In Dire Straits

I hope it's okay I moved this over from the old forum?

Quote:The moon was beaming bright tonight, it was full and gleaming white like a giant pearl in the sky, and one wolf in particularly was very happy with this. She adore the moon and its entire glory, she worshipped it to its fullest. She had left her den because the sky had been cloud free and she knew it was full moon, the moon was the entire reason she was up and about.

She collected flowers, big and small in scarlet and bright colors, yellow like the sun and blue like the sky on bright mornings. She had a plan for all of them as she collected them into a neat line in colors and hummed lowly to herself a soothing song of the past, a past enjoyed in warmth of family and the bond of family.

Beside collecting flowers in the fields around her she had collected twigs and small branches of a tree, she didn’t know its name but she knew it was bendy and flexible and it would be the crown of her work. She began her work on intertwining each branch and stick into each other and slowly bend it each time she did, make a circular crown. She kept stopping her work to measure it on her head, making sure it fit around her ears without falling down.

Once it was sturdy and the perfect size she began inserting the flowers. She had carefully chosen colors that complimented each other and carefully selected how each flower would be arranged. She was whispering a song to herself as she worked in the moonlight and worked throughout most of the night. She was surrounded by wildflowers that she picked from when she changed her mind on the color blue, instead it became a crown of red, yellow and white. She inserted plants of different kinds to compliment the flowers.

The night was her time, it was her comfort and her space for her work and tonight she needed the presence of the moon. It had been 6 months since the passing of her parents tonight. She had gone through the day with the motions, followed the flow and thought of everything but it. She worked tirelessly for the crown, a crown of beauty. It wasn’t until she finished it that she allowed her feelings to wallow over her like a wave and she sobbed only once, swiped the possible tears away and looked to the moon.

She still had one mother in the sky, one guidance and one figure of love. She knew what to do with the crown now.

Puffin had not spent much of his youth stargazing. He knew two stars by heart: the north star and the dog star. He and Kotek had used the north star to navigate when sled trips had gone on into the night, and both Sirius and Canis Major were things he had made a point to learn. He could recognize the two dippers, and Orion's belt. He sometimes knew when a particularly bright star was in fact a planet. But it hadn't been until Alana's astrology lessons that he'd really begun to see the nighttime sky as more than twinkling lights scattered randomly across a dark blanket. Sometimes, on a clear night, he'd find a quiet, rocky summit and see how many constellations he could find. How many he could remember.

Tonight was such a night. But as the night deepened, he decided it was time to turn in, and began his trek home. Home. His stomach fluttered. He had long thought of Nardir as his home, though that journey had been a rough one. But for the den he would return to not to be empty, that there was someone there waiting for him, made him smile. The very meaning of "home" had shifted for him this last year to include a pair of bright cerulean eyes, and he felt as though he walked on air. Home was mountains and flowers and crystal clear lakes, it was stargazing and sledding and making flower crowns, it was the smell of honey and mint and rosemary, and a moon festival toast to all those who had gone and whose memories we still carry.

By the light of the moon he trekked across the blooming fields, and spotted a lone figure along his path. Curious, he quickened his pace until he could make out who it was. Iris, he finally realized, and he slowed his pace and walked the remaining distance. She appeared to be gazing up at the moon. "Enjoying the night air?" he asked, noting the crown of flowers she had woven. Perhaps he was interrupting. But he knew she had lost both her parents this last year, and his heart went out to her. "I can continue on, if you'd rather be alone."

"Enjoying the night air?" She turned surprised to find the alpha Puffin standing nearby and she blushed in the dark (thank god it couldn't be seen) and smiled. She was turning out lucky lately with the alphas giving her this much attention, she wondered if she deserved it! Well, no not really of course she did. She put her crown down and smiled happily. "I am. I am admiring our mother moon on this clear evening. What about you Puffin, what are you doing out at this hour?" Her eyes sparkled with admiration and curiosity, wondering if he too liked to sit and gaze upon their goddess.

"I can continue on, if you'd rather be alone." Her tail curled and her smile faded for a moment at the very though of him abonden her. "No, no, please do stay! In fact." She stood up and nuzzled her nose under the crown and let it slide on top of her head, the purple and white flowers standing in clear contrast to her bright fur, they did so nicely and were easily her favorite colors. She turned to look at him again with a smile. "I was headed for the graveyard, maybe you could escort me?" Maybe he would do her the honor?

She took a few soft and feminine steps toward him and smiled her brightest smile she could muster. No more being sad or sorry for herself, no more sadness! She hated being sad, she liked company and it cheered her up a lot more to have Puffin here by her side and it would help even more upon delivering the crown to its rightful place in the graveyard. "If you don't mind?" Oh please say yes!

Iris

Puffin [RP]

Iris