The Bird And The Serpent :: Torment

[sasha]

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[atrb=background,http://i437.photobucket.com/albums/qq94/NuckyGirl/peacockwolfmid.png] It was just before mid-day. The sun was out and it was the middle of summer. The canal water was low and all those factors combined meant one thing. Prime hunting time! All cold-blooded creatures would be sunning themselves about now, trying to get warm. Fish were more active in the twilight hours. Sure, he'd have to watch out for snakes, but Sasha didn't worry. Sasha stood by the edge of one of the more closed off spots of the channel. There was a bush effectively blocking the way out for any of the pool's marine residents, except for a tiny opening which Sasha thought was a good idea. It'd be easier for fish to get in than out. The pool was shallow, thus allowing for any catch he may make to be easier. There might even be some larger fish in the pool if he looked hard enough! So saying, Sasha got to work. In just half an hour he had two fish that were about the size of his mouth and a mid-sized frog. Yum. But he wanted more. That way he could bring more back to the pack! They would see him for how wonderful he was! He could even hunt for them, even though he was the all-esteemed alpha! It was then that Sasha spotted the whopper! It was a fairly large fish, sticking towards the farther reaches of the pool, where it was deeper. It looked like it could feed a large amount of his clan... or maybe even himself! That thought in mind, Sasha slowly slunk around the edges o the pool, before submerging his front talons in the water, keeping his head low but well clear of the water- didn't want to make his feathers wet now. The peacock's full attention was riveted on the large fish. So riveted in fact, that he failed to notice the brightly-colored snake swim through the opening near the bush and towards him. Sasha leaned ever closer to the distracted fish... and the snake got closer to him. It was just a foot or two away now.

[Torment]

Torment wandered aimlessly through the swamp, white underbelly splattered with mud. His brown eyes scanned the landscape, searching for any sign of solid ground.

Why did I come here, again? he half thought and he trekked through the mud. No, it wasn't trekking, it was sludging. You couldn't trek if you were barely moving.

Because, Jaunt mentioned this place once... a little voice in the back of his head answered his question.

Torment paused in his sludge, eyes blank.

Jaunt...

"Yeah, it's a swamp n' all. Not the most desirable place to go visit, but it's got a lotta...." here the lupus waved his paws vaguely. His eyes glittered in the most enchanting way. Torment couldn't help but smile, "Ya know?" the sentence was finished lamely.

"I... actually don't know." Torment replied, nudging his head beneath his mate's. Jaunt tried to explain again.

"It's... got a lotta charm about it. No, not charm, exactly. It's just interesting. If you're really careful, you can dig up all kinds of things. Wolf skulls, shells, anything and everything that mighta been there is probably still there." he shrugged and went about licking Torment's ear, "It's just... a nice place to be."

"Uh-huh..." Torment responded. He didn't see how a swamp could be all that exciting, but he agreed anyways. This was Jaunt he was thinking about.

Torment shook his head and sludged on. So that was how he came to be here, mud coated and tired. All on a whim and a memory. He didn't think he would find Jaunt there, but it would be nice to visit, perhaps dig around for a shell or a skull or whatever else might've been dropped by unlucky travelers.

He eventually came to a canal, and, gratefully, lowered himself in, washing away the mud. Without all of the dark filth on him, his markings showed out clearer, blacks and grays and lavenders, all swirling across his body. He waded in a bit further, suddenly aware of a grumbling in his stomach. With all the mud he'd washed off, however, he couldn't see any fish in the area he was in. He wandered along the canal in no particular direction, finally coming to a spot that seemed to be a bit more secluded.

As he entered the little spot, he was instantly struck by the appearance of it's other resident. The smell said "wolf," but otherwise...

How very.... unique... Torment thought, although he really had no right to talk. He couldn't tell if the wolf was hostile or not, so he decided to go about things as carefully as possible.

That plan lasted all of three seconds.

The second thing to capture Torment's attention was the snake. He'd learned somewhere that bright colors are never a good thing. Bright colors meant something along the lines of "deadly venomous, avoid at all costs!"

The wolf seemed to be focused on something else, and didn't see the snake as it closed in the distance between them. Reacting on a whim, Torment burst into the pool.

"L-look out!" he cried, moving as quickly as the water would allow, "There's a snake!" His paw caught on something beneath the water, and he fell, rather ungracefully, with a mighty sploosh! Struggling to right himself, he looked around, trying to figure out where the scaly demon had gotten off to.







((OOC: Sorry about the crappy ending X3 I had all kindsa muse, I was doin' great... and... then.... yeah X3))

[sasha]

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[atrb=background,http://i437.photobucket.com/albums/qq94/NuckyGirl/peacockwolfmid.png] Sashura, defender of wolfkind, was many things. He was pompous and showy and prideful and racist. He wanted to be the center of attention at all times and was a beautiful wolf to do so. There were a lot of negative qualities that he was not aware of to his personality and overall self. He worked it and talked the talk. Hell, he could even walk the walk. But he could fight, too. Sasha had noticed the bright appearance of the wolf about two seconds before he jumped into the pool, screaming his head off. But he'd remained still as to hopefully not scare the whopper. That thought ended as quickly as it began when the whopper flitted away at the splash the other wolf made. But Sasha listened to his words. Frozen, Sasha's eyes turned in his skull to see the bright length of the snake, very close to his body. It was obviously headed for Sasha for some reason or another. Well, he couldn't very well let it have it's way, now could he? Now would be the time to act, as the sudden splash had startled the deadly reptile and it was momentarily distracted. Sasha sprung at the snake with his talons, grasping it with his talons and pinning it to a rock underwater. It was deeper where the snake was, but Sasha could still manage. Knowing if he hesitated even a moment, it could turn on him, Sasha plunged his head underwater, teeth bared. It was a risky move, but about the only one he had right now. His teeth found the neck of the struggling snake and hi bit down and yanked. It's body tore in half and Sasha threw the end with the head on it free, but not before the head reared and grazed Sasha's head fringe. Dead snakes could still bite, after all. Sasha supposed it would be similar to a lizard's tail. Reflexive moves and such. In short, he got lucky that all it bit was his head feathers. The head half of the snake landed on the bank a few feet away, twisting on the ground grotesquely. Sasha realized he was panting, and dripping wet. Dammit! Because of the stupid snake, he'd gotten his beautiful feathers wet! Turning his attention from his sodden feathers to the newcomer, Sasha realized he was winged... but oddly colored. It was not normal for a Keiyou to be so, but it would be normal for a brightly colored bird Myou. Perhaps a kindred spirit? It didn't matter anyway. Sasha sort of tolerated Keiyou now since the Clan was crawling with them. "Hello... newcomer." He panted. "You have my gratitude for warning me of the snake." Sasha didn't exactly like this part. He was supposed to be the one saving wolves' lives, not the other way around. He decided not to add that his fish was gone. It would not be polite to do so. But he could thank him. "You can take one of those fish on the shore, if you want, as repayment." It grated on Sasha to give up his catch, but it would not do to be in debt to this wolf. But now he had more important matters, like to address the presence of the winged one. "So, why did you come to the swamp? Not that I'm complaining, given the circumstances, but you are aware this is pack land, hm?" Protocol was protocol and such. Being the Alpha, he had to check everyone he encountered to make sure they were either staying or leaving. Sasha was in a bit of a stunned mood, a bit shaken from the experience with the snake. His usual flashy attitude was dampened down for a bit.

[Torment]

Torment watched in awe as the wolf tackled the snake. He'd never seen a creature move so quickly or gracefully.

He stared blankly at the wolf, not realizing he'd been asked a question until several moments of silence had passed. Blinking and shaking his head, he smiled ruefully.

"Oh, er, thanks," he said, scanning the fish, "And I came here because..." Torment considered telling the whole story, but he decided to shorten it, "A friend of mine mentioned it a few times. Sounded like fun. As for the bit about the pack land... I honestly couldn't tell... I got lost somewhere between the edge of the swamp and here. I'm sorry for intruding." he lowered his head respectfully.

"I can leave now. Again, I'm sorry." he glanced up from his submissive position, and blushed furiously.

Something so colorful, I would've thought... he quickly turned and grabbed the nearest fish, But that's a guy. Most certainly a guy...

He turned back, the fish hanging from his mouth. The idea of slogging back through the mud while carrying the fish made him pause. Looking beseechingly at the other wolf, he put the fish back down.

"It... wouldn't be too much trouble... letting me stay here to eat this, would it?" he asked, "It's a pretty tough walk from here to the edge of the swamp, and... well..." he couldn't think of anything that might convince the vibrant wolf into letting him stay, "Yeah..." he finished, blushing again.

He flicked his lavender-swirled tail and lowered his head again. This wolf... could obviously do a lot of damage, and Torment would do whatever it took to keep that damage from falling on him.

[sasha]

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[atrb=background,http://i437.photobucket.com/albums/qq94/NuckyGirl/peacockwolfmid.png] Sasha rolled his eyes a bit as the winged one repeatedly apologized, before pulling himself up onto land and shaking himself off, ruffling his feathers as he did so. It helped to dry off that way. He fanned his tail out quickly, as to let a rush of air swish over his body. There, now maybe he would begin to dry off. Folding in his tail again, he bent his head and rubbed his right talon over his head frill while the other wolf was talking. That had been a close call. The Alpha looked up as the winged one asked a question. Tilting his head, Sasha grinned proudly as he gestured to the land around him. "The Quesse-Anar Clan prides itself on hospitality. Please, stay as long as is needed. No one would be opposed to a stray staying for an extra few minutes just to finish off a meal of gratitude." Sasha, although arrogant, racist, selfish and many other things, was proud of the way his Clan worked. It was beautiful and prosperous because of the kindness it showed towards others. Thus, it would uphold. Which brought the second aspect of the wolf's sentence to mind. He hadn't outright asked, but in Sasha's mind the wolf was outright begging him to help him on his way! After all, the defender of wolfkind was meant to help others, of course! "If the journey to the edge of the swamp is difficult for you, then you do not know the correct way. Flying, for one, would be quite an easy way out..." Sasha looked pointedly up to the sky. After all, this wolf looked like he could fly. But Sasha also looked like he could fly. He couldn't, but he could glide for short distances. "But if you insist on walking, then I suppose I won't have any other choice than to escort you along the correct way, which is far more easy than simply trudging straight through the mud, my accident-prone friend." Yes, there was an easier way to get through the swamp than the way the winged one had come from. However, it wasn't very obvious to the naked eye and took a different kind of effort. It would probably be difficult for someone who didn't have wings to navigate it at all. Or someone who at least wasn't good at jumping. This wolf seemed to prove he was good at both during his... dramatic entrance. So saying, Sasha supposed he wouldn't get anywhere near the pack with these fish just yet, so he sat down and began tearing into the frog he'd caught. They were quite delicious once you got past the skin. Tasted something akin to bird meat.

[Torment]

Torment smiled as he settled down to his meal.

"Thank you, Sir... Sir..." he paused, realizing he'd forgotten to ask the wolf's name. However, feeling as though it was much too late, he simply ended the sentence, "sir."

He bit into the fish, relishing the taste of something other than jackalope for the first time in several weeks. He was so enthralled with the experience that he almost missed the wolf's next words.

"Oh..." he said between bites, "Well, you see, I'd been told all kinds of interesting things about this place, and, well, I don't wanna miss out on any of them," he was still trying to figure out how something so bright and... present could be male. In his experience, guys weren't so.... pretty (although, again, he had no right no be talking), and while some of them could certainly dominate an area of space, none of them took it by the scruff of its neck, shook it around, and beat it into submission quite like this fellow did. However, he decided to save this particular pondering for later, "And as for escorting me, I couldn't ask you to do that. You probably have all your own troubles here, never mind adding on helping me get back safely."

He sat and watched with a mixture of horror and fascination as the wolf bit into a frog. Frogs were certainly not something that had ever crossed Torment's mind as food. They were so lumpy slimy and awkward, not to mention hard to catch, no matter what you did. And yet here this very-present-wolf sat, eating it like it was nothing.

Torment looked away, uncertain of how to react to that. Taking a delicate bite of his own meal, he tried to make conversation.

"Umn, I guess I should introduce myself," he began, "I'm Torment, not for any particular reason, that's just my name... umn... so..." he tried to think of a question, "Oh! Umn, what, exactly, makes somebody decide to form a pack in a swamp anyways? Not that I think it's a bad idea or anything, I mean, plenty of stuff to look at, I suppose, interesting..." he was going to say "food," but he decided against it, "Scenery..." he finished, "But... I mean... why?"

He hoped to the Great Spirits that his question wouldn't be taken offensively. He quickly returned to his meal.

[sasha]

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[atrb=background,http://i437.photobucket.com/albums/qq94/NuckyGirl/peacockwolfmid.png] Sasha, deciding graciously that he had nothing better to do, listened to the other wolf talk. It was amusing to him, at first, to listen to one who seemed to stumble and pause so much in his talking. Of course, this wolf should be thankful that he'd been generous enough to share. The title of sir wasn't missed by Sasha either. But when the winged one started to refuse his offer, Sasha's expression turned to one of insult. "I have no such troubles! I would gladly assist you. Hospitality, as I've already said, is one thing the Clan prides itself on. That sealed it. Sasha would be showing this wolf around whether he wanted him to or not. It just was. Sasha was not used to hearing the word 'no.' Telling him no was akin to refusing the existence of a forest fire. You couldn't just say no. It was there, after all. Something Sasha also did not miss, was the way this wolf eyed his meal with a sort of morbid fascination. Sasha was flamboyant, not stupid. He gestured to the half-eaten morsel. "Want to try some? It's taste is surprisingly good, once you get past the skin." Sasha was being enormously gracious right now. When, oh when, did the great Sashura ever offer to share his food? Well, that question could be answered quite easily; He did so when he thought it might be amusing to see the look on the face of the one he was sharing it with. Before he could continue down that road, however, the winged one introduced himself. Torment, eh? Looked like he was tormenting himself, going through the swamp the hard way. Sasha was about to push the matter of the frog when Torment asked him a question about his pack. Ah, something Sasha held with pride! Now he'd gotten Sasha wrapped up in yet another conversation. "Ah, my dear Torment," He said with dignity, "Right now, this swamp may look inhospitable and muddy." Sasha gestured around him, trying encompass their vast surroundings in one movement. "But, in the right places, at the right time, it can be quite beautiful. And those that dwell within the heart of the territory know it like the tip of their nose. They can easily traverse this beautiful land, and still be home by dinner." Sasha thought about it, a little bit harder. "In short, the reason we formed the pack here is because this is where the founders met. They met, decided they liked the place, and stayed. There is an abundance of food, beauty and charm." He smiled thoughtfully for a moment, then came to a dramatic conclusion. "But like every rose, the swamp is not without it's thorns. There are dangers here, ones like tourists such as yourself are unaware of. Let me escort you to the finer points of the swamp, guiding you around the thorns, and then you shall learn to appreciate the land's true beauty." Of course, this was not without gain to Sasha. He always liked to show off, and maybe they would get a new member out of this. Or not. That second part was just a cover in case he ran into Sun. What Sasha really cared about was take pride in the land he'd come to call home. He wanted others to appreciate it. "Oh, I almost forgot. How rude of me! I am Sashura, less formally known as Sasha, defender of wolfkind!"

[Torment]

Torment eyed the frog again, stomach churning.

"Umn... if you absolutely insist..." he said in response to Sashura's offer to escort him, "And... I... I think I'll pass on the frog, thank you," He then sat in silence as the strange wolf rattled on about the swamp and the pack and all of that. Most of it went over his head, but one of the first phrases caught in his mind.

My dear Torment...

He sounds just like Jaunt when he says that... he thought, eyes clouding over for a moment. However, the moment passed as quickly as it came, and he snapped out of it.

"Sashura..." Torment tested the name on his tongue. His spine still tingled faintly, trying to remember the moment that Jaunt had first called him "my dear." However, the memory slipped through his paws, and he returned his attention completely to the brilliant wolf before him, "That's a rather... interesting name," he finished, "Any particular me-" he froze as he became aware of a tickling on his leg. Turning his head, Torment came face to face with a fat, furry spider, crawling lazily up to his shoulder.

A sharp yelp escaped his muzzle, and a shiver wracked his whole body. It wasn't that he was afraid of spiders, not really, but having one touching him, crawling up him, being with in two feet of him was more than he could handle. He shook himself ferociously, leaping around in a wild attempt to rid himself of the spider.

In his crazy attempt rid himself of the little hitchhiker, he bumped into Sashura, bounced back, and ended up sprawling over on his back. The spider, annoyed by all the movement, let go and scuttled off, disappearing into the undergrowth. Popping his eyes open, Torment was greeted with the sight of Sashura's chin.

It was the same as with Jaunt. Warm sunlight, clear sky, laying in the grass, licking Jaunt's chin.

"I wish we could stay here forever..."

Those words... how often had they been spoken? He couldn't remember...

He quickly scrambled away, skin hot beneath his fur.

"S-sorry," he mumbled, "Spider... euch..." he shook himself again, then turned away, "Umn... so... the finer points of the swamp! Shall we, uh... shall we go?"







((OOC: Sorry for random, crappy post. I failed at ending it... hopefully my next one will be better...))

[sasha]

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[atrb=background,http://i437.photobucket.com/albums/qq94/NuckyGirl/peacockwolfmid.png] Sashura watched in amusement at the winged wolf stumbled over his words. It really was too bad that he refused on tasting the frog. But at least he agreed to let Sasha show him around. There was always a silver lining! The Alpha was about to insist that they take a detour to the marsh when Torment screamed and flung himself at the peacock wolf. Taking a hasty step backwards just in time, Sasha avoided the brunt of the would-be tackle. His space was still invaded though, and one or two of his feathers floated lazily to ground. He sighed in exasperation as he watched the hairy arachnid scuttle off into the brush. Not that I like them overmuch myself, but this is extreme. Sasha thought to himself. His gaze slid to the form of the grounded Torment, who was now laying at his front talons. Sasha tried, oh so very hard, not to show any sign of anger. He spoke very quietly. "Perhaps when you see a spider, instead of going nuts you should shake it off calmly?" Sasha huffed as Torment got to his feet and spoke in a jumbled sentence, which Sasha supposed was his hasty agreement to get going. Shrugging, Sasha turned. A victory was a victory, after all. He looked over his shoulder at his flustered companion. "Alright then, come on. We have a bit of a ways to go if we're to reach the Marsh." Not that there was a whole lot to see at the Marsh, but it was a pretty easy way to get from where they were at to where they were going. Plus, on the way there Sasha could show off some of his great swamp-traversing skills! It was perfect! Not to mention there were some interesting things along the way. Like that nice flowered tree... and the smallish dip in the ground! Sasha never missed a chance to show off. So saying, Sasha stepped forward and pulled a vine blocking their way with his talon. It was overly large and snapped at his 'attack.' In front of him lay... underbrush. Very wet, very muddy underbrush. Sasha sniffed as he hopped onto a tree root. "Coming?"

[Torment]

Torment blushed even deeper than he had been before. He really, really hoped that it wasn't showing up beneath his white fur. He'd always enjoyed the fact that he was different, with his white fur and strange markings, but he would have given anything to be a darker color at that moment.

"I'll keep that in mind..." he mumbled, standing aside for Sashura to show him the way into the swamp. He looked at the sludge, then at Sasha, standing on a tree root, trying to decide if the root would hold them both. However, he had no real desire to invade the wolf's personal space again, and,with a small sigh, he took a few steps into the mud.

Looks like it'll be another sludging for me... he thought. However, he supposed it wasn't that bad. And anyways, he'd learn a better way around after this.

"Umn, which way now..?" he asked, looking at his vibrant guide. His eyes skittered across the feathers and talons, and he was tempted to ask what kind of wolf Sashura was. However, he was afraid of offending the fearsome creature, and kept his muzzle shut.



((Ach... this sucked X3 I'm soooo sorry T^T))