|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 14, 2018 11:35:05 GMT -8
"I'll be back." Hai said to her new acquaintance, turning and trodding away. She traveled for a good few minutes, traveling in the direction of the warren, and searching the area with her pale, sunlit eyes she froze, catching the movement of a cotton tail and tall, brown and grey mottled ears. WIth the promise of prey now set in her mind, she crouched, stalking the hare quietly and surley, remembering all the time she had hunted to survive. As she got very close to the rodent, a rock slid from under her paw, making a clattering sound, and the hare's head shot up to look in her direction. It poised to flee, speeding off in the opposite direction, kicking up sand and pebbles, as she sped after it, running right on it's fluffy little tail. The chase lasted a while, and soon she began to realize it's home was very near, and right as it was about to bounce into its hole, it stumbled on a rock, flipping, opening a spot for the hunt to end. Hai promptly pounced, slamming her black and silver paw onto it's fragile, slender back, and put her jaws around it's neck, snapping it with a jerk of her head. The hunt was over.
Hai turned, the dead rodent in her jaws, and she sped back to her Tenzi. Sidling up to his front side, she promptly dropped the creature at his paws. She was so enthralled in her work she was unsure of how long she had been gone. "Here you go, it's still warm."
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 14, 2018 11:56:24 GMT -8
Tenzin was more than happy to wait, and as her paws padded away he was calm. He once again attempted to ground himself, digging his claws softly into the snow to get down to the grass and dirt underneath. He calmed his breathing, tilted his head and ears towards the ground, and tried to feel the roots of the tree expanding underneath him. He knew from his family that all things vibrated on their own frequency, and hoped that by practicing this technique while meditating he could get more in tune with mother nature and the living things around himself, and use this technique to maybe get around better.
He didn't know how long Hai was gone, for he was focusing on his own task, but he became alert as soon as his ears picked up her coming back to him, them smell of a fresh kill emanating from her. He sniffed eagerly, his tail thumping against the tree happily. He smiled, and as he felt the hare being dropped at his feet he dipped his head in appreciation before digging into the meal. He ate quickly, probably too quickly for it to be good for him, but the taste of meat was so good and foreign he couldn't stop himself to truly savor it.
When there was nothing left but the head and bones and fur, he raised his head, licking his lips clean of the blood on them. "Once more, I appreciate you for feeding me. I, uh, apologize for not saving you any." Suddenly realizing he had left her without any share of the rabbit, he tucked his ears against his skull and let out a quiet whimper. "Oh man, I've never been this selfish before, I'm sorry. I lost myself for a moment there in my desires. It won't happen again."
@hai
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 14, 2018 12:30:19 GMT -8
Hai tilted her head in amusement, but at the same time his urgent apology struck her like a ton of tree trunks. "You don't have to apologize, Tenzin. You were probably hungrier than I. I can find something else to eat later. Really." the mottled black and silver female said, her voice calm. She felt utterly relaxed, as if actually having the ability to kill something after a while was all she needed to sate her internal hunger.
She sat down, rapping her thick brush around her paws and looking out at the setting sun, and after a moment she began to wonder what is was like being Tenzin, unable to see the world as it was. Hesitantly she looked at the red furred male beside her and asked a shaky question, "Wha..... whats it like? Being blind, that is. Sorry, if it's a little personal..." She muttered the last part, now nervous, and feeling like she crossed a boundary. She knew he was friendly, and pretty chill with everything, but she didn't know his personal life, and was iffy on how to go about with social communication.
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 14, 2018 12:53:15 GMT -8
Tenzin didn't exactly believe her, but she seemed sure and calm. He listened to her move closer, then sit beside him, and he paused for a moment to kick the carcass away from them. Return the rest to mother nature, and let her do her thing. There was a long pause between them, him deciding she must be thinking, or looking at something. His ear swiveled towards her as her shaky voice let out a question, herself even apologizing right after in case she was prodding him and making him uncomfortable. He didn't have a problem talking about his disability; maybe he did at first, when his vision first started to go he didn't want to accept that he wasn't getting better at hunting, he was getting worse. But now, he didn't mind. He accepted that he had a different experience than those who had vision, and they would be asking about what it was like for him for the rest of his life. He had asked his own grandfather when he was a pup if he was afraid that he couldn't see. His grandfather wasn't. He was completely confident in himself, and if he couldn't do something, he had a family who would help him.
"It isn't so bad, after a while. You get a lot of bumps and cuts running into a lot of trees," he smirked, shaking his head in amusement. "It took some time to get comfortable with it. I'm still not all the way comfortable. But I know I will get there, with meditation and faith. I lost my sight when I was six months old, so sometimes I can't even remember what certain colors look like. But I still remember what I look like, and that's okay."
@hai
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 14, 2018 13:00:05 GMT -8
Hai was satisfied to the core with his answer. He seemed more comfortable with himself than she was with her own pelt, and that was moving. After a moment of readjusting, she laid onto her side, and sighed with contentment, watching as the sun became a bright sliver of the horizon. "Do you remember what the sunset looks like? Or the stars? I love stars." She asked, turning her head a little to glance at him with sideways peripheral vision. She felt calm with this wolf, and she could tell that's what he was feeling as well. She caught the vibe that calm was his thing, and she wondered how over all of the problems that occured in life, he could stay so firm in his religion. Hai didn't truly have a religion, but sometimes she got feelings, like something greater controlled and watched their lives. She always though it was the stars, and over time she came to study constellations, and recognizing direction for travel with them.
@tenzin
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 14, 2018 13:22:46 GMT -8
She seemed to be happy with his answer; in fact, it seemed to solidify something within herself, and she lay down at his side. She asked if he remembered the sunset, what the stars look like. He took a moment to think, visualize in his mind what the night sky looked like. he still remembered the moon, and the tiny little specks of blurry light that made up stars.
"I don't really remember the sunset. I remember it could have a lot of colors depending on if it was going to rain that night or the next day. But usually it's orange, right? That's what I remember the sun being. I very much remember the moon. I loved looking at it and how once every so often it would look blue or orange, and the one time it was really really big in the sky. I never really saw the sky clearly, but I remember a lot of little bright dots in the sky. Those are stars, I know. But if you're asking me if I was able to pick out constellations and such that would be a no. I was born with a genetic deformity. My grandfather on my mother's side passed down this degenerative eyesight to me. His was fast, but he didn't go blind until he was three years old. For some reason, mine was a lot faster."
@hai
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2018 8:17:36 GMT -8
Hai turned her head, thinking. She put her tail over his, feeling a connection. A friendship is quick development. She looked up at the dulling sky as the bright sliver of a moon lifted itself like a blade of sorrow. She looked at him, and promptly lifted her head high, and howled. Her howl was music, tracing back from when the first of their kind learned to sing, and announced their music to the world. It resonated through her blood,spreading like the roots of the elderly tree beside them, and told a story. A story of great sorrow and pain, of loss, and friendship. It echoed the past, and the hopeful future. The howl burst through the air, long and solemn, until finally it tapered off and she panted, cold puffs of air steaming from her nostrils.
Hai turned and looked at Tenzin, titling her cranium, and the stars sparkling in her eyes, a new purpose running through her, and the desire to give this wolf the best she had. "I will be your eyes, and with my sight your soul shall see, my friend. The sunset is indeed brightly colored, as for tonight, it was a great pastel of orange and pink, fading from light to dark blue. The stars are dull tonight, but as beautiful as ever. It's time to teach you to hunt, and I know just how to do it."
@tenzin
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2018 9:10:58 GMT -8
He sat peacefully, taking in the air of the sea not too far from them, mixing with the earthy smells of the forest behind them. He felt Hai's tail rest over his. He turned his white mask towards her and tilted his head to the side curiously, only to hear her let out a long, emotional howl. It was melodic, learned, and told her story purely through voice alone. He listened, never making a sound to fully take in what she was conveying to him, to the world. Eventually it quieted out and ended, the length of the howl leaving her a little breathless.
She looked back at him, a new purpose awoken within her. She vowed to help him, to be his eyes. He deeply appreciated her and her intentions, but he didn't know if he could lean on another again after doing it so much to his family when he first lost his sight. Leaning on them so hard was why he didn't know how to take care of himself better in the first place. His brow furrowed as he thought, taking a deep breath.
"Thank you, I am grateful for your sudden conviction. I don't think I can be a burden to you like that, though. I should know how to live on my own. I'm almost fully grown, after all. I'm a full year. I am very thankful that you have fed me, and I will meditate on your offer to teach me, but I don't think I can lean on you to see for me." His words were gentle, steady, no ulterior motive hidden underneath. "I have to learn to live without my sight, not rely on others to fill in the gaps for me."
@hai
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2018 9:18:36 GMT -8
Hai thought about what he said, and came to a conclusion. "I will teach you to hunt, and then if you want to leave me, so be it. But I would at least like to help you, so i know that when you leave my side, you will not be found dead to the dreadful fate of starvation." she concluded. She stood up, turning in a circle, sniffing the ground, knowing what she was searching for, a rodent hole of a small creature. Finally she found it, closing her eyes, she plunged her muzzle into the dead leaves and came up with a shrew, crushed in her jaws. "Sniff the ground for tunnels, and listen for the scuttling of small creatures like this." She said.
@tenzin
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2018 10:34:22 GMT -8
Still she insisted she teach him how to hunt with his disability. He chuckled and shook his head, realizing he wasn't going to get anywhere with her, because she wasn't going to take no for an answer. He still wondered why she cared so much, but he supposed he could do with a little bit of training.
"Okay, okay. I concede. You may try to teach me to hunt." Tenzin listened as she got to her feet, her feet moving in circles in the snow and leaves. He heard something plunge into the ground, pulling back with a deciding crunch. She caught something. She instructed him to do the same, and he tilted his head. Sniff for tunnels? He supposed tunnels for rodents would be a bit more earthy than the rest of the ground which was mostly covered in a sheet of snow and dead leaves.
It was getting dark, wasn't it? It was true that his kind hunted at day or night, but what about the female in front of him? He had no idea what kind of wolf she was or if she was a night hunter or a day hunter. She could be tired. Still, she wanted to help him, so he supposed he should give it one try for now. He rose to his feet, head and ears pointed to the ground like he did when meditating, directing all senses to the ground beneath him.
He paced slowly, silently, sniffing at the dirt, listening intently. He paused, listened. An ear twitch to the left. He turned his head in that direction and remained completely still. He thought he heard movement under the topsoil. He angled his head, searched for the source of the distant thumping, and struck. His teeth plunged into the snow, and his nose rammed into the ground, while his bottom jaw kept going. He had found an opening, but had miscalculated the positioning. A field mouse poked out of the snow and made a desperate dash, him swiping a paw and managing to hit it. It flew a good five feet before it landed and rolled to a stop. The mouse, ultimately unharmed, got up and bound away, escaping death this time.
Tenzin shrugged, shaking his head and using a paw to wipe his now aching nose. "Well, I was close," He said, smiling softly in the direction Hai was.
@hai
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2018 10:47:35 GMT -8
Hai snapped up the shrew in her mouth and swallowed it whole, watching as he attempted as well. His missing made no break in her determination. She trotted around, sniffing at the tunnel her discovered, finding that they wound well over the terrain and stretched quite far. "It's getting late, would you like to try again or are you ready to retire for the night?" She asked, taking note that his muzzle was in pain from plunging. "Maybe when we start again, we should practice the best ways to do that without you hurting your nose...." Her last sentence was more of a mutter, and she looked around and the steady dark and then glanced up, staring at the beloved skylights that twinkled dully above. She looked back at Tenzin, and suddenly the distraction that had caused her so much adrenaline wore off, and the steady ache in her paws and the emptiness in her stomach returned, sated just barely a fraction by the tiny rodent consumed a minute before.
She laid back down, disappointed in herself for not resting much on her journey, but she felt no urge to sleep. Tugging at her mind to keep working was her insomnia, ever persistent in preventing true sleep, and nightmares torturing the few moment of rest she received. She didn't think she would get any this night, either, so instead she focused on helping the male near her, waiting to see whether he was tired or wanted to keep practicing.
@tenzin
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2018 11:34:16 GMT -8
She seemed to get the hint that he wasn't up for practicing much right now, and asked if he would like to wait. He nodded, sniffing around for a sign of somewhere relatively warm to curl up for a while. He wasn't exactly tired or ready to go to sleep just yet, but he was ready to be off of his feet for once. Maybe he could find a big rock still warm from the sun and lay on it. Maybe there was an empty den nearby. He didn't really desire to sleep in the snow again.
"Yes, I think it would be best to retire for now. I have been traveling quite a ways from what I can tell, and my paws hurt from traveling every day looking for berries. Do you happen to know where anything warm may be? It doesn't have to have the prettiest view; I'm not picky." Not to mention he was full to the brim after scarfing down that rabbit, but he didn't want to add that knowing she had only eaten a small rodent to fill the void in her intestines.
@hai
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2018 11:47:30 GMT -8
Hai perked up her ears, his question actually being one she could answer quickly. She stood up slowly, stretching her front paws and her tail up in the air. "Yes, actually. There is an abandoned badger set close to here that I found a while ago, and it's big enough for you to get into. It's this way, watch for the rocks." She said as she moved to him quickly, once again poking him gently with her muzzle to indicate a direction. She knew quite well where it was, as it laid north, under the sky's brightest star. "It's warm, and there is some old moss in it, but it was too small for me. I wait outside while you sleep and make sure nothing threatens us." She said, eager to move.
After her last words and letting him know where they were going, she brushed her tail against him as she moved, letting him know that she was moving. Making sure to click her claws on the smooth rocks in front of her so he got the idea of where they were and wouldn't strike his paw pads on it.
@tenzin
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 16, 2018 9:50:22 GMT -8
Tenzin was happy to hear that there would be a comfortable place for him to sleep in for the night. Hai swiftly moved to his side, once again bumping him with her nose to indicate the direction to go. He started moving, listening to the clicks of her claws on the rocks to pick where to step. There were a few sharp rocks that managed to jab his feet here and there, but he made it away from the beach relatively unscathed.
They headed North, him quietly taking in his surroundings as best he could. They were still close to the water, at least, not even a half a mile away from the shoreline. The female who led him seemed to know exactly where the den was, despite her being too large to fit into it. Maybe she had just been in the area for a while and learned where some things were.
@hai
|
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 16, 2018 10:11:05 GMT -8
As Hai approached the dark hole, the long faded scent of a badger family still hung in the air. She flicked her tail, briefly remembering her own, and pain flicked through her chest. She pushed the memories away and looked back at the younger male following her. "Here we are, the smell should cover us, so we should be safe. The opening is over here." She said, and Hai walked over to him and nudged him to the entrance of the badger sett. She sat down beside the old den, staring up at the stars as a cold breeze blew through her fur.
@tenzin
|
|
