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Post by Soul on Oct 11, 2008 22:54:06 GMT -5
Taj trotted, head down, into the lava lands, his eyes full of the tears he'd been crying for days. His family gone, he now had nothing; no land, no friends, no life. Nothing. Looking around, he saw that the place was nice, sort of like the place he'd had when his family was still alive. The caves were warm and inviting, so he took a few steps forward, searching around for other wolves, but finding none.
Taj decided to make a pact with himself. He would start all over; make a new life for himself. He promised himself that, and began by howling a claim over this terra.
When that was finished, he poked his head out of the cave, sniffing. His stomach rumbled angrily, and he decided that he'd better go hunting. |
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Post by Boshia on Oct 15, 2008 20:03:27 GMT -5
Xena froze on top of a hillside, her silver eyes quickly scanning her surroundings, looking for any possible dangers or threats. Her thin frame was racked by a bout of violent shivers, and she swayed where she stood. Tongue hanging loosely out of her mouth, she collapsed where she was, after looking over at the red-brown caves, and seeing that the place was warm. She had been running in search of a home, and being pursuited by her abusive father, finally suceeding in escaping. Her paws were bleeding and she was emaciated and her throat parched, but she was free. At last.
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Post by Soul on Oct 15, 2008 21:04:58 GMT -5
Taj's ears, already alert, as he was on the hunt, picked up the sound of another wolf approaching. He perked up, looking around for the source of the sound. At last, he saw it; a female wolf had collapsed atop the hill nearby. Instantly, Taj's protective instincts took over, not bothering to wonder if the wolf was a threat or not. He dashed up to where the wolf had fallen, eyes tight with concern. "Are you okay?" he asked. |
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Post by Boshia on Oct 16, 2008 5:53:37 GMT -5
The female jumped when she heard a voice close to her. A male's, but not unkind. Still, she kept her guard up. Struggling to her feet so if she had to attack or flee, she would be ready for it, she looked at the male. He looked caring, and she hadn't certainly seen him before, but that meant nothing. Her father had fooled many with how he had looked.
"Who are you?", she asked. Xena knew though that she wouldn't be near to fighting and winning if he decided to attack in the state she was in, but still, she kept in a defensive position, tail rigid, and ears flattened to her skull. Her teeth were slightly bared as she spoke.
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Post by Soul on Oct 16, 2008 16:26:35 GMT -5
Taj backed off a few feet, seeing that the female was tensed for a fight, teeth bared. He did it to show her that he wasn't going to hurt her; the femme looked weak enough that if she decided to fight, it wasn't going to be difficult. "Relax. My name is Taj, I live here. What's your name?" he asked, trying to convey that he meant friendship, not harm. |
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Post by Boshia on Oct 16, 2008 18:02:28 GMT -5
She relaxed her stance slightly. If there was anything she knew how to do, it was surviving. She had never seen nor heard of a wolf that was nice. Her ears and tail relaxed, but her teeth still stayed bared. "My name is Xena. Are you the only wolf here?", She queried, wary. If there were others, then she was bound to be attacked or killed, and ordered to leave. It was how she was raised to think. No happiness. Fight or be killed. Their Alpha, aka her father, had taught all of his pack that.
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Post by Soul on Oct 16, 2008 20:01:44 GMT -5
Sensing how wary she was, Taj wondered why she felt that way. What had happened in her past to make her so untrusting? But he pushed the thoughts away, though they were far from idle.
"Yes, it's just me. I claimed the place not too long ago; you're the first to show up here."
He looked at how weak she seemed to be, swaying slightly on her feet. "Do you need something to eat? I just killed a deer, haven't even had time to eat any of it yet. Would you like some?" He knew that the alpha male was always the first to eat, but this femme looked so weak, he didn't care about etiquette. |
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Post by Boshia on Oct 16, 2008 20:31:52 GMT -5
She sniffed the air. Sure enough, the delicious smell of fresh deer hung in it. In her haste, Xena hadn't even noticed it. Taj seemed worth the chance, in her opinion. Her lip slowly lowered back to cover her teeth. "Sure, that would be great. Thank you.", She bowed her head slightly. It was all wrong to her. She was not used to acting kind to anyone or anything, her life forcing her to use teeth and claws instead of words and gestures. My former life, she reminded herself.
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Post by Soul on Oct 16, 2008 20:37:09 GMT -5
Taj nodded, turning to lead the way toward the deer carcass. He still wondered why this female was so aggressive, so tense, so ready to be attacked. The sad events that must have forced her to come to that... He held back a shudder at the thoughts.
"So can I ask why you seem to have been on the run for a while? You don't have to answer, if you feel uncomfortable," he added. |
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Post by Boshia on Oct 16, 2008 20:45:47 GMT -5
She hesitated. Would it be safe to tell this new male? "I-I had sort of an....aggressive Alpha and pack. It was the only way to stay alive.", Thinking she had said enough, she quickly ducked her head to the deer, ripping off a hind leg and pulling it away rapidly. Forgetting her defensiveness in the face of hunger, she ripped into the meat, flesh dangling from her bottom jaw. In a mere 8 minutes, it was all consumed, save the bones. "Thank you. I hadn't eaten in a while.", She explained, still wondering why he was so generous.
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Post by Soul on Oct 16, 2008 20:47:23 GMT -5
Taj smiled at Xena. "No problem. I know there's a large pack around here somewhere; I can always hunt again. Are you thirsty? There's a stream closeby," he said, his eyes alight with only concern. |
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Post by Boshia on Oct 16, 2008 20:52:00 GMT -5
Her instincts urged her to shy away from the too-nice male, but she ignored them, and tentatively returned the smile slightly. "No, I'm fine. Thank you. Do you mind if I stay here for the night? I'll be fine sleeping under a tree or something.", she added hastily, hoping that Taj didn't think of her as a bother and would get angry.
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Post by Soul on Oct 16, 2008 20:54:15 GMT -5
Taj rolled his eyes, as Xena suggested sleeping under a tree. "Of course you can stay here. And you're not sleeping under a tree; you'll sleep in one of the caves." He grinned at her, as the darkness of night began to creep across the land. "I'll show you the way there," he said, standing up and trotting a few paces towards the caves, pausing to see if she would follow. |
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Post by Boshia on Oct 16, 2008 20:57:07 GMT -5
She hesitated, clearly taken aback with his generosity. "That's...very kind of you, thank you.", she finally managed out, standing up and following Taj.
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Post by Soul on Oct 16, 2008 20:59:57 GMT -5
"Well, why wouldn't I be kind? You're tired, and I'm Alpha here. Of course I'm going to let you sleep in one of my caves. I mean, I'm not going to let you sleep in the cold." He frowned as he trotted to the caves. What kind of life had she lived? He wondered if she would ever tell him the story. "And you can stay here as long as you wish," he added in a quiet, tender tone. |
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