Footfalls in the Sand

Asper padded slowly through the barren wasteland. it was hot, and he showed it by panting heavily as he walked through the hot sand. He couldn't smell anywolf nearby, but he could very faintly smell water, so he continued on. The water, whatever it was, was straight ahead.

As his most recent memories ran through his mind he whined loudly. He missed the ones he had to leave behind, but he wouldn't let it keep him from continuing. As he forced his legs to move, he began to smell the water more strongly. He sped up, hoping to find it before he died of dehydration.

He was growing ever closer to the source of the scent. The wind blew past him, carrying sand that scratched his nose as it went by. Finally he saw green. It was blurry in the heat, but he could make out some strange looking trees. He headed for it and it became more clear.

Suddenly he saw his contrast-a dark wolf standing in the shade of the oasis. He chuffed to her, somewhat weakly, ad walked cautiously.

He stopped, seein her stance, and lowered his ears. "Just some water...and perhaps some company. I'm a traveler, nothing more. Don't mean any harm." His tail wagged slowly behind him, but he stayed where he was and waited for her to speak. His eyes moved from her form to the water just ahead, and he licked his chops thirstily.

Asper stepped forward and bent his neck down to drink. He lapped at the liquid, but kept his eyes cut up at her and his ears pinned.Once his thrist was quenched, he kifted his head and sat down, looking at her.

"A place called Wiklow. My pack lived in ancient ruins..o Or what was left of them. Giant steps led down to the clearing, where our cache and the iver were. The den of my mate and I was at the very top of those stairs.. Perks of being The Alpha and her mate, i suppose. the rest of the dens were scattered throught the ruins."

He realized now that she probably didn't want a full explanation of where, just your general "where". He reserved the coming smie for when they had become more aquaninted.

"An yourself?"

He backed away from the water and sat again, "If you're thirsty, you can come and drink. I mean you no harm. My name is Asper, Asper Proudheart." a soft whimper escaped his maw as hecontinued, "My mate is in Wiklow. After our pups died, she..became a hollow shell. She wouldn't do anything, never left the den. I stayedthere with her, of course, and cared for her. But..she wouldn't acknowledge my presense, even when I was right there curled around her. She ended up convincing herself that the death of our children was my fault, and sent me away."

His ears, now pushed lazily forward, became pinned once more and he looked down at his large paws. He hoped that her story was less painful. Then again, Proudhearts didn't seem the have the best histories. He huffed bitterly.

He chuckled and looked back up at her, "I know, but I wanted to get as far away as I could as fast as i could. Now I need a place to rest." He looked at her hopefully, as this little paradise among an earthly hades seemed to be hers. SHe was cautious, though, so he expected to be walking through the night. If he was lucky, he'd be able to find another oasis the next day.

"So, how about you, Raven? Where are you from?" He shuffled his paws a bit nervusly. He certainly didn't want to scare this wolfess off. He needed somene to talk to, if only for a little while. "Do you have a last name, Raven?" He tilted his head a bit as he waited for her answer.

"Ah, i see... I haven't seen my parents in a good while. My mother passed, and my father is....somewhere. I appreciate that you'd let me rest here, even if it's not yours. I imagine i'll hav to sleep lightly, though. I certainly don't want to be killed in my sleep." He shifted his weight, then stepped up to take another drink.

"How long have you been out her by yourself?" He asked. he was beginning to take an interest in this fae, for some reason he couldn't quite figure out. He returned his weight to his haunches and relaxed. His tail swayed slowly behind him, kicking up sand around his rump.

He nodded, "Yes they do, especially when you're on your own. I have no idea how lng its been since i left Wiklow, i've lost track." He sighed, "It's been even longer since I saw anyone from my birthpack, other than my sister. When we became yearlings, more than a year ago, we asked our father, the Alpha, if we could leave. He gave us permission, so we left. Chanah, the oldest, Adalyn, the youngest, and myself. We were determiend to start our own pack. In our travels, Chanah became ill and passed. In our grief, we buried her in a field of wildflowers-they were her favorite. We kept moving, and eventually ran into three other wolves-Desvau, Amodae, and Shaveyo. I fel for Desvau very hard, and we ended up becoming mates. When she was getting close to her time to whelp, we settled down and formed a pack."

"no where in particular", he said with an absent look, "Just far from Wiklow and the memories of it." He shuffled his paws in the sand and looked back at her. He havery tired been traveling for quite some time, and was very tired. He scooted a bit to his left to enjoy the sahde of the trees that were placed around he small pool of water and murred quietly at the relief it offered.

"It seems we've both had some painful things happen to us. Have you thought of findin a new pack?" He wondered how long she would stay alone in the barren lanscape before falling prey to the urge for companionship. he was already feeling it-he hated being alone. Maybe she could direct him to a nearby pack outside of the desert, or perhaps even becoem a companion for him herself. He smiled at the thought.

He perked at her stateent about alliances, "Dark pack? What's this? I've never heard of a dark pack, or anything similar. Just...packs." he was curious now. Throughout his lifetime, he had known of 4 packs. SacredSpirits, the one he had been a foudner Mentor of, Desvau's pack. Then there was Whisper Dreams, the pack his sister had founded after leaving Sacredspirits; the Spirit Howlers, whom he had visited once or twice, and finally Mystic Aura, the pack that Desvau, himself, and a few others had formed after Amodae's fiery departure.

"Forgive my ignorance, please. I've traveled far, so I'm not used to the customs in this area." Histongue loled out to the side as he waited for her to respond. In the momentary silence, he caught her eyes, and was transfixed. Such an intense shade of blue, they were. Almost hypnotizing-he felt drawn in and immobile as he gazed into the eyes that were colored after the purest seas.

Asper searched through his mind and thought hard. "I..." he fell silent. He just wasn't sure what he wanted anymore. All he had asked for before was to have a family of his own. Little ones to raise up and be proud of. A mate to spend his life with.

Fate was not his friend. He huffed sadly and rose to a sitting position. "Now that I really think about it...I'm not so sure if I want to find a pack. I've actually stopped and slowed down a bit, kept my mind from racing as it has been recently." he whined quietly and pinned his ears. "I just don't know."

Asper smiled and quickly followed, although at a distance he hoped she would consider comfortable. He wondered if he should invite her to come with him. These light packs she spoke seemed to be the best choice. Maybe he could convince her. He kept to her scent as best he could-he didn't know where the best areas to hunt were.

"What kind of prey is in the desert?" he asked, very curious about what he might be trying to take down. He padded through the lose sand and tried to keep up, but he was used to regular old dirt and stone floors.

Asper listened carefully as he followed her. She seemed to know the area very well. He liked that about her. A wolf that took the time to learn about his or her surroundings and region was a smart wolf. He smiled into the darkening desert. "How do I tell which ones are toxic, then?" He was curious now, and he scented the air as his large paws struggled to keep his weight stable in the lose sand. She was starting to pull ahead, so he paded more quickly. He managed, although his faster paw-falls only made him less balanced.

"Pigs? Well..that sounds good. It's been a while since I had a good boar to eat." He stomach growled again, and he pushed his ears back against his skull.