Mist or Smoke?

[Akree]

Akree tried to keep watch, but she could feel sleep slowly enveloping her, she turned to her friend, who was sleeping, but not peacefully, it was clear that memory of the past enveloped her dreams. She took a peek outside, but she lowered her head slowly and she to began to feel drowsy, she closed her eyes.

A strong sound buzzed in her ears. She lifted her head to look, the sky was gray and filled with light of thunder. She was about ten months old pup, alone, since the day they were attacked. Her paws large compared to her skinny legs. She trotted off to the forest and she heard another loud noise buzz by. The small puppy curious, walked toward the noise, her large paws making it hard to run, but the small pup was confident that she wouldn't trip. A few small jagged scars on her chest. On the distance she could see something, but her past experience had taught her better than to just barge in. She circled the area and the strange sound buzzed by her ears, making her skull ring with that loud noise. She saw a few wolves running to the direction she she had come from. A man with gun stood in the horizon, she hid in the bushes, fearing for her life. A small female wolf got shot, her skull making a repulsive crack sound as the bullet hit her between her ears. the body knocked on the ground and landed on her paws, the dead limp body, looking at her with lifeless eyes. The pup only wanted to scream she turned away and began to run.

Akree eyes broke open as she woke up from her nightmare, she shook her head. She had only fallen asleep for a few minutes, yet it seemed like hours. She turned her head to her still sleeping companion, she smiled and turned to look on top of her.

A few minutes later the maned wolf woke up, she lifted her head to the noise the canines made with their huge paws, thumping of their ears. Very soon the sound of human footsteps were heard, she turned to look at Elaine and lay her head down in silence.

[abhorzion]

Lay with her head pressed to the ground between her paws and eyes squeezed shut, Elaine felt the tormenting shudder of fear engulf her body. The thundering footsteps of who knows how many large, savage dogs and murderous humans filling the den and the two wolves ears. Elaine opened her eyes and glanced at the bracken over the entrance to the pit. Through the gaps between the leaves, she saw a pair of white dog paws and a large black nose. Oh no, I hope he can't smell us panicked the small orange wolf. After a couple of seconds that seemed like hours, the dog outside the den took off, unaware of Elaine and Akree, much to their relief. Several minutes passed and the thundering sound had moved from the den but they were still close by, their sickly mixture of scents lingering in the air and the sound of their heavy feet and paws trampling the ground tormenting the two hiding wolves. They must be on to something thought Elaine, she hoped it wasn't she and Akree.

Suddenly, there came a shout from one of the men, his deep booming voice echoing round the tree's. A rabble of barking dogs followed and the footsteps came closer to the den once more but this time there were different footsteps, even heavier than before and faster. Elaine cringed as she listened to the all-too familiar sounds of the hunt. The dogs began to snarl and bark angrily, they were definitely close to catching their quarry, whatever it was. The heavier, faster footsteps came closer and closer and then came that sickening explosion of sound. A gunshot. There was a loud moo-ing sound, Elaine recognised it straight away as a doe, then a dull thud right above the den. The maned wolf felt sick to her stomach, the agonising memories of her mothers same cruel fate flooding back to her once more. The deer began to whimper and there was a shuffling sound as though it were trying to stand up again but this was soon muffled by the snarling of many dogs and the whimpering ceased.
Another set of paws appeared outside the den, and another and then two noses. One of the muzzles let out a small growl.
Oh my god, they've found us panicked Elaine, her body frozen still. She closed her eyes, she knew eye contact was he worst move she could possibly make now and she wasn't about to make that mistake now. As the second dog growled, another shout came from a different man and a dragging sound came from above the two.
"Get out of it, come on, Muttley." shouted the man. The noses disappeared but the paws remained. "I said come on!" boomed the man once more and stormed over to the dogs. The two sets of paws staggered away and soon, everything was quiet.

[Akree]

Akree lay still, deathly still, as a set of paws appeared to the outside of the den. She kept vigilant, this would be bad if they got caught here, they had no where to go, Akree blinked and as she opened her eyes the dog was gone, she held her breath as the footsteps headed away. One thing was sure about all this, Elaine was a bucket full of troubles. She pricked her hearing as the footsteps walked away and the dogs headed growling and barking away from the quick den, she held her head still, looking outside, vigilant as she could.

She took a silent deep breath, feeling a lot calmer, but still as vigilant as ever. She pricked her hearing as the dogs headed their barking to the way both the wolves were. She panicked for a second, but calmed down as the familiar sound of a deer's panicked running came to her ears, she turned to look at her companion, a panicked expression on her face. She closed her eyes she would try to calm her down, but she would risk getting discovered by the hunters, better than the maned wolf found out herself. She payed close attention to the hunt, after all if they learned how the humans worked it would be easier to get away if they are ever found by humans again. The familiar buzzing sound of a gunshot passing nearby was heard and the pitiful moo of a doe. She closed her eyes as the sound of dogs finishing their prey was heard, and getting the praise of the humans in return.

Four paws appeared on the 'entrance' of the den, snuffling around the area. Luckily, the human called to the dogs and insisted until the dogs left the two wolves alone, stupid traitors, thought Akree to herself, why do some dogs help humans attack their kin? She closed her eyes to calm herself, she remembered that not all dogs are like that, remembering the neighboring packs. She waited nearly ten minutes in absolute silence, waiting for the dogs to get as far away as possible, not to get out of the den, but to see if Elaine was okay. She turned to the small wolf and said, still whispering:

"You all right?"

She nudged the wolf, fearing her panic had taken the best of her. Elaine looked back at Akree. She smiled, still waiting for the wolf's answer. She lay her ears flat against her skull as a droplet of water feel on her nose. She lifted her head to see it was raining, but it was only a small drizzle that would fade away soon.

"I think we should wait a little longer before heading outside" she said smiling at Elaine.

[abhorzion]

"You alright?" came Akree's comforting voice, bringing Elaine back down from her panic attack. Her body relaxed and her hackles lowered as she breathed a heavy sigh of relief. I've been better... she thought to herself, looking at Akree. She shook some of the now dried on mud from her head and smiled.
"I think so." she whispered, stretching her paws out in front of her. All those terribly familiar smells had gone now. The dogs, the men, the gunshot, the sickly scent of blood still vaguely lingering but at least the hunt had gone. The only problem now was that the smell of the tragic doe's blood was making the Maned wolfs stomach rumble.
"I think we should wait a little longer before heading outside" added Akree, gently, smiling at Elaine.
Elaine nodded in agreement, although they were gone, neither knew how far they'd gone and if the dogs picked up a whiff of them, they'd be over in a shot, it didn't bear thinking about.

A gentle rain began to dowse the woodland around them and a few droplets found their way into the cramped, musty den. It didn't bother the two much, as long as it didn't become a downpour, the last thing they needed now was to be flooded out. I'll find a nice puddle later and get rid of this mud. thought Elaine, bursting to scratch herself. That mud had dried onto her thick fur and the dust was irritating her skin, a good old scratch was just what she needed. That and something to eat, she thought as her stomach growled impatiently. She looked at Akree, who was lay quietly with a content look on her face. She was such a large wolf, so much bigger than Elaine and those dark eyes burned with something strong. She remembered how she'd been scared of Akree when she first bumped into her, then she hadn't been the same to her, she was just a wolf, just a threat. The only reason they were friends now was because they'd mutually feared for their lives. Elaine lay for a few minutes just looking at her large friend, lost in thought, wondering what stories she had to tell, what had shaped her into this strong, determined and confident wolf. The gentle patter of the rain bouncing off the leaves of the bracken snapped her back into reality.

"Akree..." she started but trailed off, forgetting what she was going to say, much to her embarrassment. She turned her head back to the entrance of the den, watching and listening to the rain. It was so calming.

[Akree]

Akree closed her eyes, to hear better the calming rain. This was very relaxing, the mud was now bothering her a bit and she shook her head, masking dust fly around the den. Akree chuckled to herself and switched her gaze to her friend, Elaine. She smiled at her friend, a lot less tense. The rain seemed to keep a calm atmosphere on the area and the scent of doe had almost completely faded away. She giggled when Elaine's stomach gave a large groan and noticed she was quiet hungry herself.

"Akree..." said Elaine.

Akree perked her ears and turned to her friend "What?" she said calmly.

She flicked her tail, awaiting her friends explanation, but her gaze shifted to the entrance of the den. She positioned her head under the stream of droplets that were falling, wanting to get rid of the mud. They fell on her head and she shook her head, making some of the now wet mud fall on her friend. She giggled again and nudged Elaine.

"What were you going to say?" asked Akree.

The gentle rain was now pouring a little more on the den, but nothing serious. She smiled and stretched her neck to take a peek outside. It seemed clear, only deer blood was on the ground, now mixed with water. She licked her maw and turned to look at Elaine. She shook her head free from the water and said:

"Should we go outside"

[abhorzion]

The quiet calm in the den was certainly a welcome change, both the wolves had already had quite enough excitement for one morning. As the gentle rain started to become heavier, more and more droplets found their way into the den, dampening Elaine's black muzzle. Akree pushed her head under the trickle of water and shook her head, flinging damp mud onto the maned wolf. The timber wolf then giggled and nudged Elaine.
"What were you going to say?" she asked, smiling.
"I dunno, I forgot..." replied Elaine, sheepishly. She squirmed uncomfortably as she shifted her scarred rear left leg from under her body. "It's too cramped in here, my legs are falling asleep." she chuckled as she tried to manouver herself without kicking Akree. With all this shuffling about and wriggling, the dust inside the den was disturbed and flying about, occasionally getting in the pair's eyes.
"Should we go outside?" asked Akree.
Now that was a good idea. Elaine was getting irritated by the cramped and dusty conditions, not to mention her itchy skin and filthy fur. All she wanted to do was get out, have a scratch and stretch her legs. Run, jump, have a swim, roll about, just like when she was just a pup. Elaine nodded and cautiously crept towards the entrance to the den, her small black nose twitching, searching, making sure there was no more threat. The coast was clear and she smiled at Akree, who also looked cramped and bursting to get out.

Elaine bounded out of the den and paused for a quick look around. After deciding they were safe, she skipped out, allowing Akree to exit the den. The cool rain and the crisp breeze felt good as she shook her fur vigorously and sat down for a good old scratch, her small paws scraping the clods of mud away from behind her ears. She rose to her paws again and bent her head round so that she could nibble out the matted parts of her mane, flicking her tail in contentment as she did so. She looked at Akree once more before bowing down into a big, well deserved stretch and let out a large yawn.
"What do you wanna do now?" she said afterwards, a smile spreading across her narrow face.

[Akree]

Akree watched Elaine sniff about and exit the den. She felt excitement gripping her and with a single bound she exited the den. She shook herself as rain pattered down on her fur, this felt oh so refreshing, thought Akree to herself. She yawned loudly, and looked sleepily at Elaine. She walked around stretching her legs, one of her back legs seemed to not want to walk around, she bounded around until it reacted. She chuckled at Elaine and turned to the rainy sky, welcoming the rain.

"What do you wanna do now?"

"What do you think?!" joked Akree "Go for a long swim of course" she said, laughing heartily.

She snuffled around the ground, she knew there was a creek around here some were, she could smell water while they ran away from the hunters. She walked around and turned right, following her muddied nose to the scent of water. She sniffed around and when she was absolutely sure it was water, and away from any human-like scent, she turned to Elaine.

"Come on, i think I know were we can go for a bath"she said chuckling.

She walked slowly, as the mud made her feel stiff and heavy, but surely toward the scent of water. She glanced every now and then back at Elaine, to make sure the wolf was still following her. She chuckled to herself, she had a mud monster for a friend.

[abhorzion]

The two wolves spent a few minutes just bouncing round, shaking, scratching and yawning, just like a pair of puppies. The atmosphere was now comfortable as they played about in the rain, the droplets moistening the mud embedded in their pelts. Elaine looked at Akree with a big grin as she suggested they go for a swim. She took off, following her nose to a source of water she'd picked up earlier and Elaine followed her. Her light, bouncy footsteps keeping up with her larger friend.
"Come on, i think I know were we can go for a bath" Called Akree, turning to look at the smaller wolf every now and then as they padded through the trees. They both would have loved to run and bounce towards the water to stretch their legs but the mud, which was now wet again, was weighing them down once more. Akree and Elaine looked at each other and chuckled as they realised how daft they both looked, covered from tip to tail in mud and smelling dreadful.

As they approached the scent of water, Elaine started to get excited.
I'll have a nice long drink and a good swim and then I'll catch me a fish, she thought to herself, her stomach grumbling longingly at the thought of fish. She hadn't eaten in over three days and the last thing she could remember eating was a pear that she'd found on the ground near her old den. It had already been nibbled at by a mouse but he'd been all to keen to let it up upon seeing the orange wolf.
Eventually, the creek came into sight and Elaine stopped to take in the surroundings. Her large black ears flickered round and her keen eyes scanned the area. Her nose twitched as she pricked up every sense, just in case. Just then, a large bird swooped down and plucked a fish from the water, then took it's prize back up into the tree tops. She was convinced they were both safe now, and she turned to look at her friend, a content smile on her face and her long thick, bushy tail wagging.
"Race ya!" she barked, nudging Akree playfully before bouncing off towards the water. She knew really that Akree could outrun her, no problem. Elaine's long legs could only manage short bursts of speed but she didn't care right now, she was in the mood for playing about.

[Akree]

Akre followed her keen sense of smell. Her large paws carried her toward the scent, encouraged. Only then did she noticed she was thirsty. She stopped to look at the geography of the area. The creek swooped down, strengthened by the rain, but not enough to carry then both. They found themselves in a 'clearing' of sorts. A large bird swooped down to take a fish and it carried it back to the treetops. She felt excited and wanted to ran toward the creek and splash some water.

"Race ya"she heard Elaine call back to her.

Akree easily caught up to the wolf and ran past it. Just when she reached the edge of the creek, instead of slowing down, she took a long bound and landed with a splash on the creek. Elaine got wet and she giggled. She splashed the water, content. She stopped once, but only to take a sip of the water.

((Would you mind if Spets joined?))

[abhorzion]

Akree shot past Elaine in a dark blur and carried on towards the creek, sploshing straight into it and wetting Elaine. The cool water against her fur felt irrestistable as she hurtled towards the creek but as she got to the waterside, she stopped fast and stood still like a statue. After a quick look around, she lowered her head and took a long, well needed gulp of water. She crouched slightly, her rear flicking from side to side in the air like a playful puppy and she jumped into that water with an enormous plop. Whilst under the water, she glanced round, the water was reasonably clean, though dark and she could see little fish swimming all round, confused by the two wolves presence. With a smile, she kicked her long legs and pushed her head towards the surface, spotting Akree's legs paddling nearby and she resurfaced with a big smile on her face. The mud from their pelts was dirtying the water, a large discoloured area forming around them.
"Hey, Akree!" said Elaine, trying to be quiet but having ot raise her voice slightly to be heard over the splashes they were making. "There are fish down there! Loads of 'em! I'm going for a swim." she added, with a wink and she dived into deeper water to look for bigger fish.

The atmosphere under the water was somewhat less excitable as Elaine bobbed her head up and down, taking big gulps of air and then bowing her head back under, scanning through the reeds for fish. She spotted a large spotted fish resting by some rushes and she brought her head back above the surface for an extra big breath, it was pretty deep and she wasn't the worlds best swimmer so she'd need time to catch the thing. She checked to see that Akree was still nearby and upon seeing her, she dived back under the water. She locked on to the fish, squinting in the water and waited for it to turn it's back to her... Then she struck! She scooped the water in front of her with her long legs and kicked it away with her rear legs, her tail acting as a balance to stop her being pushed off course by the water. She torpedoed through the water and caught the fished tail in her mouth. It writhed violently, blood escaping though it's wound but Elaine had a grip on it. She snapped at it again, throwing it firmly into her mouth and she swam back up to the surface, giving the fish a good old shake as she resurfaced, just to be sure it was dead. She paddled back over to shallower water so she could stand and she held her prize in her mouth a while, gazing around for Akree. She'd swam further out than she thought while catching their dinner, so she stepped out onto the bank, shook herself down and laid the fish on the ground. It's nerves caused it to twitch.
"Akree? Where are you? I got us a fish!" barked Elaine, sounding rather pleased with herself.

[Akree]

Rain pattered down on the ground a dark figure slipping in the shadows like he was used to. Spetsnaz was used to be sneaky, walking ever so silently through the trees. His gray eyes scanned carefully and skillfully everything around him, used to catching every little detail in one quick glance. He heard a few giggles and loud splashes from nearby. He turned his muzzle to the sound and a small growl escaped his lips, it never hurt to be cautious.

Skillfully he walked toward the river, the dark water seemed to be teeming with fish. He walked toward the shallow part of the creek, searching for fish. A big fish passed past his paws and with a quick sweep of his jaws had the large fish in his jaws. He shook his head so the fish would keep still and die. Pleased with his catch he walked on the shallows, silently, but quickly. He soon caught sight of a maned she wolf with a fish on her jaws. He also caught sight of a bigger female, splashing slightly on the water, nearing the orange maned wolf. He snorted and continued to walk, not actually caring for neither of the two females. He marched on, keeping his head high.


Akree giggled as the now wet Elaine emerged from under the water. Her large paws splashed on the water slightly. The smaller wolf looked weird with that large fish on her jaws. Akree chuckled and thought for a minute, it would be fun to sneak on her friend. She dove under the water and swam slightly curved, she wasn't used to swimming much, she just liked it.

"Akree? Where are you? I got us a fish!" she heard Elaine say, through bubbled words.

Akree waited a few seconds and jumped out of the water. She barked at Elaine and giggled slightly. She looked at the fish and laughed even more.


Spetsnaz chuckled through the fish in his mouth, he continued walking and pushed Elaine out of way. He then stopped and sat down to eat the fish, not that far away from the two wolves.

[abhorzion]

Elaine gazed round and picked the fish up once more, just in case someone tried to pinch it. The fish in her jaws was probably about as large as her own head and weighed a fair bit, she could really do with putting it down again but she wanted to find her friend first. Her enormous bat ears twirled in all directions as she heard a quiet little splash from somewhere but it was faint and she couldn't see where it came from. Then she noticed a ripple coming towards her, Akree must be nearby, she thought to herself, looking all around but not seeing her. Just then, there was a large ripple and then SPLASH! Akree burst out of the water and barked loudly, Elaine almost dropped the fish as the dark timber wolf surprised her and she giggled, her tail wagging, long shaggy fur waving from side to side.

As the two she wolves burst into a giggling fit, a large grey male barged past, nudging the small orange wolf out of his way, which she thought was very rude indeed. Her giggling ceased and she frowned at the male, who also had a large fish in his mouth and she put the fish down gently by Akree's paws.
"Apology accepted..." she barked, sarcastically. "Wanna watch where you're walking, buster?" she added, irritably. Her reaction surprised even herself, she could be blunt at times but she never intended to be rude, normally. She decided this male deserved it though and suddenly, she didn't feel quite so guilty.
"You should know it's rude to barge into a lady." she said, standing with her legs close together and her head high, trying to look tall but failing next to these two enormous wolves.

[Akree]

Akree's laughter ceased as a large wolf barged on her friend. She glared at the wolf, but kept quite, he ignored them completely and simply sat down, with a large fish on his jaws. It surprised her the size of this male, bigger than herself, she hadn't met anyone like this.

"Apology accepted...Wanna watch where you're walking, buster?" Elaine barked, it surprised Akree, but she continued to watch this wolf carefully.

Spetsnaz smiled and let down the fish. This female was a cranky one, he thought to himslef. They large wolf sat down straight and switched his gaze between the two she wolves, they were kind of pissed of, it made him want to smile.

"Of course I accept your apology"he said sarcastically, a smiled forming on his muzzle.

He watched the two wolves expression darken. The orange she wolf was the most ticked of by his 'rudeness'. His gray eyes caught any movement at all and watched as the small wolf tried to make herself look tall.

"You should know it's rude to barge into a lady." said the maned wolf.

"Lady?" he said rudely "You look like a shaggy little boy" he said to the female, his Russian accent making itself very clear. He turned to look at the fish on his paws "smell like one to" he said, more to himself.

Akree flattened her ears against her skull and began to growl. She would speak right now, but she didn't feel like wasting words with this wolf. She lowered her head, making her look menacing, her friend may be small and may look shaggy right now, but that didn't give him any right whatsoever.