Out of the Ordinary (Ziko, anyone else)

[Bandersnatch]

One of the first patrols with the title of Sentry. It made Crow’s coat bristle with pride, filling her with a feeling of purpose. She had patrolled Arnlan’s borders many times before, purely in service to her pack or even boredom, but now it somehow seemed more certain. The rocky ground near the almost cliff-like slopes shifted gently under her feet as she stalked the shadows of the line of trees closest to the edge.

Every now and again she paused, thrusting her nose upward. Each inhalement of air gave little sign of hidden secrets, of travelers or spies. It had been a quiet morning, with hide nor hair of any other seen.
It was one in one of these moments that she paused, lingering for awhile longer. She had not even seen even a solitary member of the pack this day, which was rather a disappointment. Still she had yet to meet any of the newcomers. From what she had heard on whispered winds, a few were involved in a task and such an event would go smoother without interruptions.

The mute wolfess continued on. She had gotten up before dawn, when all was still covered in a blanket of darkness – though, it was hard to tell night from day in the heart of the forest where she had awoken. The sky, mostly blocked by the treetops, had been streaked with colours warm and cool, though subdued as it was by the canine eye. It was an unusually clear day out here among the territory’s fringes, with a notable absence of fog, or rain, or freezing gusts of wind.

Now it was around the middle of the day and the sun threw out it’s light from high in the middle of the sky. Arnlan was not too expansive, and Crow was drawing near to a full circuit of its boundaries. Along with the lack of company, there was a lack of anything interest or out of the ordinary.
With a sigh, she sat back, overlooking the lands from which the stone walls of Arnlan sprung. No movement below, not even the rustle of a breeze through leaves.

Wait. What was that?
Crow’s ears pricked. Yes, there it was again; the rustling of dry leaves behind her. She gave a deep sniff to gather an identity. A familiar scent. The earthy female gave a gentle smirk, though she continued to look ahead as if she had heard and smelt nothing, knowing full-well who it was. He thought he could sneak up on her, huh?

[ziko]

Today, when he had woken, he was in one of his playful moods. The first thing he did though was make a detour to the food store to grab a bite to eat. He could not yet catch his own lunch for he was not quick enough to catch a rabbit. Ecclesiastes was not around the food store for a change so he snapped up what he new he could finish and not waste, and set off at a reasonably quick pace. He was happy with running about, stretching his little limbs, and running at fast as his body could. It made him feel free, light. He also enjoyed the company of others, and he loved being the centre of their attention, but did not whine or moan to gain such. Kirk was more of a whiner. Liked to show off, let others know that he could do this, and he could do that. But he was still the responsible, bubbly big brother of Ziko, and he loved his only living relative.

Ziko and his brother Kirk (who was no where to be found) relied on the food store for their meals. They where permitted to freely go and take when they were hungry, and where to take only enough to make them full. Munching at the meat in his mouth, he wandered around the territory in search of someone who would put up with him for a while. It was then that he decided he would look for Crow, because she was like a new mother figure to him, after his own had died. He tried not to think about it, but whenever he felt sad he felt he could go to Crow for guidance, but so far, had only told his big brother of his feelings. He was just too shy to talk to the female. He liked admiring her from afar, because she was so quiet and so friendly. Then again, he admired Ecclesiastes for his hunting, the Alphas for their stealth and Lucian’s determination to prove himself. There were so many idols in this pack that he just did not know what to do.

Ziko noticed the calm, sunny day and was rather taken aback. He had no recollection of such a beautiful, no wind no rain day. But, he shrugged his shoulders, figured the day would soon turn dark and wet like normal, and so ventured on to find Crow. It was as if luck was on his side, as he strutted near to the border tree line to see if she was about. There she was, wandering with a content smile on her face. Ziko followed quickly after her, but kept to the other side of the trees; in the shadows, getting ready to jump out at her. Ziko had finished his lunch now, and licked his lips happily, wagging his tail and bounded through the foliage. Little did he realise that he was making a lot of noise, and that Crow kept looking back to investigate the silence disturbance. She did not let on that she knew he was there, and the pup smirked, thinking he was great at sneaking up on others.

The dark pelted male then halted however, as he saw her glance over her shoulder. A trail of parted leaves was left in his wake from the path he had taken whilst stalking the female sentry. He did not breath, and remained perfectly still to be sure he would not give away his position. When Crow turned back and continued her patrol, he waited a moment before following after, being more aware of the noises that he made. Ziko frowned though, as mud stuck to his paws from the slurry land, and he flicked his little mitts to remove it. Stopping only moments after moving again, he groaned and lifted his other paw, only to find that leaves were sticking to him. Shaking himself, he ran to shake them away, but tripped over himself because so much foliage was on his legs. A loud yelp and he smack face in the muck. He lay there for several seconds, and then lifted his head and began to quietly whimper.

[Bandersnatch]

As she continued onward, Crow gave a silent chuckle. He was still following clumsily behind her, though now he put more effort into his steps. Ziko would likely eventually leap from the shadows, as he often did, upon her. She would play along - give an over exaggerated gasp, topple herself to the ground and would flail her limbs about dramatically.
It wasn’t his fault he was being so clumsy – it seemed only a short time ago that she was a pup, going through a similar stage. Puppies were prone to being bumblefooted, but eventually almost all learnt how one must walk without tripping over their own feet.

He was a sweet pup. He hadn’t deserved what life had thrown him so far. It must have been horrendous for one so young to have seen his parents waste away in such a manor, just as it had been for those of the pack that had witnessed it. All that could be done had, but still nothing had come about it.
These days Crow enjoyed her time with Ziko as well as his brother even more. She did her best to look after them whenever they needed someone there. There was so much she wanted to teach the pair. If she could have spoken, words would of flooded from her mouth in a great deluge. She wanted them to know everything, every little scrap of knowledge – how to hunt, stalk, teamwork, about Arnlan itself, anything and everything she knew.
A shadow was closing in across her path. She glanced upward toward the source -Storm clouds were gathering about the face of the sun. The breezes had turned cool, not that many Arnlan wolves would notice this. Crow closed her eyes, letting the breezes billow about her neck, welcoming the cold.

Yelp!
Crow’s head whipped around to where Ziko was partially hidden in the native flora. Her paws scrambled from where they once stood, swiftly carrying her to the young pup. Her muzzle was thrust into the thick, dark fur around his cheek and neck, nuzzling him in a comforting way. Nothing seemed to be poking up at odd angles, nor were there signs of cuts, either. Perhaps her reaction had been a bit much, but it was just the way any over-protective mother would have behaved. She gave a relieved sigh, glad that nothing but the cub’s dignity had been injured.
Crow gave the crimson and black pelted pup’s side a nudge, trying to help him back to his feet.

[ziko]

With my face full of mud, I felt somewhat embarrassed for tripping over. If it had not been for those darnit leaves I would still be waddling after Crow. Now here I was with the soft touch of the sentries nose on my side trying to encourage me to my feet. I gave a sigh and slowly rose, feeling the thick muck dragging me back to the earth. Big drops of mud and leaves fell from my black and red pelt and I whimpered some more, and turned my head to look at the female. She was the best. Always assisting me in times of need. I appreciated her help so much, and I was always glad that she never snapped at me for following her. Others did, and made me feel sad that they did not want to play. Some even cursed me for biting their tail to hard, despite my apologies. I decided that I would not pursue them any longer, just out of courtesy for us both.

I stared at the silent one momentarily with my big brown eyes, and waved my muck encrusted tail enthusiastically. I gave a chuckle at her, because after she had prodded me with her nose, it was smeared with mud. She looked funny like that, and a wide grin spread across my maw. With a happy yip, I moved around on the spot, waving my smaller form about. I did not notice that the weather was darkening to the way it was meant to be. I had not even noticed that it was bright and sunny because I was so focused on jumping out on her. I really should have watched where I was going, but I felt at ease now, as I basked in the warmth of her presence. Oh how it intrigued me, that she could not speak my name. I desperately wanted to hear her voice, but that she lacked, and I feared that she would not verbally communicate with me.

Crow was a mother figure to me. I was still upset that my parents had died, but I had moved on... at least a little. I still picture them at night, their weak forms slowly wasting away before my innocent eyes. I done what I could to try and help them. I retrieved food for them, I stuck by their side, and did not give them any hassle to stress them. When they died, if it was not for the support of the other wolves, I don't know what I would have done. I shut my eyes just now, and thought of my mother, how she should be here, helping me out of the mud. It should be my father that Kirk idolised instead of Ecclesiastes the hunter, or Karolek the alpha. Why did they have to go, I thought? My feelings would have been apparent in the way I held myself just now. I rocked onto my hinds and held my head to my chest. I was still dirty, but I did not care. I wanted to feel her warmth again... but knew I could not.

Then, I raised my head and stared into the eyes of Crow. Her being there was a great comfort, and I whimpered and moved close to her leg. Resting my head upon it, I nuzzled close. I knew I was distracting her from her duties, and was afraid she would get into trouble for taking time off for me. But she had never gotten into bother before... The wind that was beginning to form made me more cold and I shivered. Maybe I should have just wandered the pack lands looking for something else to occupy my boredom? Oh well, there was no point in worrying myself over that when I was cold, and muddy and lacking my mother and father. Sighing, a tear rolled down my cheek and I began to whine quietly. I was still unable to speak, even at this stage in my life, and so like Crow, relied on body actions as well. I leaned back and stared up to Crow with a sad expression on my face.

[Bandersnatch]

Crow snuffled as she lifted her mud-caked nose away. She stared down her muzzle, eyes crossing in the process. Her nose twitched gently about, unsettled by the weight of the muck. Lifting a forepaw, she gently wiped it away against her ankle.
Gently watching as Ziko regained his balance, she lowered her rear…
Squelch.
Crow winced. She’d just sat in a puddle of mud. Great. Later she’d have to wash the mud from her coat in one of Arnlan’s streams. Care would be needed - if one wasn’t careful and got too wet, the chill that resulted could mean disease.

The she-wolf looked back down toward her pup companion, as he grinned at her misfortune. Crow smiled widely back, lifting an eyebrow, playfully questioning why he dared to laugh at her. The sudden change in Ziko’s mood was much unexpected. The sadness that his face held, that made him bundle himself up… it was apparent, he was remembering his parents. The motherly wolf felt as if her heart was about to break in two with the look those chocolate eyes gave her.

As the pup snuggled against her leg, she used her other forelimb to pull him closer into her thick coat. She watched him sorrowfully through half-closed eyes. The poor little thing. She dropped her head to him, the dark tuft of fur upon her head lifting before again flopping over her right eye. Her tongue flickered out, gently lapping up the lone tear that fell from his watery eyes.

Her duties, for the moment, were forgotten? Surely the alphas would not mind if she spent just a moment of her time comforting him, when he so obviously needed it?
Out her tongue flicked again, as she started to groom the muck from his face.

[ziko]

I did not move when Crow licked my face, and the sad expression remained on my face. My crimson tipped folded on my head and I raised my maw up so she could better clean me. I appreciated that very much and I tried to lick her nose with my tongue but often lapped at the side of her maw. My tail began to wag slightly, but something inside of me still wanted my mother to be doing this to me instead.

Ziko shifted around on the stop, and continued trying to lick the sentries face. His body was still muddy, especially the underside, but there were patches were it had drooped off from him sitting around for so long. Tears were still, now and then falling from his eyes, but with the persistent company of Crow, he was stopping. Shaking his head he shifted to his feet and leaned up to sniff at her nose.

In thanks he wagged his tail and nuzzled his head off of her leg, and cat like, brushed his side off of her limb. He only just noticed that the sentry had sat down in a deep muddy puddle and he smirked slightly. His paws sunk into the watery land which he grabbed somewhat playfully at. However, he looked up to the sky, as the thick grey clouds formed, and a smear of rain began to fall. Between those clouds however, a freak streak of sun broke through, and shone in the horizon, which made him smile.

I thought of that break as being one of my parents. Probably my mother, because she was the one on my mind. I exhaled a long breath and licked my little lips of some mud that was on them. My face was clean now, but my body remained mucky. I could get rid of that later, by rolling on clean grass. I did not want Crow getting a mawful of mud from grooming me. I knew that mud was not the most pleasant tasting substance in the land.

I glanced over my shoulder and stared to Crow. My, she was awfully tall I noted and smiled at her. I nodded my head in thanks to her and licked one of her paws. I wanted to go with her, because I knew she had to be getting back to her sentry duties. I had not even realised how quickly my mood had changed. I think this day was just an emotional one for me. I was glad she did not tut or sigh or roll her eyes as she comforted me. I cocked my head to the side asking if she was going to continue her patrol.

[Bandersnatch]

((Sorry this reply is so late D: ))

The mid-toned femme’s muzzle parted in a gentle smile as the pup lapped at her face, eventually pulling away. In a way she was relieved about the distraction Ziko’s wriggling about provided, halting the removal of the muck from the pup’s coat – mud was certainly not her dish of choice. The pup had stopped weeping too, she noticed – that was always a good thing.

Flicker. A solitary raindrop had plodded onto the tip of her nose, announcing the return of the showers found so often in the warmer months in Arnlan. The rain was much appreciated by the wolfess, as it would greatly help in the removal of the filth from both wolves’ coats. It was as if the natural environment was assisting them, nurturing it’s creatures of the earth.
Crow rose back to her feet. It could be seen that her tail was raised, but it drooped severely, weighted down by the thick mud. The fur about her rump followed suit accordingly in a rather uncomfortable and indignant way.

Crow eyes wandered back down to her smaller companion. His eyes glittered in questioning, full of an eagerness. She smiled to him in what seemed to be the most recent in a constant stream of grins. And why not? She enjoyed the company.
Launching herself from a pivoting turn on the spot, she trotted a few steps back out toward her patrol route, looking rather more awkward than usual. As she neared a few paces away, she paused. She glanced back over her shoulder to the puppy. He’d be somewhat of a distraction, sure – her whole mind wouldn’t be on the job. But it would be enough to get the task done. Perhaps Ziko would even learn something. After all, one of the best ways to learn for their kind was through observation. Maybe he’d notice how she stepped, the way her body was carried, and try to mimic it to produce his own soundless footfalls. She flicked her head back toward the path, inviting him to join her patrol if that is what he wished.

[ziko]

Tail wagging furiously, little maw panting with a tongue lolling from it, Ziko bounded forward after Crow. He splashed through the mud, sending it cascading up his sides and splattering his crimson freckled face with specks of mud. He did not mind, merely yipped as his little self advanced forward, taking strides which would take three to fill one of Crow's. The rain he could not feel until he burst through the bushes and after Crow on her patrol. The rain wiped his face, removing it of the speckled muck.

Trotting, the little pup went along. When Crow had looked back he was more than happy to follow her. That was what he was initially doing at the beginning before he fell in the mud and then struck an emotional moment. Strange for one to do so yes, but his mind was muddled, confused, frustrated- it was hard for him all alone in the lands with only Kirk for family. Yipping some more, he tackled Crow's leg, batting her heel with his mitt for a second before running under her and stopping between her two forelegs. A content face peered up to the female and he wagged his tail all the more with glee.

Nodding his head, he urged her too proceed, hoping that she would not be scolded for avoiding her duties to comfort him in the time that she did. Na, probably not. Sofika and Karolek would understand. On the thought of them, he could not recollect the last time he had seen either of them. In all his excitement he disregarded that question- he was far too young to be worrying about the two alphas. Moving forward, he launched himself forward, barking to have Crow follow. A flickered glance, like she had given him moments before was mimicked, because he threw one to her to come.