince picked up his hooves and began moving further eastward.
Tix seemed surprised when Mehira excused herself to talk to the Prince. Sure he was the only male, so he was bound to recieve a lot of attention.. But was that a spark of jealousy then? No.. It couldn't be! Tix merely smiled throughout Mehira's report to Roscoe and stood to one side, watching her. When the stag did not respond verbally and carry on walking, she was fast to pick up the pace and carry on walking. She spared a glance to the younger female but made no other effort to talk. Maybe Tix wasn't interesting enough for Mehira? Well, there were always more does out there, hopefully. As the trio set through the thickening forest, the older female lifted her head and gracefully stepped along beside Roscoe, although slightly loitering behind him slightly in a sign of respect for the male's authority. She remained silent throughout the journey, with her senses picking up again to alert her of predators and danger.
Soon as she gets Roscoe's (non)response, she shrugs and falls back in line with Tix. Dropping her voice to a whisper, she strikes up a conversation, and revealing her intentions as far as turning her attention toward the buck. "Sorry about that, just wanted to get it out of the way. Figured he might be interested in what I found out there. Huh, a whole lot of nothing, unfortunately. So what's your name? Did Roscoe just find you today?" The adolescent keeps her wits about her, but since Roscoe is apparently in "leave me alone and let me watch for danger" mode, she allows herself to focus on the other doe, trusting him to do all the watching since he obviously wasn't interested in any of the conversing.
Having been paying very little attention to the emotions of the does, it would've flown right past Roscoe if Tix had become slightly jealous of Mehira. Though, he did speak up for a moment. "We'll be heading to the undergrowth soon. When we do, keep alert." he said rather dully, figuring that the undergrowth would be a good place to find other deer, especially on a day like this. With the sun beating down, the branches and bushes would provide them with good shelter. Then again, perhaps he had missed an opportunity by skipping out on the clearing. Saying nothing else, the male flicked his tail and ears, and picked up his pace in order to climb up a rather steep hill, and made his way further south toward the undergrowth.
As the forest and undergrowth grows thicker, Tix's sense of direction seems to be lost. Having not ventured far from the vunerable clearing where she had spent the last phase of her life growing older, moving into such a dense area seemed a lot more worrying for the female. Avoiding a bush and almost bumping into Mehira in the process, the doe suddenly remembers that Mehira had spoke to her. "It.. It's alright.." Tix quietly replies, seemingly afraid that her chattering might get her a scolding from Roscoe. Glancing around as commanded beforehand, Tix narrowly avoids stepping on a branch and continues talking in a hushed tone. "I.. um.. Me and Roscoe met many days ago. He.. He just never took me out on these walks before.." Whether it was for her safety or just for convenience, Tix wasn't sure.
Mehira nods, glancing about as she ducks into the undergrowth. "So he didn't find anyone new today, either. Ah, well. I'm sure we'll hit a streak of luck sooner or later." The doe grazes her leg on a patch of thorns, and grits her teeth as she pulls it free. "This is the first walk I've been on too. Pity we've got to go through all this shrubbery. Wonder where he's taking us?" Mehira briefly considers rearing up so she can see how far this undergrowth goes for, but doesn't dare incur Roscoe's wrath. She'd like to avoid getting the stink-eye today, thank you very much.
The Prince of course hears the does conversing behind him, and gives the duo a few backward glances along the way, but still says nothing. Gracefully stepping over fallen logs and branches, and ignoring the slightly painful thorn bushes that wrapped around his hooves and legs, Roscoe keeps his mouth shut up until Mehira questions where they're going. This, he answers. "We're going to a pond. Now hush." he remarked calmly, and told the both of them to hush in regard to their complaining of the thorns and bushes. It was a quicker way to the fallen log; a rather principle area of the forest. Head still kept high above the two does, the buck cleared his throat, for shortly they would arrive at the log.
Clearing through the bushes leaves Tix with making just a sigh of relief. She didn't mind being told to hush; she knew that silence was a key factor in keeping safe and being able to spot out any other deer. As the three of them come into view of the large log, Tix lets her attention wander away from Mehira to eye the fallen vegetation. A seemingly pained look crosses the doe's face as she looks at the dead tree, but the small flower growing beside it doesn't yet go unnoticed. Tix carefully makes a turn to respectfully walk around the log, not wanting to disturb it's resting place or not disturb any creature living inside it.
Mehira is tempted to pull a face and stick her tongue out at Roscoe, but doesn't. Her attention is quickly caught by the tree anyway, and she sniffs at the bark. A look of sadness crosses her face, and she follows Tix around it, head lowered in respect to the fallen giant. Mehira had always liked trees, and could never stand to be out of the forest for too long. Meadows were nice, especially the ones with bushes or long grass to hide behind, but nothing compared to a forest. Her nose brushes the flower, and she smiles a bit. Hopefully the next time she passes here there will be many such flowers. Returning her gaze to Roscoe, she continues to follow, eager to see this pond.
Unlike the two females, Roscoe held the fallen tree in no regard. It was just an obstacle to be overcome, in his eyes. And overcome it was. Leaping over the large log, he landed with a soft 'thud' on the other side, not losing his composure throughout his jump. Silently carrying on, he looked backwards to make sure that the two does were still nearby, and was glad that they were. They had even fallen silent, just like him. This bothered him slightly, as he hoped he hadn't put them into a sour mood. With a light sigh, the Prince spoke to the both of them. "You two should like the pond. I've only been there once, but I enjoyed it." he said quietly, but loud enough for them to hear. The trip through the area where the fallen log had rested was as short lived as the other areas, as the buck continued leading the two fellow deer east, towards the river.
Watching Roscoe leap over the log, Tix let her mouth fall open in horror. How.. Could he? Did the stag have no respect for the fallen tree? The doe's mouth closed and her eyes narrowed into a glare. She had just lost from respect for this "Prince". Not even royalty should think of themselves above disrespecting the dead! Tix ignored Roscoe's words and she shakes her neck in dissaproval, looking to the other doe to ensure that she's still keeping up. The curious look that Tix gives Mehira is questioning: Was she taken aback by Roscoe's lack of respect as well?
Mehira freezes with one leg in the air as she watches Roscoe's leap. Her eyes narrow a bit and she pulls a wry face, but she pretty much shrugs it off, unsurprised. She glances to the other doe, and sees that she's not the only one unimpressed with the lack of respect. Must be a male thing. She breaks into a silent trot to make up the gap caused by her pause, stopping behind the older doe. She says nothing, but she does give Tix a knowing look. She'll bring it up later when the two are alone, so as not to cause Roscoe to get angry. Perhaps later they can broach the subject with Roscoe himself, perhaps he simply did not know about such matters, in which case he could be educated and all would be well. For now, she simply waits to see what Roscoe wanted to do about the river that lay in front of them.
Had he cared more about the does at that specific time, he would've looked back, asked them what was wrong, and explain himself about jumping over the log. However he didn't care much about /them/ right now, exactly. He wanted them to follow him, to help him search for more deer, but their emotions and concerns were put on the back burner for the time being. In unfamiliar lands like these, the Prince had to be engulfed in his senses, to find his way to where they were going. Travelling further to the east, they would have to cross the calm, shallow river. Not looking back to warn them, he simply walked in to the water, his hooves stepping into the cool liquid with hardly a sound. Only rippling echoes were made by his pace, as he didn't lift his hooves out of the water again, just strided through it.
As the three Whitetails approach the wide river, Tix takes a final glance back at the log they had passed and then turns her attention forwards to the river. Sudden awareness places Tix in the thought that she hadn't actually drank much since her first encounter with Roscoe. Allowing Mehira to go ahead and seemingly not caring if the Prince moves on either, she lowers her head to drink deeply from the water. She lets herself be sustained, even if they're travelling to a pond. Lifting her head, glistening water drips from the female's muzzle as she slowly steps into the water, going slowly with no real effort to catch the others up.
Mehira blinks confusedly as Roscoe simply walks into the water, and only then bothers to look ahead of him at the center of the river. Well, duh! The water's barely moving, there is no need for any scheming to get across. How convenient! She's had a drink recently, but isn't one to pass up the chance for cold, sweet riverwater, so she too drops her head momentarily to suck up a few mouthfuls. She then makes her way into the water, shivering a bit at the difference in temperature. The air may be warm, but it will be quite some time before it's been warm long enough to heat the water. With her tail flicking side-to-side behind her as some gnats tickle her haunches, Mehira continues to follow Roscoe until she's across the river and into... a swamp? Ew! A frog startles and leaps into the muck a few feet away, and the doe wrinkles her nose. Well, at least they can wash the filth off when they get to the pond.
Eyes still only half open, the rather relaxed buck turns his head, and only sees little Mehira there by his side. With a blink, he lifts a hoof and turns his head further, seeing Tix still dawdling in the river. With a furrow of his brows, he calls out to her. "Tix, we must carry on." he said rather loudly, making sure that his voice carried to her, since she was a good distance away still. He hadn't even begun to think that he'd upset her in any way, as to him, the log was just a log, and nothing more. Placing his cloven hoof back onto the ground, only then did Roscoe fully realize that they had arrived at the swamp. His hoof sinking into the saturated, muddy ground, he lifted his hooves more to move forward, but did move forward just as gracefully as ever. The swamp was thicker and harder to get through, but soon they would be at the moor, and be one step closer to the pond. His eyes, ears and nose alert, now was the time that he began looking about more and more for other deer, but nothing came to any of his senses.
Tix lifts her head as Roscoe calls out to her and slowly she pulls herself out of the water. Meeting the marsh underfoot doesn't seem to speed her up though. Making no effort to retain her previous graceful pose, her legs pull forcefully through the sticky mud and eventually free onto the dryer land of the moor. She's still some distance behind the other two, but stepping onto the moor gives Tix more freedom to speed up. Choosing to do so, the female composes herself and lets her long legs pace her along more smoothly. Her head held high, she doesn't choose to speak or look at either of her travelling companions.
Mehira isn't paying much attention to Tix either, other than pausing to let her catch up. She's just glad to get through the swamp and onto the moor. She stops short at one point, having walked right into a huge swarm of gnats, and stumbles forward shaking her head. Arrgh! One got into her ear! Speeding up to a trot, the doe quickly ditches the bugs and retreats to Roscoe's shadow to attempt to dislodge the offending insect. She looks rather goofy attempting to shake the bug out, but she doesn't care. It itches. Soon, the bug is gone and Mehira can concentrate on getting the hell out of this area.
Roscoe had always rather enjoyed swamps. Aside from the bugs, they were a good place to hide out and rest, especially in the summers back home. Perhaps the bugs would be a little too much in these new lands, but the Prince enjoyed the moor while he could. Pressing on though, the smells that gave off all signs of a pond wafted through his nostrils, and he knew it was close. With a tiny, hardly noticeable girn, the buck switched directions and headed south. He glanced back yet again at the two does, but still didn't seem to catch Tix's sudden mood change. Hopefully when they finally arrived at their destination, he would.
As Tix follows in from the moor, shaking her own bugs away, her eyes adjust to the large body of water before them. The willow tree is easily noticed first and Tix can easily picture herself resting under it later. Her attention seems to be everywhere else but looking at Roscoe. No other deer around? Oh well. Tix seems to not be bothered by this fact as she wanders down to the edge of the water, gazing down as the water laps at her cloven hooves. Thoughts gather in Tix's mind and she lets herself be isolated for the moment, letting the Prince and Mehira do their own thing.
Disappointed at the lack of other cervidae life here, the Prince closed his eyes with concerned brows, and shook his head. All this way, and there was nothing. Just bugs, frogs, and other pests about the place. Were the does that he had met here the only ones he would meet? Quite happy with his company for the time being, he was beginning to lose hope in this place. His eyes remained closed and that concerned look remained on his face for quite some time, ears back in some sort of regretful or depressed form, but his back was turned to Tix. The other doe was gone, adolescant though she was, she had probably hopped off to look around the area. Eyes opening, he turned around slowly and glanced at the older female. "I apologize.. for bringing you all this way."
Finally lowering her head after regarding the water for so long, the doe allowed herself the pleasure of another drink. Her ears tilted backwards and seemed to disregard the idea of predators; out here in the open there was little chance a predator would spring on them without being noticed first. Finally turning her eyes onto Roscoe as he talks, the doe lifts her head and shakes her head slowly. "It's fine.. Honestly. I'm glad to have seen more of these lands.. Even if brief." Her last phrase is a little quieter. Pawing gently at the dirt, the female looks out across the other banks. It seems she wants to look anywhere but directly at the Prince.
Worry had now consumed the Prince. Though he hid it well, he was greatly worried that they were the last of the whitetail population in this area, and he sighed heavily. He did have hope reserved somewhere in his being, but for now, he gazed somberly down at the reflection of his chest up to his face in the pond. Letting his eyelids return up to their half-open state, Roscoe finally noticed the change in the doe's attitude. "Is.. something wrong?" he asked in another concerned tone, walking over to her slowly.
In his speculations about what had happened to the whitetails here, he couldn't help but think of his home herd in the back of his mind. Had they survived the human intrusion? Had they gone ahead and moved out ot that area? He wondered, but he would never know. Going back was not an option. Roscoe had taken the responsibility of the does' lives and well being in his hooves, and took his position as lead buck here seriously. Though, he certainly did miss the milder weather. With a blink at Tix's sudden lift of her muzzle to his, he let out a huff of breath, knowing something was wrong with her. "You haven't talked since before we passed by that log, and you expect me to believe nothing is wrong?" he asked with a light hearted chuckle, "You must think think of me as just another dumb buck, then?"
Tix let her muzzle push forwards and eventually it came to the point where Tix was standing quite close to the Prince, trying to nudge her head securely beneath his. In all honesty she was trying to reassure herself at the same time, but it clearly wasn't working. "I-I've just been thinking.. That's all.." Maybe lecturing Roscoe about his respect for the dead wasn't the best thing to go on today. Flattening her ears down and sighing lightly, the doe turns her attention towards the gently rippling water instead. "I.. Don't know any other males.. You're the most noble and handsome stag I know.." She smiles a little, letting her eyes close to full appreciate the attempted embrace.
It took him a minute to respond, being so lost in all of his thoughts. The contemplative, rather melancholy Prince finally did respond though, by putting his head on top of hers an a reassuring manner. He was still oblivious to the fact that his leap over the log had offended her, and if she didn't mention it to him, he would never be any the wiser. Trees were somthing he respected to a point, but old, dead, fallen logs were not. A cloud hovered over the bright light of the sun, and with a glance upwards, Roscoe noticed the threatening nature of that cloud. Very early this morning at around dawn, it had rained as well. Perhaps the storm was coming back. What luck. With a gloomy roll of his eyes, Roscoe removed his head from hers, but did manage a grin at the compliment. Unfortunately for the female though, the Prince's reclusive mood had returned, and he stepped away from her again.
After the stag moved away, Tix found herself staring at the water again, unaware of the approaching cloud cover. "It's just.. The log earlier.. You-.." Tix cut herself off shook her head. Was there any point? Obviously the buck had his reasons for disregarding the fallen tree. Maybe rather than lecturing, she should have just tried to understand him instead. "It.. I.. S-Seeing you leap over that tree.. It.. I have r-respect for the d-d-dead.." It seemed to be taking a lot for Tix to actually say her feelings out loud. Her ears were clearly flattened and she was visibly frightened by talking her mind. "Y-you.. It.. It upset me.. T-to see you.." Unable to finish the sentence, Tix finds herself backing off quickly, scared that the Prince would shout. A glance is shed to the path behind her, her dark eyes looking for an escape route. Her fear of the stag, the previous primitive fear which had prevented her from talking to him on their first meeting, seemed to have returned.
The doe's fear was well placed, since the already rather irritated buck didn't take very kindly to her insinuation that he had no respect for the dead, nor to her stuttering. Red eyes narrowing upon the female, he took a step closer to her, and lowered his brows. "I have more respect for the dead than you'll ever have in your life." he said in a near-threatening manner, the mention of 'dead' bringing up painful memories of his own father's death. "It was a log, and that log has been there for years. Just because I jumped over something, does not mean that I don't respect it's place here." his voice lowering, his brows raised again, and he shook his head, disappointed in himself, but also at Tix. This whole trip had gone wrong, and he wished he hadn't offered for either doe to come along. Without another word, the Prince turned his back and stepped into the large pond slowly, the first small drips of rain being felt upon his back."
The tone of Roscoe's voice was all that was needed for Tix to totally break down. She knew that trying to lecture him wasn't going to work, and furthermore his retort simply terrified her. She didn't want to accept his own beliefs of the fallen tree being 'just a log' and she shook her head in response. He wouldn't have seen it though, since he was already stepping into the pond. The rain was appropriate it seemed as they seemed to form tears running down the female's elegant muzzle. Turning her head away, Tix remained silent and her body followed suit as she began to trot away, back in the direction of the moor. Perhaps Roscoe would do better finding a doe who was a lot more understanding of him.
Ears perking up, he couldn't sense the doe at all after a moment, and looked up to see her trotting away. Just what he needed.. an imperfect ending to an imperfect day. With a gruff noise, the buck backed up out of the water, and broke into a full gallop after her. It was his fault, for becoming rather angry with her; though that was /not/ his complete anger. In fact, her running off put him in a more irritable mood, but knew that yelling at her or raising his voice proved to be very ineffective. The rain coming down harder with each of his steps, the Prince finally caught up to her, and stood in front of her path, but didn't say anything. Instead, he just caught his breath from his gallop through his nose, his chest puffing and making him appear slightly larger. Staring down at her, he showed no anger, but still didn't speak.
Tix flicked her ears backwards as she suddenly became aware that Roscoe was following her, and that simply worried the female even more. Was he angry at her for trying to leave? Was he so desperate to keep any doe he could find? Pausing in her tracks as the Prince blocked her exit, Tix too remained silent, staring at the buck with the lack of confidence to speak. No.. She couldn't let her fear overcome her this time.. Slowly, the doe tries to sidestep Roscoe and continue, although her eyes remain fixed upon Roscoe. Knowing that he was stronger built terrified the poor female, and she was well aware it was well within his power to force her to stay, even if by force.
Again, the doe was right. If words didn't work, he would make her stay by force. The sad fact of the matter was that he /was/ desperate for does. Though, he had a soft spot for Tix and didn't want to have to force her to stay. With the rain beating down on both of the deer, Roscoe finally spoke. "I'm very sorry, but don't leave.. it's not safe out there and.." he furrowed his brows again, blocking her sidestep as well, "I like having you around." he finished his sentence, but scraped one of his front hooves against the saturated ground to at least let her know that she /wasn't/ going to leave. Flicking his ears forward, he hoped to show her that he wasn't trying to be aggressive but rather defensive of his tiny herd.
With the rain now belting down at it's strongest, Tix is still clearly terrified as Roscoe once again steps in to block her. Her eyes turn from him to the area beyond, knowing well that if she bolted now for whatever low foilage she could, the Prince would easily lose track of her in order to preserve his antlers. His words are regarded carefully, and Tix tries to shake off the idea of it not being safe. "I.. I've survived months alone whilst I was younger.." She mutters in reply, turning in the other direction and stepping back. It seemed his defensiveness wasn't coming along well at all.. His attempt to make her feel better was ignored and with a graceful spring Tix tried to bound off again, although at this distance between the two Whitetails, it would prove futile that she would make it very far.
Though he hated to show his aggressive side, if Tix was going to threaten him with her dispatch from the herd, then he had little choice. His words didn't help to calm her, so it was onto his second plan. The rain annoyed him, but it didn't stop him. With his brows furrowing angrily, the buck too chased after the doe, and aimed to keep her with him at all costs, even if a wound was that cost. Bounding quickly after her, he caught up after a few moments of chasing. At her side, he lifted his head quickly, viciously, to show that he would use his antlers if he had to. So far, he didn't have to. But he did quicken his pace even more and stopped in front of her again. "Stop running!" he demanded, and stomped a hoof, "I'm not going to chase after you forever!" he said in a calmer, but still loud tone. His ears pinned back and his eyes widened, he certainly did look irritated. A peaceful day at the pond had turned into a stormy chase through the mud.
Dashing through the now muddy ground underfoot, Tix was rapidly becoming more frightened by the idea that Roscoe was going to hurt her if she didn't keep away from him. A puddle splashed beneath her hooves and stained her coat in muddy water, but it didn't hinder the young adult. As the Prince caught up to her flank, Tix's eyes widened in horror when she noticed that he had intent to use his antlers; something the doe was clearly not wanting. Her form skidded to a halt as he once again blocked her path, and almost instantly she withdraw backwards, heaving for breath and cowering low. It didn't take a genius to tell that Tix was terrified, and getting even more worked up with the passing seconds. All instinct told the female she didn't want to be near the stag - not when he was irritated like this. So once again, turning on haunches the doe made a panicked dash back towards to pond, although in truth her scared mind had no idea of where she was trying to escape to anymore.
Times like these, he really wished that he was a predator of some sorts, so that he could more easily show his frustrations by growling, or get her to stay still by using claws or fangs. But times like those never did last long, for he would always come back to his senses. It was certainly clear to the Prince that Tix was deathly afraid of him right now, but he couldn't quite make out /why/ she was so afraid. She should've known by now that he wouldn't ever want to hurt her.. and that her running was only exacerbating things. His pride wouldn't allow him to apologize again, so he would not do that. Instead, he would continue to chase her until she submitted. And so he did. As the female turned around and ran away again, the male let out another low sound, and booked after her. Fast though she was, he was faster, and stronger. So this time, he didn't hold back. Though it hurt him to do so both mentally and physically, the buck caught up to her side again and rammed into the doe's body with his own, wanting to knock her into the mud surrounding the pond. Then, and only then, would he begin to talk things out. Until then, he had to show his dominance.
Again the doe splashes through the mud and rain in a frantic attempt to escape, and once again her lack of speed proves futile. Unable to form any idea of how to actually regain her thoughts and composure, let alone try to escape, Tix frantically made for the pond in hopes that the stag would be disabled and unable to keep up with her if he got stuck. Her plan doesn't even lift off however as Roscoe easily keeps pace with her. The attack comes unexpected and remarkably, Tix doesn't make a sound as her weaker body is sent crashing into the mud. She makes no move to stand, and instead lays there in a trembling wreck, heaving for breath and staring at the Prince as if he were a predator about to make a killing blow.
Finally, she stopped running. His plan worked just fine, and he stood over her, his chest puffing in and out once again as he caught his breath. It wasn't a very tiring chase, but he hadn't run for anything like that in a while. With his brows furrowed once again and his face showing nothing but pure rage, he let out a huff of breath from his nostrils, and glared down at her. "Are you quite done making a fool of yourself?" he practically spat at her, and his expression faded into that of apathy, no longer in an aggressive state of mind but still hovering above her, in case she had any ideas about running again. The dark pelted male shook his body in order to get the rain water off of his shedding fur, regaining his regal composure afterward.
Stuck in the mud is taking to a whole new level with Tix as she finds herself physically restricted by the wet soil. In a mental sense, she isn't sure how to act right now, since she's still contained with a great amount of fear and shock. In desperation the female Whitetail pulls her legs, although they are not easily going to get free anytime. Trust her to make such an awkward landing! Panting and looking around frantically, it seems that the last thing Tix has on mind is to reply. When her eyes finally land on his hovering form, she cowers low beneath him, her ears pulled back and her entire dark-pelted body shaking violently.
Unbeknownst to everyone, including herself most likely, a lynx creeps through the cattails. Though she's moving as quietly as possible, she's not hunting the two whitetails. In fact, she's probably forgotten why she's being quiet, and it's also likely that she's unaware of the deer at all. In fact, she abruptly breaks the silence by saying, "Your stalking is so quiet today. Why, thank you!" About the same time she wanders out of the cattails, still quite some distance from the deer but clearly visible.
Just as the buck was about to delve into some hardcore apologizing to the poor doe that he had chased around until she had nearly passed out from fear, his ears perked up, and he caught a whiff of somethind dreadfully unfamiliar. Nose raised high into the sky and his eyes and ears ever alert, it didn't take him long at all to see and hear the lynx in the background. At least, it looked like a lynx. From this distance, he couldn't tell if it was a bobcat or a lynx. Either way, it was a predator. A small one, but Tix had become stuck in the mud during their chase. Still very keen to the feline's presence, he leaned his neck down, and started to nudge Tix very gently. "You have to get up.." he whispered, but gave no reason yet. "Get up.." he encouraged once more, and continued to try and help her get out of the mud.
Tix seemed to calm a little further as her predicament in the mud left her only the option to try and settle down and regain her thoughts. Her heavy breathing slowed somewhat as she continued to stare at the stag looming above her. However, with her still in such a panicked state, the doe becomes quite unaware of anything around her aside from Roscoe. In fact, it seemed her hearing and scenting had a total shutdown in regards to the presence of the lynx. As the Prince leant down to nudge her, Tix began to wheeze and breath heavily again, struggling and whimpering in fear. Tix was deathly afraid that his nudging was going to resort to more violence, and it gave her more reason to just get even more stuck in the mud from her attempts to crawl away.
Abruptly spotting the two deer, the lynx pauses mid-stride and her eyes go wide. "Aranck, lord of the stars and Magena, the queen of the night!" she exclaims, bowing her head humbly. But when she looks up again, she says, "No, we're mistaken. You're just two ordinary deer, and we aren't hungry." She starts to laugh at her silly mistake but it quickly turns into a hacking cough. "Excuse me," she says at the end of her coughing fit, "But the swallows have been putting nasty herbs in my food." Her gaze wanders over the two deer again, resting on Roscoe before she abruptly turns her head again, as if suddenly shy.
"GET UP!" he yelled at the doe, and nudged her as hard as he could without harming her, getting very, very frustrated with the doe. But after his yell, he remembered that anger only made her more scared, and that he had given away their position in the pond even more, though the lynx seemed to be right there, Nudging Tix even more, he moved away from her and took an aggressive stance in front of the lynx. Even if this little cat wasn't going to try and eat them, he didn't want it anywhere near them. His hooves moved shoulder width apart, and he lowered his head, shoving his velvet-coated antlers at the feline. "Get away from us.." he said in a low, threatening voice, his red eyes fixated upon the predator.
The single yell was all that was needed for the doe to break free of the mud. For all the wrong reasons though! Swiftly and naturally the doe's legs were under her and forcing the female to stand, at which she didn't waste a second. With the mud sticking to her sides and weighing her down, Tix's tail flared up in the danger signal and her body turned in a bolt of fear. With her senses still clogged up from the panicked moment, the poor female had no idea that the lynx was even there. To her, Roscoe was the main enemy here. Using her long legs to gain an advantage, Tix ducks beneath the cover of the willow tree on the eastern side and spares a glance backwards. When she realises that the Prince is not pursuing her she pauses in her tracks and stands off in the distance, her ears perked and her senses regaining to try and track the male. Still visible where he had left her, the scent of the lynx finally wafts in Tix's direction. Eyes widening in alarm, the female is unsure whether to keep on running or stay to ensure that Roscoe is fine.
Nashota shys away a few steps, but probably not nearly enough for the buck's peace of mind. "Playing hard to get, eh?" she says with a knowing smile and a wink. "Oh, and good morning Nashota, how are you? I'm fine, thank you!" she adds, her voice turning quite pleasant. She sniffs the ground in front of her forepaws, selects a blade of grass, and starts to consume it. Then she starts grooming a forepaw, blissfully unaware of how angry she's probably making the buck.
Not only had Tix gotten away from him again, but this lynx was either just playing dumb with him. or just .. well, crazy. His nostrils flared and he let out another gruff breath from them, glaring at the smaller beast as he lifted his head, and looked toward Tix. With a relatively saddened look on his face, he lifted his hooves out of the mud, not bothering to chase her anymore. She wanted to be out in the forest with no one to protect her? That was her choice. His head held very uncharacteristically low, he slinked off into the distance, the rain and swamp water washing some of the mud off of his hooves.
The doe seems to calm down much more rapidly without the Prince near her, and in the process she becomes quite aware of the situaton. Dreaded realisation dawns on the doe as she becomes aware that he had been trying to protect her after all. More than ever now did Tix want to follow the stag, but with the presence of the lynx, she dared not to. Her only option now was to turn and leave. With Roscoe rapidly moving off into the distance, Tix let her safety become forfeit as she bleats out to him in hopes that he would hear her through the rain. Thinking that he would not regardless, Tix turned her soggy form about and began heading north back towards the moor, in hopes that she might find a way back to her old home.
The lynx watches the buck start to walk off, and for whatever reason that attracts her attention to him. "You know, we saw a lot of other does in the forest to the west of here. You might want to check it out," she says casually, before adding, "Hmm, I'm thirsty." She stands up and approaches the pond, glancing at her reflection with a quiet purr before she licks at the surface. "We don't have anyone ourselves, do we?" she says with a sigh.
Had he not come from the west himself, he probably would've gone back in search for them. Tix was just one doe anyway, he didn't see why he was so upset over losing her again. After all, he still had the other four, though he hadn't seen three of them in a great deal of time. With a near silent sigh, the regal buck slowly lifted his head, and ultimately forced any thought of the doe out of his mind. Just like when he left home before, shoving any thought of his previous herd away. He was quite capable of bitterly forgetting certain deer, even if his memories of them did pop back up later in life. Ears pinned against his head, his gait quickened, and he wandered into uncharted lands to the southeast. At nearly a full gallop, the buck was out of the pond in no time, and hadn't many plans on returning to that dreadful forest.