In Dire Straits - (ACCEPTANCE) she's a forest fire

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actions - “speech” - thoughts

the plains are dotted with pines, and she negotiates the tree-congested lands with limber steps, shadow-struck frame almost invisible in the shade of their overhanging crests. but she has no desire to hide or clutch to the shadows, not when she's not on the hunt. her footfalls are sure and heavy, dry leaves and twigs cracking beneath her ample weight, heralding her arrival to anyone paying enough attention.

a riot of intermingling scents catch her attention; first faint and muddled, now strong and pronounced, assailing her senses. she pursues the motley fragrance like a blood-frenzied shark, but she's not looking to mingle. she looks for purpose, looks to hone her body like a blade. she has all the damaging power of a demolition derby and the wiles of a fox, and she hasn't met her match... yet. with any luck, whoever resides inside the mountains can change that. her lazy gait slackens until he comes to a full stop, those honeycomb eyes sweeping over the pendulous mountain erecting before her eyes.

there, at the foot of the mountain, she releases a curt bark into the ether. she's not sure what she's expecting. for a string of wolves to suddenly appear on the mountain top? regardless, she lowers her rump impatiently and waits. maybe this pack will prove worthy of her time.

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Of all the places to settle, even Hidalgo would have to wonder why Saboro? The people weren't exactly inviting, all of them with their flashy little tempers, maybe only entertaining to her and even that was stretching it. It was cold even in the spring and summer, there was always a chill that hang in the air threatening for what a smidgen of winter would feel like in these parts, guess what? WORSE. It was a hardy place, built on hardy people... and Hidalgo. Who was in the mysterious gray area when it came to hardy.

She'd be laying out by the borders, catching rays in the rare spot, where brush and tree branches hadn't completely blocked it out. The warmth drawing her in and the sentry would give a lazy hum of approval. It could have been worse, there were worse places to settle, she was sure of it. Saboro, hadn't been ALL that bad, she guessed.

But then came a series of barks, interesting, amber eyes opening with a confused blink, but her lips were drawn up into that characteristic smirk of her's. Now, who in the hell, has come a rapping at my chamber door. She'd pull herself up, brisk paws dragging across a pine needle covered forest floor, brushing past ferns and other brush. It took a moment, longer than a moment really to swerve around the mountain, the fringe of it was like a toothy maw protecting Saboro's innards.

But every time she came out to the border, the wind whistled freedom and opportunity.

The blue sentry would find the source of the barking soon enough, stepping out from the shadowy brush, the mountain framing their meeting in the background. Tail sweeping pleasantly, black lips still pulled into that obnoxiously sly grin. "Ah ha, a raven." She finally spoke, bright eyes scanning the dark furred female. You're not gonna say nevermore, right? "You here to make friends, or... lemme guess, you wanna join?" A click of her teeth as she'd scratch her back on a tree nonchalantly.

"Name's Hidalgo, and you're at the borders of Saboro. Howdy hooooo." Taking a sure-footed, delicate step forward, the blue female would tilt her head at the other waiting for some sort of introduction to fill the vicious hole within her head. Information, all of it, give me it. Her mind howled in hunger, but she remained outwardly as unfazed. "We kinda look for skill set here, so you're gonna have to give me something to work with."

F U R I A

actions - “speech” - thoughts

there are crepitations, paws on vegetation cleaving the restful silence. ah, so someone has answered her call? she hoists herself on all fours to see the wolf seemingly materialize out of the verdure. her voice lances through the brumal air, prompting a sneer of distaste from the female. "ravens are nefarious pests, scavengers who subsist solely off carrion and insects. please, call me furia." polite but curt.

she sweeps an incurious eye around the area before shifting her attention back on her host. it doesn't look like anyone else is coming, and the unsettling smile decking her muzzle makes her increasingly uncomfortable. if she expects furia to return the smile, even out of basic courtesy, she's about to be knocked for a loop. ears sharply cant backwards at the strange phrase that follows. howdy ho? how strange... and her name? even stranger. quirky, like its owner.

"well met." she answers stiffly. luckily, before the conversation has the chance to regress into an awkward silent staring competition, the other pipes up again. at last, something she can latch onto. "yes... i'm in search of a worthy home." she starts. "i have a faculty for combat. bloodshed is my craft. i come to seek strong leadership. otherwise, what's the use?" she knows a pack is as good as its members. she doesn't stick her neck out for just anyone. weakness is dangerous and contemptible, and she won't let it light on her, not even through others.

"i would like to offer my services to you. in return, i ask for purpose and those of like minds. a favor for a favor." she juts out her chin and waits, awaiting the answer with curbed impatience.

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Amber eyes gleamed back at gold, and Hidalgo craned her neck forward as the female spoke. There was a subtle twitch of an eye, hardly noticeable against that jagged and wide grin. Cute. "I have half a mind to call you whatever I please, bUUUUUT, lucky for you I'm one of the more easygoing members of this here fine establishment." There was a mocking southern twang to the last bit of her words, swirling something in her mouth and then spitting it.

Blinking, practically yawning as the other spoke, anything to outwardly unsettling and make this acceptance as insufferable as possible. Good ol' Hidalgo, just as impossible as ever. Though those sharp ears would perk, and a quick look of disapproval washed over her features. She had heard it from Nyx, and at the time hadn't corrected it, but take notes now. Mark it on that little book of records. Stepping forward to circle Furia, smirking almost laughing. "I get you're stuffy and uppity, you're better than everyone, strongest wolf in your like past pack or family, lemme guess you come from a proud line of a family that no one cares about or has heard before. Believe me, I know." Oh did she ever. "But what makes you think, that you're doing US a favor? i'M lOoKiNg FoR a WoRtHy PaCk." Still she continued to circle her, teeth glinting ever so slightly. "Here no one knows you, out there? Still, no one knows you. They don't care, you got it twisted sister. You're the one who has to PROVE to us that you're useful." A click of the teeth and Hidalgo would tilt her head and flick her tail.

In a far off place, where gods walked among the pack, words like Furia's would be taken deeply to heart and paid for in blood. Saboro was kinder than them in that regard. "Just an observation, please continue." Nonchalance, smiling as if nothing had happened at all.

Though the dark female would redeem herself, fighting and killing. Yep, Hidalgo thought back on the mass ranking and did her best to keep herself from sighing and rolling her eyes. Guess this place could always use more jackdaws? That's what they were called yeah? Her side still bruised from Nyx, and yet. "You say you're a fighter, hmmm lemme see lemme see, how about—" The words cutoff mid-sentence as the blue sentry lurched forward to snap in Furia's face, like the metaphorical snake Hidalgo was. "A spar? Hold the bloodshed, save that battlefield, tiger. She could feel that bruised side groaning out in an aching pain, but she ignored it as best she could. "It'll be quick, it'll give us an idea of what to expect, capiche? Just knock me over. Taking a step back and standing perfectly still, the sentry motioned Furia to come forth.

F U R I A

actions - “speech” - thoughts

at some point in the conversation, her host makes it a point to punctuate furia's answers with yawning and erratic eye fluttering. the shrew slits her eyes; they bear down on her company like dual eldritch moons. the woman blindsides her with a cataract of words, and this time, it's furia whose patience starts whittling. she's being reprimanded like some insolent cub. tortuous mind churns and clicks—already, she's starting to get a better picture of how things work around this place. it seems she's misjudged this woman. she flaunts her authority like some pièce de résistance, which furia might come to respect, if she hadn't managed to insult her in almost every sentence. she might not respect woman in front of her, but she respects hierarchy, knows the assigning of ranks stops communities from lapsing into fullblown anarchy. so she acquiesces. "i... apologize." she secretes annoyance, but she sets her jaw as if to stop herself from flensing the woman on the spot. after all, she has such a fetching coat. "perhaps i was out of line."

so she upholds her seemingly unflappable composure, her ego bruised and clamoring for retribution. the woman clicks those bone-snapping jaws at her and every line of honed muscle in her body tenses. what she hears next almost has her salivating. a spar? what better way to glut her desire for reprisal? "you're inviting me to a spar? all right. if that's what it takes... i will prove my skills to you." she aims to swiftly and decisively lunge forward off of powerful hind quarters, chin tucking against rolled shoulders, neck scrunched with protective layers of fat as narrowed eyes remain trained on her target. tail hovers over the earth, acting as a counter-balancing rudder as she attempts to pivot to the right at the last possible second—aiming to slam the boney portion of her chest into the middle of hidalgo's left side to attempt and unbalance and wind the other.

perhaps drawing blood is out of the equation, but that doesn't mean she can't try to trample the woman, and hopefully, cram those insults back down her throat.

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Brows would raise and a toothy grin would fix itself upon her slender face, a paw raising to bat at the air as if she was motioning for the other to just brush it off. "Like I said, I'm one of the more easy going sentries. I'm not gonna chew your head off kiddo." Grin grew wider and eyes flashed a with suspicious glint.

These types were either always so formal or down right dimwits, so she got a formal, ha. The blue sentry could almost feel her fur and skin beginning to melt off of her face, cool. She'd sigh and roll her eyes. "Well, I'm not asking you out on a date, killer queen. Was her snide little retort, that she finished with a sneer. Yeesh, these guys.

It was a flash, one lightning quick movement after another and Hidalgo staggered to start, though she didn't let on about the bruising to her side, even as it howled at her. Instead she moved, and that movement was slow and incorrect to begin with, because as she moved, Furia faked her out. Though she was able to recoil just a bit to minimize the other's charge. Her legs trembling as the other swung into her and she was pushed to the side as her claws attempted to find purchase in the soft earth.

Teeth flashed and Hidalgo spun on a pivot to shove the other back, a front paw raising to curl around the female's neck as she stood on hind legs, a very risky move on her part as she pressed more of her wait into the dark female.