WELCOME TO SM

[Maya]

ooc: I'm trying to get my muse back for her so this post might not be too good.

Maya had stayed put in the pack lands since her wanderings in the Unclaimed. When she had gotten home, she of course had gotten a lecture from her mother, but after that, all was normal. Maya was bored. There wasn't anyone around, so she mostly played on her own, and explored. She practiced her stalking and pouncing skills, admitting that the stalking part she wasn't particularly good at. She always wanted to talk to the thing she wanted to stalk, which really, defeated the purpose of stalking. Maya gave it up entirely, and resumed exploring the Silver Mountain Pack lands.

The young wolf knew about the devastation the humans caused, but her knowledge of limited about it. No one seemed to talk about it anymore, but Maya wanted to know what had happened. All Maya knew was that humans were to be feared, and that was it. She wandered the pack lands, in search of answers. The days got cooler, and the leaves started to change color. Maya still wandered, curious about what had happened not very long ago.

She stumbled upon a plot of land, charred, covered in ashes. The sun blared overhead, and warmed her fur as a chilling shiver ran up her spine and spread throughout her body. "This must've been it." she murmured to herself and made her way closer. A smell entered her nose that made her want to gag and cough at the same time. "What is that smell?" she asked herself, not expecting an answer. The land sunk in a few places, but there was one hole still intact. It was a den. Maya padded inside, careful not to touch the walls or the ceiling. "It is a den!" she realized and got out. "The rest of them are sunken in. And everything is burned. How did this happen?" she had a slight feeling that the humans had done this, but she wasn't sure. She padded over to the stream and lapped up some water. She sat by the bank and looked at the previous den area. "Wolves died in this place." she said in a whisper.

Maya narrowed her eyes and tried to explain to herself why the humans would do such a thing. The wolves hadn't bothered them, hadn't bothered that at all, and they came out and did this. What was the motive, the reason for their cruelty. "What did we ever do to you?" she asked angrily. No response. But that was how it would be in this dead land.

ooc: The first two paragraphs were kinda me typing to kinda get my muse back.

Life in Silver Mountain had grown monotonous; there had been little activity within the pack lands since she had first stepped up into the rank of alphess. In the past, Hoshiko had not seen much activity from the alphas of the pack, but there had seemed to be a fairly steady stream of activity within the pack. There had been little example for her to follow when taking over the pack, but it seemed likely that it fell upon her shoulders to help the pack along. . . But how to do that was an entirely different story. There did not seem to be particularly many wolves still residing in Silver Mountain, and those that did tended to keep to themselves, herself included in this short list. What things could an alphess suggest for a group of wolves that were less than social with each other? This was something Hoshiko had spent a decent amount of time considering.

An arranged puppy play-date was out of the question for sure, considering the minor detail that there was but one puppy living in Silver Mountain, and Hoshiko did not even know if she was still here. Maya was the daughter of Dylis and Mondavi, the latter of which having dissapeared permanently during the raid of the humans, and Hoshiko had not seen hide nor hair of Dylis since the meeting she had called when the pack was reformed. It was possible that Maya and her mother had both left in search of somewhere better. It was also possible that one or both of them still lived in silver mountain. Perhaps a meeting would help bring the pack together, but then, what would the meeting include? A cenus? That did not seem particularly helpful. A pack hunt might be worth it, but as the seasons changed, wolves were hunting for themselves to prepare for the upcoming winter, so that did not seem like it would be worthwhile.

She stepped warily through the remains of the former den area of Silver Mountain, her thoughts trailing to the night the attack had occurred. Many had died in the raid, their last words and breaths fading away into the flames of the humans' hatred of all things free. Puppies and adults alike had been killed that night while others fled the scene, thinking only of saving themselves; Hoshiko would never deny that she had run as well. This place, though a breeding ground of memories turned sour, was still such a large part of Silver Mountain. Despite having found a new den area for the wolves of her pack, this place was still a part of the land. It stood as a charred memorial for those that lost their lives, a reminder for those that had survived. The pack would move on, but never forget.

A voice reached her range of hearing, resulting in a flick of her ears and a small smile. The voice was young and feminine; Maya. So she was still here. "I don't believe we did anything, Maya. Humans are very peculiar creatures. . . They hate what they cannot have; We are free creatures. They cannot posess us, nor can they own our freedom." Hoshiko smiled grimly, shaking her head slowly. "Just remember to keep your freedom; it is worth more than anything in life." Hoshiko knew firsthand what is was to not have any freedom, and she would not let it go for the world.

This post has been edited by Hoshiko on Jun 24 2008, 06:07 PM

[Maya]

Maya's ear swiveled in the direction of a very familiar voice. It was the voice of the Alphess, Hoshiko, a voice she hadn't heard since the pack meeting. Maya stood, tail neatly tucked halfway between her legs, and her ears lowered in a submissive position. Maya listened to Hoshiko's words with curiosity. "I will Miss Hoshiko," nodding gravely before she continued on. "But if I can ask, why us? Why did they come here? Why can't they get freedom somewhere else?" she asked, wondering if the Alphess knew the answers to her questions. Maya hoped so, because she was curious. Curious to know why the humans would bother them of all wolves. The two-legged creatures hadn't been provoked.

She looked around the den area again. It was filled with such a sad aura. So many wolves had lost their lives here; for no valid reason. Their pack was ripped apart, leaving shattered souls behind who still pined for their lost loved ones and friends. Maya didn't know whether or not her father had died in this mess, and she knew it would be too painful on her mother if she asked. She hadn't seen her mother around too much, but that was probably because she had work to do. She held a high rank in the pack, and Maya was to follow in her mother's footsteps when she grew older. It was a responsibility Maya rarely thought of, and she was determined to remain young as long as she could.

"What was it like in Silver Mountain, before the humans?" She asked her final question slowly, hoping not to anger the female. Was is a desolate place like it was now? Even if there were other wolves around, Maya didn't see much of them at all. Even though she scouted the pack lands for someone to play with when her mother was busy, she seemed to find no one. The smells were faint, and Maya could only wonder if there was anyone left. When she thought about it, she always seemed so alone. 'But I make the best of it.' She thought happily to herself, but her facial expression remained as calm as it had been before.

ooc: Wow, that turned out better than I thought it would.

Shaking her head, Hoshiko looked up, as if the sky would give her the answer that the young pup was wishing for. "I really don't know, Maya. I just don't know. Maybe they lived near us, and maybe they feared us being so close," she mused, though it made little sense to her, even as she spoke it. She supposed it was a possibility, but it was also possible that the humans were just plain bad creatures and that they just chose to destory all that was good and free in the world. The destruction they had left was still visible; how could it not be? They were wicked, wicked creatures indeed, and Hoshiko hoped that she never had to witness one in life again. If she ever was forced to come across a human being, she vowed to do what she could to avoid the human or frighten it away, in the case of a human coming near her pack lands once more. What had happened would never happen again.

An interesting question, that was. How could she describe what Silver Mountain had been like before the humans had come? She had little to compare it to, having spent most of her life before coming to Silver Mountain doing her 'job' for her birthpack. She had been larger than the average female, something many packs strived for; an image of strength and grace. Silver Mountain had been her chance at freedom and living her life for herself and the pack she chose to live for, not for what she could produce. She had made friends in Silver Mountain, and had even found herself having a small crush on one of her friends, though where he had gone to, she didn't know. That was something that made her smile vaguely; Tariq had left Silver Mountain without a word before the humans had come, so she could be certain he had not perished in the raid.

"The pack was closer than it is now. . . Everyone knew everyone, or they at least knew of everyone. Days were not spent alone constantly, and everyone cared for each other. The pack was more home-like than it seems now. . . I don't quite know what to do to fix that, though." She supposed that sociallizing with those in her pack more would likely help that a bit. After all, a social alphess that knew everyone was surely able to convey the importance of being more like a family than they had been lately. Speaking of family, hoshiko was curious to know whether or not Dilys was still around Silver Mountain, and Maya seemed like the right wolf to ask, yes? "I was wondering, has your mother been around much lately? I've not seen her, and I was wondering what you were doing if she were not around." If Dilys was not around anymore, Hoshiko would not allow Maya to go without guardianship.

This post has been edited by Hoshiko on Jul 1 2008, 12:39 PM

[Maya]

Hoshiko's response satiated Maya's curiosity about the humans, and what the pack was like before them. She wondered whether or not Silver Mountain's previous splendor could be restored. She'd like to live in a place where she knew someone else besides the leader and her mother. In her opinion, she thought it was a bit pathetic that everyone had isolated themselves, perhaps in an attempt to recover from the pack's losses. Nonetheless, Maya thought that everyone should move on, even though many lives were lost. The young pup was lonely, and craved attention from anyone who would give it. She felt a bit neglected, even though her mother was sometimes around.

"My mom? Well, she's around, sometimes. I don't see her real often. She feeds me and sleeps with me, and that's just about it. Sometimes she'll play with me, but most of the time, she's gone. I just go on my own and play by myself mostly." she replied sincerely. Her mother hadn't told her to make up any lies. Dilys wasn't the wolf to do so, and Maya valued the concept of honesty...most of the time. She felt that at this time, there was no point of lying because she doubted she would get into trouble. Although she wasn't going to mention her excursion in the Unclaimed with Roxel, and she hoped that Jeita hadn't spoken of their little meeting to the Alphess. If Hoshiko didn't ask, Maya wouldn't tell. It wasn't necessarily being honest, but it wasn't exactly being dishonest. The young wolf's mind was beginning to think in strange ways.

"I just sometimes wish I could play with someone else but myself." she said with a small sigh, but her tone was otherwise sunny. She sometimes got lonely, but most of the time, was content playing on her own. She would talk to the various forest flora and fauna, and would explore most of her days. Maya had discovered many things through her explorations. She learned that crossing rivers by jumping across wet stones was not a good idea, and that it resulted in her falling and getting drenched by the cold water. She learned that the bees were not a plaything, and would sting if you aggitated them. Maya had also learned how to pounce, and had caught herself a mouse after eventually running it down and flailing it around until it died. She had been so proud of herself at that moment, and only wished her mother had been there to see it.

In remembering her accomplishment, a small grin crept onto her face. She only wish she could perfect her hunting skills and bring down something a bit bigger; like a rabbit. Perhaps if the Alphess wasn't too busy, she could show her? Maya was feeling too shy to ask, but maybe in the near future, she would. The young pup wondered if there were pups in the other packs, and if they had play mates. Maya wished they could get together somewhere and play. It would be fun to interact with someone her age and make some friends. So far, she had none. But hopefully, that would change.

This post has been edited by Maya on Jul 6 2008, 08:51 AM