Post by maka on Mar 3, 2010 16:17:47 GMT -5
A carpet of prairie clover spans outward in all directions. In the summer, reddish purple and white blossoms spring up, attracting bees and butterflies from all over. Grass has tried, with only limited success, to overrun the area; blades poke up around the fringes, where they've charged down the hill from the northeast. Dandelions, as well as a few vine weeds, have also claimed their presence here. But the clover holds fast. Sitting conspicuously in the midst of all the greenage, are three moss-covered stones of increasing height, set in a loose circle.
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Maka, Female Adolescent Wolf
Wyanet, Female Wolf (Beta)
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Like a bolt of silver across the slowly yellowing autumn grasses, Maka moves with fleetness of foot as she races from the border of Ute back towards the expanse of the lawn. There is no urgency in her pace, just a joy in the wind through her fur and the speed of the ground beneath her paws. With a laugh of girlish joy, Maka leaps over a tall rock, landing in a crouch before finally slowing, her face spread in a grin. Her chest heaves even as she turns to look back the way she'd come, obviously returning from another of her 'scouting' escapades beyond the borders of the pack's territory.
"And where have you been, and with whom?" Wyanet asks of the girl as she comes into view, her voice nonchalant, and not accusatory, mostly curious. The Beta is currently laying in a patch of thick grass, soaking up the last of the sun which is soon to fade once the winter comes to steal it away. "You look far too happy to have been out there by yourself." She says, her tail flipping back, and forth behind her, before rolling up to her paws to give herself a long stretch of her body.
Maka's head turns slowly to the sound of her sister's voice, giving a small chuckle of amusement as she shakes her shaggy head from side to side. "Just having a word with that flock of geese resting on the ridge." She motions with her muzzle, taking a few steps towards her sister, tail wagging slightly. "After I convinced them I wasn't planning on turning them into a snack, they were quite sociable." She nods once, as if she had expected a bit less from the dumb looking birds. "They were saying the winter is going to be bad." She hesitates, the joy faltering in her features. "They're migrating early this year." As her tail slows, Maka's head tilts, regarding her sister.
"Yeah, everyone is saying the winter is going to be bad. Seems that everyone is a fortune teller these days." Wyanet says as she arches her back high as she stretches, then flops backwards upon her haunches, tilting her head to one side. "If this is true, we are going to have to hunt smart, so that we can all pull through without starving. We're going to need the help from everyone, and possibly reach out to the Cerulean pack that is near by, see if we can combine our pools of talent." She sniffs the air a bit, which is crisp, and chilly already.
"Not me." Maka replies, rolling her shoulders to ease out the runner's tension in them. "I just listen." As if to show the point, she perks her ears, twitching them around as if to catch the sound of the wind as it moves across the expanse. "We've never had much seer blood in our line. There was that aunt of ours... but I think she was just crazy." Strait-forward, as always, the girl leans forward and nudges at her sister's shoulder affectionately, then seems to look up at the older wolf, twitching her own nose in sync. "They're larger than us. Cerulean." The girl reports, her voice sounding a bit concerned.
"Yeah, she was crazy, wasn't she? Probably why I'm a little bit nuts too, except I don't talk to rocks." Wyanet says with a crooked grin upon her face as she leans in to give her sister a nuzzle in return, before giving her a quick sniff. "Yes, they are larger than us, combined two packs together. You think they may try to bring harm to us if we went for help?" She says with a chuckle. "I wouldn't worry. Haht', and I can take care of ourselves if we went there diplomatically. Maybe bring Quidel along, he's good with words."
"Nah. You're pretty sane. Last I checked anyways." Maka replies, settling to a sitting position at her sister's side. Her scent, as usual, is just her own, which lends some truth to her words that she wasn't out of the lands 'with anyone'. Her tail curls around her, although the black tip continues it's incessant twitching. "They have more younger wolves, from what I've seen." Her nose twitches once, but then she reaches up with a paw and rubs at it. "If food became scarce, they'd have us beat in numbers, but not in skill. I think." She -is- a decent scout, even if she's had no official training. "Haven't spoken to them, though. Figured that's your job. Beta 'n all."
"I'm sure we could take them if we wanted. I hear they're the spiritual types, kinda like Skelaghe." Wyanet says with a smile on her face, ears twitching as she takes in a deep breath. "But, better to have friends, than enemies, so I will go over there, and see if I can negotiate some help." With a tilt of her head, she leans in to nose at her neck a bit, then says, "You see that other male around lately, Makaan? The guy who was giving you the wink? I warned Abel about him, and he seemed to get huffy." She giggles.
"Hmm." Maka nods, although her expression seems appraising, as if she were analyzing just what the chances were of the Ute fairing well against Cerulean if there was a fight. There sometimes is a lot more going on in her fluffy head than just the amusements of a young wolf. She's growing up - if only a little. "If you head down, can I come with?" She asks, turning her head to face her sister again. Then, the question about Makaan has her rolling her eyes a little bit. "Last time I passed the border, he wasn't there, but it isn't as if we can expect him to just sit in one place and wait for us." She shrugs her shoulders, her muzzle twitching. "I don't even know if Abel likes me." She admits, "Besides, I'm not even looking for a mate, you know?"
"I think Abel likes you. When I mentioned Makaan, he sure got pissy. More pissy at me for 'assuming' he likes you, but please.. I've been around far too long to know better. I think he's just shy, and busy." Wyanet says with a lift of her shoulders upwards, before leaning in to nip at her sister's ear. "You should look for a boyfriend though, but I do think Abel would be an honorable mate for you in the long run. He's handsome, and sweet, has a good heart. If I were your age, I'd steal him in a second." She says with a chuckle. "Yes, you can go with me."
"I don't see what the big deal about boys and mates is, anyways." Maka admits, and perhaps it is this comment that shows just how naive about the world she is. She's still yet to go through a mating season as an adult, and that probably has more than a little to do with her vague ideas of what it means. "I guess if he likes me, he'll tell me sooner or later. Same goes for Makaan or any of the other males around here." She shrugs, and then sets her paw back on the ground, snorting once. "I'm just glad to be here and not back home. The alpha probably would have tried to get me as a mate, since he couldn't get you. Blech." She lolls her tongue out and then shivers a bit. Then, her ears perk and she smiles a bit. "Really? I can go?"
"Well, it is a big deal. A mate really completes you, gives you someone to rely on, and it really gives you a spiritual lift knowing you have someone to love you, for life. It's what wolves do after all, they mate for life." Wyanet says with a wag of her tail. "Like Haht' and I. I love him dearly, and he makes me feel special. That and there are other benefits that come along with it." She says with a quirky grin upon her face, tail wagging back and forth furiously behind her. "But yes, you can go if you wish. I could use someone to watch my back." She says with a laugh.
Slowly, Maka stands up on her feet and gives her fur a good shake, stretching her back paws out behind her as she finally cools down from her run. "Guess I better think long and hard about it first, then." She murmurs, hesitantly. Love, beyond that for her family, is still something Maka has yet to experience, and thus... she's not quite sure what to expect if that should ever befall her. "You and Haht make a good pair. Better than you would have with our former alpha, by far." She huffs, still having a low opinion of their former 'ruler'. "What, you don't think the boys can watch your back? Or maybe they'll be watching your backside instead?" She smirks, teasing her sister playfully.
"Yes, by far Haht' is the best male I've could have brought into my life. He is amazing." Wyanet says as she wears a warm, genuine smile upon her face as her tail sways back and forth behind her. Splitting her jaws into a long yawn, she snaps them shut with a click. "I'm sure they can watch my back just fine." She says with a teasing smile upon her face. "Though, if they were trying to sneak peeks, I wouldn't mind much either, at least it's flattering." She says with a laugh, eyes rolling upwards. "But, I'm trying to tame my wild ways now that I'm a respectable mated wolf, and Beta of the Ute. I was never a harlot, just a tease."
Maka's head tilts as she appraises her sister's comments about her mate, confusion evident on her features. Just what -is- this love feeling like if it makes her sister look all 'goo-goo eyed' like that. "Well, he better be the best wolf ever, otherwise I have permission to kick his tail." The younger wolf snorts, and the expression is almost comical. Afterall, she's one of the smaller Ute wolves, and built far more for speed than for strength. "Just so long as you don't expect me to pick up the slack. Wherever you got your prowess in manipulating males, it skipped my generation completely."
"Well, I think life changed me in general, after he broke my heart. It made me cold as ice." Wyanet says as she gives her shoulders a shift of her shoulders, before staring down at her paws. "Turned me hard inside. I'm not just manipulating males, practically the world around me, but... I think things are changing now. Maybe I'm buying into Skelaghe's spiritual crap she's always feeding me, about the air, the trees, the water, stuff like that. I suppose when you put things into perspective, and really take a good look around, she's right. I've allowed anger, and hate to rule my actions far too long. I have it good here, and I should just ease up some, and stop looking over my shoulder."
This revelation seems to give Maka a bit of pause. Her amber eyes seem to search the older wolf's form, as if she were looking for some signs of this unknown creature that her sister is describing. "Well, I don't think you're all hard inside. There's squishiness right under the surface." She reaches a paw out and pokes it at her sister's side, ever the playful girl, and then offers her a bit of a smile. "But you have to remember - if you don't watch over your shoulder, I'm going to catch you unawares one day." Still, Maka's tone is light, understanding the seriousness of what her sister is saying. "Things -are- good here. And you -do- good here. So don't worry so much about all the bad stuff."
"I've done a lot of bad things, Maka, things that I don't ever want you to find out. I'm not as squishy as you think I am." Wyanet says as she settles back upon her haunches, reaching out with a paw to drag her sister close, pushing her face into her neck to breathe in her scent. "I was on a path straight to hell until you found me. Seeing you again, sobered me up, greatly. You look so much like me.. it reminded me of better days, when I was your age, innocent, full of life, and fun." Her voice falters for a moment, before she looks away, ashamed. "Instead of an ice queen."
The younger wolf makes no attempt to get away, allowing herself to be drawn in against her sister. Affectionately, Maka licks at Wyanet's muzzle, offering a faint whine in the back of her throat. "Wya... listen." And now, the girl seems to be more serious, reaching up to nip lightly at the taller wolf's ear. "I don't care what you've done. You could be a monster in the eyes of everyone else in the world, but you're still my sister, and I -love- you." She buts her head in against her sister's neck, and then looks up with those youthful amber eyes. "And you're hardly an ice queen. I don't think you'd be a Beta if you were. So smile a little, would you? You make me want to find that tickly spot on your belly and make you laugh until you pee or something. And that wouldn't be dignified now would it?"
Growing quiet for a moment, Wyanet hugs her sister even tighter against her body, before letting out a deep breath. "If you make me pee myself, I'll make sure it gets all over you first." She says with a amused look on her face, before giving her cheek a firm lick, ruffling the fur upwards in a sticky manner. "I love you too, Maka. You're wise beyond your years." A grin forms along her muzzle, before letting out a soft breath, ear twitching upwards on her head. "I don't know why I'm the Beta either. Probably because I'm the only one who can really assert myself around here. Skelaghe musta been real desperate. I just hope I don't let her down. She doesn't have much longer I believe..she's old, older than I thought. She won't even yell or argue with me anymore." She says with a squint of her eyes.
"Pssh." Maka huffs a little, letting out a breath as she's squished against her sister's side. The girl reaches up a paw and pushes a little against the other wolf, seeming amused as she sticks her tongue out childishly. "It'd be worth it." She replies with the same teasing tone, although it doesn't last long. Her ears flick back at the more serious shift of the conversation. "You make a good leader, even if you don't see it in yourself. You were going to be alpha once... remember?" She asks, reaching her nose out in an attempt to top Wyanet's muzzle upward a little. "When her time comes, it will come. Until then, or until she steps down, we've just got to do our best to keep the pack together. Even if it means using some of that Beta power of yours to keep things in line behind the scenes."
"Yeah, I -was- going to be the Alpha, but I'm not now, and I won't be. Abel is going to lead this pack next, and with you at his side, maybe, if you ever start batting your eyes, and swishing your tail in his direction. You very well could be the next Alpha female." Wyanet says with a grin on her face. "Then you could choose a new Beta, someone that is a bit more sane in the head than I." She nips at her sister's ear a bit gently. "But yes, until that time comes, I'll keep everything together. First things first, we travel to Cerulean, and we negotiate. After the winter, it'll be time to bring pups into the Ute."
"Still means you have what it takes if the need calls for it, you know." Maka replies, showing a bit of a shared stubborn streak. The talk of Abel being the next alpha, though, causes her to go quiet as she shakes her head a bit. "Maybe. I'm not like you, Wya. I've never had eyes on playing rank games or anything, you know that." She shrugs a little bit, and then just rolls her eyes once more, indulgantly. "-If- and that's a big -IF- I'd ever be an alpha, you'd be stuck being my Beta. I followed you halfway across the world. I'm not letting you out of my clutches that easily." She's exaggerating, of course, but there's a smile on her face as she says it. The next revelation, though, causes her head to lift. "Pups?" Quirk. "Oh, I guess with Skelaghe's mate dead she'd have to let one of the other females mate this season. So... are you and Haht'...?" She trails off questioningly, tail wagging a little.
"Skelaghe doesn't play the rank game either. She leads because she has the respect of the pack, and she is wise in the ways of the Ute. I see that in you as well, you're far more spiritual than I am." Wyanet says as she gives her sister an encouraging smile. "You could be the brains, and I'll be the muscle. Anyone gives you grief, I'll put 'em on their back quicker than you can blink." She says with a laugh, then sobers a bit as they continue to speak of pups. "Yes, Haht' and I are going to have puppies at some point, we're fairly..active.." She says with a sheepish look on her face. "Probably another reason why I've calmed down so much lately."
"I just remember what mum taught us, that's all." Maka replies, ever humble when it comes to compliments thrown her way. "Besides, I'm not ready to give up being young and reckless for all that responsibility yet." That wry smile peeks on to her features, snickering a little as she pushes just a little away from her sister's embrace, crouching playfully. "We'll see. Abel or no, Ute's home now, so... I'm going to do what's best for the pack." Puppies! Maka nearly bounces at the idea of neices and nephews. Her enthusiasm shows in the rapid wig-wag of her tail as she gives an inspecting look at her sister's belly. "Well, we'll know when you get all bloated up and fat like a buffalo." She puffs her cheeks out, and then lets out a raspberry as laughter overtakes her. Still, she beams a little. "I get to be an aunt!"
"I'm not pregnant yet! We're just.. doing.. stuff.. geez." Wyanet says with a sharp laugh as her tail wags back and forth just as furiously, reaching out to bat at her back some, before crouching a bit with a soft 'grrr' in her throat, looking as if she is going to pounce her. "If I get pregnant, you need to get pregnant also, better seduce Abel with those amber eyes of yours, and give him my best pick up lines." She says, then darts forward a half pace forward, kicking up a bit of dust between them, looking to nip at her forepaws. "I bet you two will make all sorts of cute puppies."
"Uh huh. Doing stuff." Maka teases, ducking her head away from her sister's batting paws as she hops and dances around with her own pent up excitement. When her sister starts coming forward towards her, though, the girl does the playful and puppyish thing and rolls herself over on her back, paws up in the air as she squirms about. "No way! I don't want to end up all bloated and round like you'll be. I bet you'll wobble." The girl giggles, reaching her forepaws up in continued attempts at being playful with her sister.
"I'm not gonna wobble!" Wyanet says as she bats at the younger wolf on her back, trying to sneak in a few whaps to her muzzle, and chest area. She hovers over her, like a snake, swaying side to side, poised to strike. "Besides, /making/ the puppies is the fun part." She says with a wink down towards her, before diving in for a quick tackle, leaping easily with a deep growl in her throat. Nip! Nip! After struggling with her a bit, she finally flops herself down heavily against her sister, laying her chin down across her shoulder. "You better have puppies before I die though, I want to be an Auntie also."
"Woooooble." Maka manages to get out between the flurry of giggles and her attempts to evade the battings of her sister. Of course, a few of them end up landing, but it does little to upset the peal of laughter coming from the younger wolf. "Oooff." However, having Wyanet dive bomb her certainly does have an effect as the smaller wolf wiggles and pushes at her. "Wya, you're heeeaavvy!" She protests, nudging at her sister with her forepaws and trying to shift her ears away from the nips. Still, when Wyanet finally stops the wrestling match, Maka seems to calm too, chest heaving as she smiles, glad to have her sister back in her life. "Well... it's not as if I know much about making puppies anyways." Her ears flick back, and the younger wolf shrugs. "Besides, there's no rush or anything. You aren't planning on keeling over anytime soon are you?" She eyes her sister speculatively. "You're not allowed. I told the spirits so. You're going to live forever if I have anything to say about it."
"The spirits have no control over how I live and die. I could break my leg in a rabbit hole and die of starvation because no one would find me in the woods. Everyday, life is about risk, so, here today, gone tomorrow. You never know, Maka." Wyanet says as she pants heavily, her tongue rolling out from between her teeth in a teasing manner. "And what do you mean you don't know much about making puppies? Surely mom gave you 'the talk' when you were younger, right?" She quirks a brow upwards. "Don't tell me you're /that/ innocent." She says with a laugh as she rolls off her, and to the side.
"Nope. The spirits and I have a deal. I don't eat them, and they don't get to have you until I'm good and ready to give you up." Maka replies, lifting her head proudly at the idea of such a 'deal', as if one could barter with fate. She's not about to let Wyanet believe something like death could keep them appart. Impossible! "I'm not innocent." She protests, but then seems to backpeddle a little bit and huffs. "Mum just didn't get a chance, that's all. You -know- she passed away just after you left."
".. Oh.." Wyanet says as her ears falter back a bit against her skull, eyes squinting a bit, before staring down at her paws. "Yeah.. that's right." She says, looking silent, and thoughtful as she paws at the ground gently. "And you /are/ innocent, which is for the best, because it means you'll grow up with a good disposition in life." Is it her responsibility now to talk to her about pups? She's not their mother. "Err... well.. how 'bout if I tell you about puppies later, yeah? Or, better yet, ask Skelaghe, she's at least popped 'em out."
The look that passes on Wyanet's face is enough to make Maka wish she'd eaten her words rather than spoken them aloud. The girl's own ears flick back as she lets out a low, appologetic whine. "Hey. She was proud of you, though. She didn't want you to be some stupid alpha's trophy." Maka leans over towards her sister and lays head on the older wolf's paws. "Don't worry about it. It's not like it's something I really need to know. I know enough." Her tail swishes, and the girl seems quite content with her knowledge - or lack there of when it comes to that particular part of wolf life. "Besides... you want me to go bat my eyes and shake my tail at Abel... well, it's a little creepy to go asking his mom how she had him. Yuck."
Looking amused, Wyanet gives her sister a lick on the side of the head. "Well, true, that would be a bit awkward, huh?" She says with a laugh, tail thumping heavily upon the ground. "I don't know of any other females here who have gave birth in the pack. There's Ixkin, but I don't think she has a mate, but I hear a rumor Bodhi has been looking her way. Heath doesn't have a mate either. There's a distinct lack of loving going on here. That needs to be changed." She says with a squint of her eyes. "Mom was really proud of me? She was fairly upset when I walked out on the Kitchi. I did threaten to murder that fool after all. I almost did.. probably shoulda..." She trails for a bit, then says, "No.. no.."
"Yeah. Awkward." Maka seconds the opinion even as she listens to her sister rattle off other possible 'teachers'. What was so important about this 'talk' anyways? She lets any ponderance of that ebb away as she lifts her head, nodding slightly. "She always wanted you to stand on your own four paws. She missed you terribly, though." The young wolf admits, ears ducking back a little. "I missed you, too." She leans her head against her sister's shoulder, not paying much heed to the internal battle that Wyanet appears to be having. "Hey Wya?" She says, apparently having finally come down from her run and her playful game with her sister. "Mind if I catch a nap? I want to run the Cerulean border tonight and scout ahead of a diplomatic party so... I need to get some..." Yawn. "Rest."