A New Beginning

[veer]

"Be careful, Alix. Not all the wolves out there are quite as friendly as me."

"Yeah, because you're so such a charmer."

"I'm serious. Not many wolves will respond very well if some random yearling comes running up to them, whether they are infected or not. If you want to do this, you need to approach carefully, and make it clear that you aren't going to hurt them. Alright?"

"I know, I know. I'll be careful." 


Alix was tired of being alone.

Maybe Dakota could handle it. Maybe he was fine the way he was, seperated from the good things in life and the bad. Alix was different. Alix wasn't meant to live in solitude.

Well, near solitude. He had Dakota, yeah. Dakota was always there. But somehow, it wasn't quite enough. Maybe it was because Dakota was more like a brother than a packmate. It was great to always have him at your back, but for Alix, it just wasn't cutting it. His mother had always told him stories about the joys of living in a pack—she had been apart of one, before the infection became such a big risk—and to Alix, it had sounded great.

It was harder to find a real pack now though, especially one that wasn't filled with infecteds-in-training. Packs were a risk with the infected around. You never knew when someone might turn. The few good packs were more careful, not wanting to attract very much attention.

Alix had lost track of the amount days he had been searching.

"Don't worry about following single tracks too much. If it is a pack, focus more on groups of at least two or three. It's not very common these days to find groups traveling together these days, so be smart about who you choose to talk to. You know the risks. Be careful of how recent the scents are too. Make sure they were there at the same time. It would be unfortunate to think you'd found a trail when you had only come across an Infected trying to make a kill."

Alix had wanted to give up hope many times over the past few weeks. He was yet to come across an actual wolf. The closest thing he'd seen was week old trails of spare wandering wolves, definitely no packs. Frequently he found himself considering going back and trying to find Dakota—after all, one wolf was better than nothing. He had nearly made up his mind when he'd found something hopeful.

The trail wasn't too old—no more than a day. It was two wolves, he was sure, traveling together. Hopefully not just mates traveling—he thought it was a male and a female, although he couldn't say for sure. Alix wasn't going to wait much longer to find a more promising trail though. Adjusting his pace to a steady run, he started down the trail, a new energy filling him after many days of dread.

The yearling's blue eye were bright as he ran. Don't get too excited now. he scolded himself. You'll just get all the more disappointed if it isn't what you are looking for. It was hard to keep his excitement down though and only got harder with every step he took. He slowed himself down to a walk as he got nearer , trying to decide how to go about this from here.

He head a few options, none of which looked too stunning. He could wait a few days to observe and make sure they were the kind of wolves he wanted to talk to, but he wasn't sure how patient he could be. He could hover here around for a bit and wait for them to notice him, but that would appear creepy and they would more than likely respond aggressively then positively. They could even just run away without bothering to see what he wanted anyways. Or, he could just go up and talks to them. That was the simplest option, but of course, Alix had no way to predict how they would react. Compared to his other ideas though, just talking to them seemed like the best option. It would give him a better chance to set his own first impression rather than let them make rushed assumptions. He had no idea what he would say though—Hey, I've been following you two for the past to day or so on the off chance that you guys are apart of some pack or something! Care for another member?[/i]—but he could always figure that out later.

Alix had almost reached the end of the trail now. Leaving the main scent, he moved uphill so he could observe the area the trail let to. He wasn't entirely sure what he was looking at, really. The trail definitely ended here, but what, exactly, was here? It didn't look like anything lived here. Maybe he had made a mistake, and this wasn't what he was looking for? He wasn't going to give up quite yet though.

Catching movement out of the corner of his eye, Alix huddled in the shadows, seeing for the first time who he had been following. Two wolves, male and female, like he originally thought. He couldn't hear anything they said, but they weren't infected, as far as he could tell. They seemed safe—well, safe enough. Nothing was ever completely safe here.

No point in just sitting back here watching them. Alix thought. You'll have to move sometime, and it'd be better to approach them then have them find you lurking in the bushes. Not the best first impression.

So, of course, Alix did the only semi-logical thing he could do. He stepped out into the open, doing his best to look welcoming and friendly, not displaying any threatening body language. The yearling stepped a bit closer to the two older wolves—close that they would definitely see him, but still a safe distance away—and looking somewhat sheepish, somewhat warm. He said the only thing he could think to say right then.

"Um, hi. My name is Alix."

"And one more thing. Promise me you won't do anything stupid."

Right.

[Dakki]

Walking, walking, walking. That is all they seemed to be doing these days. No place was safe, and they never stayed in one place for too long. That ran the risk of attracting an infected, getting them set on their scent. So they always kept moving. The infected only acted on instincts, they didn't have the mind power of a normal wolf any more. If they lost the scent they would move on. If the scent was stale they would move on. It was all about just that - moving on. Her and Sphuul had been doing it for months now. But then, then the Gods smiled down upon them and they came across this place. This was now their home, and it filled Abigale with glee. No more running, they finally had a home. The tall, long-legged wolf looked at her best friend now. She smiled widely at him, her tail swinging back and forth. She was glad that they had each other, that they found each other that fated day. Something good came out of something so... so horrid. She shuttered at the thought, not daring to let her mind linger there. Those thoughts and memories were not to be accessed again. Like everything else, she had moved on.

Sphuul and her had been talking about lands. They had scoped out the area and had come across a grove, a lake, and a beautiful meadow that was completely safe. These grounds seemed untouched, only prey making this their home. No infected scents had reached them as they marked the land with their own. they had to be careful though, not making the border too strong. They wanted other, normal wolves to be able to find them and tell that this was their home. They did not want the infected to discover them. Gale sighed, slowing down behind her pal. She was sick and tired of all this movement and still hadn't gained her stamina back. She wanted to sleep, but Sphuul made her walk around to check the borders with him. She looked at the brute now, her chocolate brown eyes lighting up as she gazing lovingly at him. They had been friends for so long... she could not imagine her life without him.

Sudden movement had the Maned wolf whip her head around, eyes wide as she body dropped low to the earth. She froze, sniffing the air as her eyes darted around, looking for anything. Was it an infected? A small wolf then came into view, walking towards them slowly. It then stopped a few feet away from them, and spoke. An audible sigh made its way out of her maw, he was a normal wolf. A... normal wolf? Abigale's eyes lit up and she rushed forward, her white tipped tail wagging back and forth at a vigorous speed. "A real wolf! Sphuul! It's a real wolf!" she yipped, almost bouncing up and down where she stood. She walked around the young pup, taking him in. He seemed to be a yearling, not that old. He was young, and he was healthy. She whined happily and nudged the pups face. "Hello Alix! I am Abigale, and this is Sphuul. We would love to take you in!"

Gale turned to Sphuul, smiling widely at him. She should probably ask his opinion, but she was so excited to finally see another, healthy wolf. She turned back to Alix, plopping to the earth on her rump. "Where did you come from? We have looked all over these lands but have found no other healthy wolves. In fact, you're the first one that we have run into since we got here," she said happily, her tongue lolling out of her mouth. Her gaze flickered back to her best friend, excitement almost overflowing from her orbs.

[Sphuul]

Frail, the skin is dry and pale
The pain will never fail
And so we go back to the remedy
Clip the wings that get you high
Just leave them where they lie
And tell yourself, "You'll be the death of me"

This place was... safe. No sign of infected around the area, although that was sure to change if they ever got any uninfected company. If there were any left alive. Sphuul gave a soft sigh as he walked with his companion, looking around every few steps to make sure they were still alone. Something was nagging him at the back of his mind, something that wasn't right. Were they truly alone?

They had found a water source, a large lake, to take into their 'territory'. A meadow had also been found, not too far from the lake or their grove. They had marked both, keeping their scent subdued so they didn't attract any.. walkers. He snorted softly. Walkers, indeed. They were nothing but the walking dead. Dead in mind and soul, just waiting for an innocent wolf to come along to tear apart.

Shaking himself from his morbid thoughts, he glanced at Abby to see her giving him a large smile. He managed to smile back, not wanting to clue her in on his thoughts. He had to keep her safe, in body and in mind. Sphuul didn't want her to have to think about them any more than she had to. He gave her a soft nudge with his shoulder, opening his maw to speak.

A rustle in the bushes had his words sucked back into his lungs, and he froze, eyes locked on the approaching .. wolf? So, they weren't safe. An infected had found them, merely days after they had settled down. He made a move to step in front of Abby, when the wolf spoke. His ears perked, curiosity blanking his usually serious face. He had not heard another voice besides his own and Abby's since.. Since he lost his mother. Shocked, he didn't realize what this meant until he saw Abby bounding towards him. They were not alone. Uninfected aside, he may still be dangerous.


Eyes narrowing, he stepped towards the male as well, his hackles raising ever so slightly. He stopped about ten feet away, while Abby sat her butt down right in front of him. Resisting the urge to cuff her upside the head, he slowly made his way towards the male, observing as his companion made the stranger feel a little too welcome. He circled the male, eyes going over his body, searching for bite marks, wounds, scars. Sphuul saw nothing out of the norm, but did not approach him. He stopped in front of him, still several steps away from his beloved Abby and the stranger. "So, real wolf. His voice was gruff, hard but not mocking. He wanted nothing but cooperation.

"There will be no trouble as long as you.. behave. Give me your name and how you managed to find us. Pleasantries can come later, Abby." His eyes flicked to her for a moment, then back to the stranger. Sphuul would not be so welcoming. Abby saw only company. He saw a threat, a danger to their safety, their home, their life. This wolf was not welcome. Not yet.

[veer]

Alix couldn't help himself. He laughed. He had been worried, and for what? The female—Abigale, she said her name was Abigale—had seemed thrilled to see him, a complete stranger? He had known her for a matter of seconds and yet she was already talking about taking him in! It wouldn't be quite that easy though. He hadn't expected it to be. The other one, Sphuul—he didn't look nearly so thrilled to see him. Their reactions were so different from each other.

There will be no trouble as long as you behave. Somehow, despite all the suspicion and coldness he got from Sphuul, Alix just couldn't take that sentence seriously. It was a tad too dramatic for Aix's taste, but all the same, he got the idea. Sphuul wasn't the kind of wolf you wanted to mess with.

A cheeky grin stayed on his face as he spoke. "Yeah, um, hi!" Alix said. Questions, answer their questions. Sphuul asked for his name, and although he had already said it, Alix didn't see an issue with saying it again. "Like I said, my name is Alix. As for how I found you, well, I was looking. " Did that make any sense? It did to him, but of course it made sense to him. He'd said it. "And what I mean by that is that I was looking for someone. Um, someone who was possible looking for a companion." He glanced at Abigale and grinned. "Apparently I found someone."

Alix was thrilled. He hadn't dared to hope, but here he was. He had found other wolves, living seperate from the Infected, and it sounded like at least one of them wouldn't mind if he joined them. Sphuul was much less enthusiastic, but he didn't seem totally against the idea. Well, he couldn't really tell what Sphuul was thinking, but he hoped he wouldn't mind.

[/size]

[Dakki]

Sphuul stepped in front of her as they heard the potential threat. She rolled her eyes and growled softly, glaring at her companion. She could very well take care of herself, thank-you very much! With a snort she pushed past him so that she was standing by her side. If this creature was a threat, they would fight together. She looked at him, passing on that message. 'It's you and me against the world Sphuul. We fight together,' she thought, giving him a thin smile. They were in this together, until the very end.

Then it happened, the wolf spoke, allowing both wolves to know that he was not infected. So she rushed forward and gave the greeting of her life time. She couldn't help it, she hadn't seen another in so long. How could she hold back her pup-like greeting? Simple, she couldn't. She looked over at Sphuul and smiled widely at him, but that soon dissipated as she saw his hackles rise. Shock and surprise coating her face, but she knew that she shouldn't be so surprised. A pout formed on her maw as she blinked up at Sphuul with sadness in her eyes. Why couldn't he just calm down? She looked over at the yearling and saw that he had a smile on his face, and it looked like he was holding back a giggle. Abby yipped with happiness, but her eyes locked on Sphuu as he walked around the young one. Why was he such a downer? She frowned at him once more, sticking out her tongue. He was such a poop.

Her friend sat a ways away from her and the pup, causing her to once again pout at the male. "Get that stick out of your bum Sphuul! Look at how small and lanky this poor fellow is!" she said, standing right beside him to make her point. If you took Alix and stacked another one of him on top, he would probably just reach the tip of her ears. Of course she was probably over exaggerating... but still. He was small, weak, malnourished, and scrawny. He couldn't hurt a fly. She turned to Alix when he starting talking, saying that he just found them. Abigale's ears twitched slightly at that, a smile tugging at her lips. "You have been following our trail, haven't you? I thought I sensed something..." she barked, tilting her head slightly as she thought. She did get the feeling that she was being followed, but it was so faint that she didn't even bother to take it into consideration. Her chocolate orbs flickered over to Sphuul. He had known, hadn't he? She did think he was usually uptight... Huh.

Sphuul looked at her and told her that pleasantries come later. Rolling her eyes she harumped at him and stuck out her tongue once more. silly Sphuul. Silly silly dog. Shaking her head, she focused on the pup again. Alix looked at her and grinned, and she grinned right back at him. Her tail wagged a few times and she winked at him. She liked this little guy. Looking back at Sphuul she pouted, batted her eyes and gave him her best kicked puppy look. 'Pweeeeese?'

[Hobbes]

It was a beautiful day in the little niche of forest Selma had claimed for her own. It was a bit outside the grounds of the Vigilant, but not far enough to cause worry to the others.

Other wolves might have been intimidated by the sheer aloneness of the place and the ever-present danger of the infected, who could easily kill a lone wolf. She was not. To her, this small clearing was a paradise where she could be free from the fretting of the others and enjoy the little nuances of nature.

Selma smiled. This place would be her secret. Neither Abigale nor Sphuul nor any of the others would ever have to know.

ooc: NOT DONE. ugh I have to go