If You Go Out In The Woods Today [Lintu]

[maybe]

A thin mist clung to the floor as it enveloped the forest. The hazy fog covered the roots of each tree and much of the underbrush that was situated at the bases of the towering giants. No birds sang, no creatures livened the air with their constant russtlings. It seemed as though the forest lay dormant, still and flawless in it's silence. It was much like a landscape, a picture painted from the imagination of a renowned artist. It did not seem like a living, breathing forest.

But there was life in the woods. Four ebony paws fell inaudibly to the earth in a swift rhythm, the legs that controlled them moving rapidly, fueled by pure instinct. The body that the four legs held aloft was slender and lithe, covered in fur that looked to have been kissed by the sun's gentle dawn rays. It belonged to a wolf. Bu the looks of it, it belonged to a female. Young, perhaps only three years. A long tail trailed behind her, not held loftily like that of an Alpha, but held so that it could not be seen over the dense fog, and that it would not trail on the rough ground and cause a disturbance in the silence that engulfed the woods.

Piercing blue eyes searched the landscape, ears firmly erect upon her head. Why is the forest so quiet? She mused, careful not to utter one single syllable aloud. Afraid to break the dominating silence, she continued to pad on without sound, and halted at the base of a rather gnarled-looking tree. The flaxen-hued female situated herself at its roots and sat back. How long would it be until the sun showed itself through the dense branches that covered the sky?

[reffy]

' ' Caden

Silence. That was the key word. It engulfed the valley during this time, this silent time. The only sound would be the breathing of animals and the small breeze. Only highly sensative ears would pick this up, and there were a few ears in the forest that had the sensativeness. Many ears belonged to this land. Wolves, birds, squirrels, deer... too many to think of. Even all the little insects could hear. But now, everything lay still, as if waiting for something to happen, for something to explode and let the life begin to rise up again. Like Christmas. Like a little kid feeling that adrenhaline pulse as he attempts to fall asleep that night and the only sound is it's own breathing as it waits to hear the jingling of bells, but finds that it falls asleep while in wait. Yeah... like Christmas.

Through the forest and onto the far mountain was a maze of caves. There was the one cave that had little tunnels connecting to the other ones. In one of these small caves, was a large, dark wolf. His fur was brown, but seemed a dark grey in the lighting provided in the darkness. His face was a lighter brown that deepened as it went down his neck and to his body. His undersides were a light tan, as most wolves have a lighter underbelly that they can surrender with. Almost like a white flag on a battle field. A solider admitting defeating and holding up his little white flag in the air. But this wolf would never surrender. He was an Alpha, and was expected to never give up and lay down in defeat. That would mean he was weak.

This wolf was Caden.

Although he didn't entirely believe that that meant he was weak, most wolves did. In his opinion, it meant he was smart and was able to live to fight another day. He was smart enough not to get killed, but now with so many wolves following him, he could only avoid death by finding a loophole. That was why his worries bothered him; because he could never feel smart enough to find that loophole that probably seemed obvious to any other wolf out there. Even Duke, the Alpha that intimidated him a bit and made his fearful for his family and comerades. Yes, he considered his close friends as family. He wasn't afraid of Duke, himself, but rather what he could do to the ones he loves. He wasn't afraid to die in order to protect their innocent lives when it was his fault that he made their home here.

As his eyelids fluttered, his tail twitched. He was ready to get up. His eyelids fluttered open to reveal shocking forest green eyes. Caden blinked against the lighting of the room. It was lighter than the inside of his eyelids. With a sigh, he began to stand up, pushing all four legs against the ground. Once he was up, his head was drooping down and his tail was still. He parted his massive jaws and yawned audibly, his tongue curling back and his black lips revealing his sharp fangs. As he yawned, his front legs stretched forward and his muscles tightened before relaxing again. He stretched each back leg individually and sighed once his muscles weren't so stiff. It felt good to stretch after sleeping for a few hours.

Caden needed to run before he flopped back down and went back to sleep. He needed the cold air to fly through his face, reaching into his fur and hitting his skin that was under the mass of thick fur. He needed to run at full speed. He started to trot out of the cave, getting ready to run. His pawsteps seemed too loud against the hard floor, in the silence, but he didn't need to care. The pack would be getting up soon, anyway. He would need to go on a quick run, then, seeing as he was in the mood for conversations. He hadn't talked to all of his comerades in detailed conversation for awhile, and it'd be nice to spend some time together. He also hadn't had the time to talk to his little sister in forever, as well. And even though he saw her everyday, he still missed their long conversations.

As he exited the dens, he looked around for a moment to decide which way to run. His eyes landed on his left and he dug his claws into the earth to send himself flying almost. Caden's start was wonderful. He was already reached a very high speed, but he quickly slowed as well. The eerie mist on the ground fascinated him, because he'd almost forgotten that it was on the forest floor every morning, and it seemed a little too quiet for his own good. He wouldn't run as fast as normal, but instead, keep a brisk gallop going. His pink paw-pads hit the earth with audible thuds and he had to keep himself from wincing. It just seemed too loud today compared to the regular mornings. He looked up through the trees to spot sunlight starting to stream across the sky, and saw that there were no clouds. The problem was all the sun that was blocked from the creatures within the trees.

Caden sighed softly and began to walk at a normal pace, keeping his steps soft. He kept his tail at a normal level, seeing as he didn't really have anyone who wasn't his friend in the forest. Just as soon as the thought hit his mind, a scent cause his nose. The soft breeze and brought a gentle smell, but a unique one that didn't belong to this forest. A female, about three years, and strong as well. A flash of panic echoed through him as he stood perfectly still on the earth within the cover of trees. He brushed the panic away once he realized that he was wrong. The other pack of Caden Valley smelled different. This must've been a loner. Well, that was strange. Loners usually never ventured onto Dancing Stars' territory because they'd been here so long. Time to put another loner in it's place.

Caden let out a soft breath through his nose and breathed within again. He turned towards his right and began to pad softly and quietly to the fae who had ventured beyond the Stars Stream. That was basically the border of his land from the loners. As he peered through the trees, he saw the fae next to one of them, facing the opposite way. At the sight, his fur instinctively stood up to make himself look bigger, his tail went up in a curve over his lower back, and his head was held high. His ears were also pricked up as well, unlike submissive wolves whose ears are flat upon their head. As he neared the fae, he let out a low growl before stopping three yards away from her smaller bodice. "I believe you've ventured too far, Miss." His voice was kind and gentle, but the tone had an icey and respect-demanding egde to it. He called it his Alpha tone sometimes. It just seemed strong and powerful, like an Alpha should be.