Disenchanted Entanglements

[Agni]

It was raining, and it wasn't lightly either. It was definitely making it exceedingly hard to track and the feeling of Agni's sopping fur sticking and pulling on his skin wasn't exactly pleasant. He had been tracking this particular wolf for several hours now. When the trail had first led him into the jungle, Agni had been extremely wary. There was various stories of wolves getting lost in this particular area, or horror stories of yearlings being carried off by griffins. It didn't exactly inspire confidence. Unfortunately, Agni's clumsiness was about to make thing infinitely worse.

As Agni was weaving his way through a clump of large flowering plants, he suddenly slipped in a large patch of mud. The resulting fall ended with Agni's legs crossed over each other and tangled uncomfortably underneath his body. The customary embarrassment that came with these incidents was compounded by the mud that was quite thoroughly enmeshing with his fur.

The deftness that he usually managed to distangle himself with was absent as he struggled to sort himself out, as he kept slipping and sliding in the patch of mud he had fallen in. After several minutes of sullen concentration, Agni finally managed to untangled himself and lurched upright, a huff of breath escaping him as he was finally righted. However, when Agni went to pick up the scent again he found that his involuntary break in concentration had been long enough that the rain had washed away the trail.

[kiba]

Trekking into the jungle wasn't particularly the male's favorite thing, but he had decided that it would be fun, in the least. Slipping his small form this way and that through the various bushes, he maneuvered quite swiftly through many of the obstacles. Of course, the rain made it quite difficult, but it also proved to be a most interesting challenge. A puddle here caused him to swerve off in a new direction suddenly, and a spot that looked particularly dangerous caused him to take a sudden left. While avoiding these places, he ended up farther in the jungle than he had intended, but he took it all in stride. He had created a game, and had his fun, but now it was time to game his way back out.

Veering to the left for a few moments and then cutting back, he planned on just going straight until he found something he remembered, but he was stopped when he heard a commotion. Ears flicking, he made his way through some more bushes, coming back to an area that he had just passed, taking a sharp turn to avoid the mud that this creature seemed to have fallen prey to. Smirking for a moment as he watched the creature finally stand up, he held back a slight puppyish laugh and stepped forward.

"Evenings, stranger. It seems that you have gotten in quite the predicament." The small male said with a cheery lift of his voice, ears flicked forward as he looked up the the other. Compared to this new creature, Kiba was nothing in size. While this fact would intimidate others, he just looked at it as something that would make things even more interesting. "By the way..." He started off, observing the area around them. "Might you have been following me? I seemed to have notice something of the sort every now and then, though I gave it no attention. Should I have been concerned?" He rambled for a moment and then stopped, tilting his head to the side in question.

[Agni]

Agni was too busy mentally bemoaning his state and the loss of the scent trail to notice the approach of another wolf. However, his attention quickly shifted to the significantly smaller male when a laugh reached his ears. Ears ducking down to press against his head, Agni whipped around to stare at the newcomer. In the execution of the turn necessary to put him face to face with the other male, Agni nearly overbalanced, though thankfully this time he narrowly managed to avoided being sprawled out in the mud again. As he took in the appearance of the wolf that had nearly ended up being the cause for his latest face plant, Agni idly wondered if he was seeing a midget.

"Evenings, stranger. It seems that you have gotten in quite the predicament."

He stared for a moment after the other wolf's greeting before shooting back one of his own, "Yes, well, this isn't the first time," Agni huffed before adding, "and a good evening to you too, if I dare even call it that. Agni, by the way," he concluded rather sharply, distaste coloring his tone as he shifted his weight and felt the mud squelch between his pads.

"By the way . . . . Might you have been following me? I seemed to have notice something of the sort every now and then, though I gave it no attention. Should I have been concerned?"

Staring at the other wolf rather blatantly now, Agni found himself at a loss for words. Was he accusing him of stalking? Agni chanced a rather tentative deep inhale in the other wolf's direction. 'Ah,' Agni mentally sighed, body language becoming rather sheepish as he did, 'I suppose he wouldn't bee too far off the mark.' For several moments Agni dared not meet the other wolf's eyes as he organized his thoughts for the best explanation.

"Yes, well, my intent certainly wasn't to spook you," Agni began, pausing uncertainly for a moment before plowing on, "That is to say, I'm not the best hunter, but I'm rather good at tracking. I offer to find the prey as long as I get a share of the kill."

[kiba]

Kiba grinned some at the other's actions, but it wasn't a mocking-grin. This expression was just default for him, he was actually quite enjoying the entertainment of a different species. While usually he preferred to stray away from them, today was a rare chance that he just decided to put aside his differences, for the time being at least.

"Yes, well, this isn't the first time, and a good evening to you too, if I dare even call it that. Agni, by the way,"

The male let out a light-hearted chuckle at this, giving a slight nod. It wasn't like he was a stranger to interesting predicaments, "Kiba Juzka, pleasure to meet you Agni." He spoke quickly and quietly, though audible enough for Agni to be able to hear him clearly. As Agni took in his next words, Kiba watched him closely. Any sign that he should have been concerned would send Kiba back off in to the bushes in a split second, but it seemed that Agni was just slightly disappointed in being found out.

"Yes, well, my intent certainly wasn't to spook you," "That is to say, I'm not the best hunter, but I'm rather good at tracking. I offer to find the prey as long as I get a share of the kill."

Kiba nodded slightly at this, yes, he had to have been good to have kept up with Kiba's own random changing of directions. This sentence also confused him for a moment, for he wasn't sure if Agni was speaking in metaphors, or clearly saying that he was up for a hunt. Kiba's mind reeled as he over thought each word, trying to figure out if there was some deeper meaning to them. "So I see," he started, pausing to glance around the forest for a moment before returning his eyes to Agni, "As to hunting, meat of the beasts does not appeal to me at this moment. If it so pleases you at this moment though, I shall not detain you any longer." He said and ended with a flick of his ears, taking a step back in to the bushes and flashing a grin. While he did not wish to part so soon, he didn't want to keep Agni from a hunt if that's what the other wanted to do.

[Agni]

The sound of the raindrops contacting with the leaves and ground of the jungle caused Agni's ear to twitch spasmodically. The rain further diluted the mud in the fur of his back, causing it to become thinner, the thicker sludge that clumped in the fur on his belly shielded from the rain by his body. Agni gave a full body shake, the feel of the mixing rain and mud an itchy irritant, before refocusing on the smaller wolf. He seemed friendly, the laugh he gave in response to his greeting lighthearted enough thankfully, small miracles be praised.

"So I see. As to hunting, meat of the beasts does not appeal to me at this moment. If it so pleases you at this moment though, I shall not detain you any longer."

Agni ducked his head, at bit sheepish at being caught out. "Yes well," he hesitated, looking around him, "I don't think this is the weather for a hunt. Any scent I could find will be washed away by now." He found himself desperately wishing for a way to wash off, though it seemed his wish would be left unfulfilled. Maybe the rain water would be enough to clean his coat if he stood out in it long enough. Alas, the rain was too light to do much more than help the mud spread throughout his coat.

[kiba]

As he waited for a response from Agni, Kiba's eyes drifted to the sky, squinting as he stared in to the rain for a moment. It didn't seem like it was getting any lighter, which would make it difficult to move through the forest if it continued to make the mud into piles of sludge that would trap any creature in their slippery grasps. Frowning a bit at this, he looked back up at Agni as the other male spoke.

"Yes well, I don't think this is the weather for a hunt. Any scent I could find will be washed away by now."

Kiba nodded for a moment, "Yes... And the smart creatures are all hidden away from the water most likely, which would make it even more difficult to find their hiding spots." He said, rolling his shoulders in a shrug. He wasn't interested in the first place, this conclusion didn't dampen his spirits whatsoever. This constant rain, on the other hand, did. Kiba was never a fan of the rain, and this made him remember why he usually stayed away from the jungle, because it rained so frequently.

Taking in a large breath of air and then letting it out slowly, his whole body seemed to grow in size and then deflate like a balloon with a hole. Smirking some, he closed his eyes and shook his fur, water droplets flying in every direction, mixing in with the ones falling downwards. Once he was standing still again, he decided that he was over the mud squishing between his paws and walked a few paces over to a rock that he had noticed before, seating himself on top of it and wrapping his tail around his muddied paws, "The rain. It's not my favorite thing."

[Agni]

Agni was just thankful that it wasn't raining any harder than it already was. As it was, the sky was spitting pretty hard. It was definitely the worse weather for a wolf like Agni who couldn't keep his limbs straight to save his life. It was more frustrating than Agni could explain with words.

"Yes . . . . And the smart creatures are all hidden away from the water most likely, which would make it even more difficult to find their hiding spots."

Well, at least Agni had something, someone else to focus his attention on. "Yes, even my tracking skills aren't a match for mother nature," Agni said somewhat fondly, though underlying exasperation could b detected in his tone. Agni watched curiously as the other wolf finally moved, approaching a rock with a fairly large surface area before leaping onto it.

"The rain. It's not my favorite thing."

"Hm," Agni hummed before continuing, ears pricking and eyes curious, "I enjoy the rain when it's not interrupting a trail, or it causing me more clumsiness than usual. Though that seems to be the case today."

[kiba]

Kiba had let his eyes wander to the trees surrounding them, eyes squinted and ears laid back to keep the water away. The jungle was always so... Interesting, and foreboding. Anything could happen, and no one would know, for days... weeks... months. It seemed to go on forever, and Kiba wondered what would happen if someone got lost in the jungle. Would they ever find their way out?

"Yes, even my tracking skills aren't a match for mother nature."

Kiba gave a slight nod. Mother nature... it was.. Wonderful, but destructive. So many beautiful things came from mother nature, and yet, with a slight change in wind, whole forests could be destroyed. Giving a slight sigh, he returned his gaze to Agni.

"Hm. I enjoy the rain when it's not interrupting a trail, or it causing me more clumsiness than usual. Though that seems to be the case today."

Smirking some, he flicked his ears in slight agreement, "The jungle is probably not the best place to be when it rains." He said simply, the smile fading for a moment as he looked around. Now, he was never one to be truly afraid, but as the clouds covered any spot of light that may still be in the sky and the looming trees cast dark shadows upon the ground, he could feel his nerves getting to him.

[Agni]

By now, Agni was completely soaked, and the streaks of watery mud had finally sloughed off under the rains onslaught. When Kiba nodded in agreement, Agni chanced a grin, pleased. He didn't always have the best track record with first meetings and the subsequent impressions.

"The jungle is probably not the best place to be when it rains."

"No, its not," Agni agreed simply.

As the shadows continued to grow, Agni's anxiety climbed, though not enough to kick up his element, thankfully enough. "Do you remember the way out?" Agni inquired, tone and expression doubtful.

[kiba]

Kiba kept his eyes off of Agni now, searching the woods around them. "No, it's not. Do you remember the way out?" The Lyxxus frowned for a moment, ears flicking even more as he tried to remember. "...I do. But... I'm not sure. I remember most of the way. Would you care to try?" He said, leaping off of the rock and going around the mud pile.

Standing near the bushes, he looked back at Agni, ears pinned to his head, "I'd be glad to try and get us out of here, but if you'd rather go your own way, I'd understand." He said, head raised against the rain. Kiba was quite aware that many species didn't like spending time around others, and while he wasn't the biggest fan of it, he never treated anyone differently, no matter what species. Even so, he had experienced the dislike first-hand, and if Agni had had enough, he would gladly go on his own way.

ooc: fail. and apologies for taking so long. :C

[Agni]

Agni ears pressed flatter to his head in response to the rain, a miserable glint clear in his eyes. This type of weather had never exactly been his favorite thing after all.

". . . I do. But . . . I'm not sure. I remember most of the way. Would you care to try?"

"Trying, would be good," Agni gasped out quickly, the chill of the water soaking into his fur. It wasn't a pleasant feeling. Suddenly, as if deciding they weren't uncomfortable enough, the rain started sluicing down harder, soon enough feeling as if it was penetrating his very skin. With a mental grimace and a curling of the lips, Agni nodded decisively.

"I'd be glad to try and get us out of here, but if you'd rather go your own way, I'd understand."

"If it means getting out of this deluge, I'd be happy to follow you anywhere," Agni said quickly, already restlessly shifting from paw to paw, "After you," Agni finished quietly.

OOC: It's fine, my previous post wasn't exactly a shinning example of RP-age.

[kiba]

Kiba just nodded his head as Agni spoke, tail slashing behind him. The rain had begun to aggravate him now, and he knew it would make it hard for him to maneuver, being so close to the ground. Giving a sigh, he pinned his ears, pushing through the bushes, "Let's make leave then." He said, disappearing for a moment then stopping to make sure Agni was following.

Once he saw that he was being followed, he picked up a moderately quick pace, intent on getting out of the jungle as quick as possible. He had wanted to visit it, but the rain had, metaphorically and physically, rained on his parade. Giving himself a swift shake, he continued on his way, waving through the bushes, trying his best to avoid any spots that looked particularly treacherous. This didn't work however, and several times, he found himself floundering in particularly deep rain spots, grumbling and frowning all the while. Truly, he was probably more embarrassed than annoyed.

"Glad that you followed me?" Kiba called back to Agni, permitting himself to let out a slight laugh. He couldn't understand how anyone could be happy when they were being constantly buffeted by water, freezing them to the bone. He liked the occasional drizzle, it was quite enjoyable, but a downpour, he was completely against.

[Agni]

Agni made sure to follow Kiba closely, lest he lose him among the plants. It was difficult to keep track of the smaller wolf and several times he almost lost him. It took some tricky maneuvering to keep p, especially considering the mud that had been made soon after the heavier rainfall began. Several times Agni was forced to break into a lope from the fast trot he tried to maintain. It was much easier to slip at a faster pace after all.

"I wouldn't use the word glad but I'm happier than I would be if I were alone." Agni chuckled. "Alone would be worse."

He risked stepping up to stand next to Kiba. The downpour was still going strong and should no signs of letting up. "Think we're almost free?"