Morwenna

She could smell the warm peat and water before she could hear the steady trickles down the ravine. Morwenna found the stream bubbling up from a depression in the ground and she let her eyes of violet follow the stream as it disappeared from view. Carefully she followed the stream with cautious steps and found the crack in the ground opened wider and deeper. A warm air wafted up to gently tease the long silky fur around her face. It carried the scent of spring and summer all at once with heady aromas of Iris, meadowsweet, basil, marshmallow, and angelica. A few others she was sure were mixed in the draft, but the enticing adventure pulled her from analyzing the scents. She had to get down there!

She skirted the ravine, eyeing the precarious roots and vines that lead down and down and down to the moss below. One slip of a dainty paw and it would be the end of her short life.

m é l i s a n d e



she's suddenly pulled from her agendas of foraging by the approach of stranger; her ears swiveling atop her crimson crown when her eyes fetch the womanly thing making way below. she's sleek.. curvier than melisande who surprising felt twinges of jealousy fill her tummy as her red orbs traced the feminine figure dressed in lovely shades of soft ecru then ivory. she bites it back though, subsiding it; she defuses with a giddy, "Hello there!",- her previous envy was secret and undetectable to the other. a back note of guilt she would have to dissect later as such a trait was not a pleasant one to have, nor her norm to feel.

it was like greenhouse down here-, warm & filled with enticing scents amongst her favorite, angelica. it's root was her prize: the musk unlike any thing else. the moss was great too. "Here for the herbs too, huh?" her grin was simple and friendly, her nub wagging slowly as she stood some feet away, never moving from her initial station.


"talk" "think"

table by scarlet/art by nelsa

Morwenna

Soft ears perked at the words spoken below her. A veritable crimson fae with an ink black nose was looking up at her from below. Her pelt was such a pretty rose color, Morwenna sometimes felt her own coat was rather ordinary with its browns and creams. Aww and she had the cutest little nubby tail! Hopefully, it wasn't an accident, poor thing.

"Oh hello!" Morwenna called back, slowly she lowered one delicate paw onto a thick and seemingly well used vine. She seemed to have found the ladder of sorts that brought others in and out of this gorge.
"Indeed I am, yes!" She replied as she carefully found another few steps. When she felt it was a safe enough distance to the ground she alighted elegantly from her perch and landed safely on the peat moss. With a huff and toss of her finely angled head, she turned her bright purple eyes, down, to her new friend!

"How lovely to meet you! I'm Morwenna!" She greeted warmly, hiding her anxious attempt to steady her breathing from trying not to break her long and spindly legs on the descent.

as they lock eyes, melisande draws into her- stepping a foot or two closer as she engages in conversation. the other's voice is smooth and melodic.. like her own. not too much taller than mel, she found comfort in not having to extend her neck too high. both were dainty things; beautiful in their own ways. and what a delight it was for her when she heard the same enthusiastic notes mirror back; as if birds chirped to one another. the stranger radiated warmth and melisande gravitated to her easily, accepting her friendly invite to become acquainted. "pleasure is mine! i'm mélisande!"

she slowly strode forward, attempting to meet the other & sniff. imprinting some as she pulled back, beady red orbits finding the purple eyes of morweena once more. "i'm new here.. where are you from?" hoping to learn more about her, melisande sat atop the softer moss bed with an intrigued, twinkling gaze.

Morwenna

As Mélisande reached out to sniff, Morwenna extended her long graceful neck as well to take in the rosy girl's scent as well. A familiar and delightful smell of cinnamon reached her nose.
"Cinnamon! One of my favorites!" She said sincerely. She thought she had smelled some down here, it must have ben the girl! It was too moist here for cinnamon trees. They needed more dry areas.
"I've only been traipsing my way around here from last season honestly! I came from some nomads off the mainland. Found myself here and been wandering ever since. Did I smell some angelica and marshmallow down here?" She replied and asked when the scent caught her nose again,
"Oh! I forgot! Where is it you're from then? Mainland as well?"

there was something genuine happening here,- she could feel it in her bones! her previous twinges of jealousy seemingly faded into what felt like admiration for the graceful Morwenna. to which degree, she was unsure of. both appeared to be of similar age & stature, matching in their kinder demeanors and sunny depositions.

Melisande received a wholehearted compliment: one she hadn't before. could it be..? a real friend? "Oh thank you," she said shyly, dipping her crown to her right as if playfully blushing before aligning her head once again. listening to Morwenna talk was possibly the best thing that happened to her today. did she know that, though? "Yes! Although the Angelica seems to be a bit more work to find." she hummed while looking at Morwenna, her lashes batting. "Yes I am. Currently finding myself joining ethne soon, as well." Melisandre was eager to tell about herself, hoping to create a more intimate atmosphere around them.

Morwenna

Morwenna tucked her chin into her shoulder suddenly feeling shy as the crimson girl dipped her head in thanks. She enjoyed listening to her talk and moved to settle on her hinds, her tail sweeping to cover ler her paws like a cat.

The light hum was a delight to her own ears and she swiveled them to catch the tone bouncing off the canyon around them. The trickling of water and the warmth of the greenhouse effect on this little corner of the land started to feel more and more like a secret room, for just the two of them.

"Ethne? I haven't heard much about them," She almost sounded disappointed to hear Melisandre had plans to join a pack, "I have heard of Raiders Hollow though, I've been in a few encounters with the pirates." Most of the encounters weren't too bad, in one encounter she was gathering turmeric, and in another, she was learning more about the Emerald Isle and had made goo-goo eyes at a handsome pair while they talked. "I should drop by when you've settled! Oooo you could even help me get my trade set up with them!" her tail wagged at the idea. She hoped to start a trade route between the packs as a nomadic healer, trading herbs and supplying goods between them. T

Melisande read her with intuitive eyes, scanning the other's face as they frowned briefly. Melisande's ears flattened slightly. "what's the matter?" and just as quickly, Melisande's attention shifted to the mention of a pack she never head of before. Raiders? "Pirates?" she inquired with a slightly concerned voice, wondering about their nature. to know of such a band made her feel uneasy. "Surely they were pleasant?"

Melisande then seated herself, her mood lifting when Morwenna mentioned visiting later and setting up a trade. how helpful! her scut thumped against the ground, her smile plastering softly on her features. "Ah, yes of course! Let us be friends, dearest Morwenna."

.

Morwenna

Morwenna giggled as Mélisande commented on the pirates. "Pleasant? Ha! They're pleasant enough I think." She gave the girl a wink and a sly smile, Still thinking of the handsome Dread and delightful Deluge she gave her tail a twitch.

"Friends it is then, Mel!" She agreed warmly and got up, she tapped her nose to the woman's dark shoulder as she swept her way passed her.
"Now where is that marshmallow? Ah!" She nosed around the peat moss and the clear water pool. The vegetation was low and thick along the border of some pools, and in the middle of green space, between the pools, was a stand of tall mallow plants, blooming quite out of season. Though due to the Deluge itself, the early fall chill didn't reach this late summer greenhouse.

"So strange how this place exists." She commented, snipping a few stalks of the marshmallow and digging into the soil to grab a few roots. The sweet smell reaching her nose made her want to breathe it in deeply.
"Oh, here it is! Angelica!" It was hiding a few of its nearly spent stalks among the marshmallow.
"It's a great time to get some roots, look it's spent its seeds." Morewenna motioned to the stalks that typically bloom in early summer so it was easier for Mélisande to find. No wonder they were difficult to spot!