After her return from Auster, Lumine found herself enjoying the spring air that began to waft across Boreas. With the snow melt from the slopes of the mountain, her adventures around the surrounding territories were mighty easier. No ice to be wary of. No sleeping grizzlies hiding in the shadows of caves. It was those exact caves that she felt determined to explore that day. Setting out during the early rays of dawn, she delighted in the way her paws made a soft squish noise against the damp grass rather than a solid crunch over ice. Her nose tilts up slightly as she inhales deeply the fresh scents of churned soil, decaying leaf litter, and various animals awakening. Embracing the warmth of the sun on a surprisingly cloudless day, she follows a path less shaded than the rest. Her fur warms nicely as she draws closer to the mines that are nestled on the northeast side of Fenrir's Maw. While their shafts delve deep into the inner workings of the mountain and the earth itself, Hemlock did not claim them as their own. Wolves and animals of all kinds were free to roam through as they pleased, but only if they dared to risk their lives. Standing at the entrance, narrowing her eyes to peer into the dimness of the mineshaft, she can pick up the faint sounds of stone shifting and rocks falling down into deep crevices. Most of the shafts should still be stable. Lumine tells herself as she takes a deep breath to push forth her courage. As she takes her first few steps into the wide and tall tunnel that is supported by thick wooden beams, her attention is soon grabbed the sound of trickling water. Not far into the shaft, a room diverges from the main hallway. Once through the opening, the cavern opens up to something much larger with water trickling down its rocky walls. A pool toward the back hosts a bushel of vegetation that doesn't quite surprises her, but she does wonder how it survives without much light. The only source truly came from the shaft behind her so surely during the winter it would be rather dark. As she steps forward, muzzle lowering toward the ground to inspect the plants, she notices how the ground begins to wiggle. As if there were at least a hundred worms writhing around in the dirt, attempting to churn it into something more palpable for their tastes. Moving closer, her head suddenly wrenches back as she realizes that there were indeed a lot of worms surrounding the pool of water and dispersed throughout the vegetation. Enraptured by the phenomenon, Lumine finds herself frozen in place. Was it a conjuring of worms done by some animal? And were some of them glowing!? Surely there was a reason for this peculiar finding... Lumine Trygg

table coding by bunni ♥

wc: 477

Rannoch had finally begun to come into his own, as he reached maturity he had distanced himself from the herd who had raised him. Partly because that was the natural way of things, young stags went off to create their own herds. Partly because the whole group had slowly drifted apart in general. He was saddened by the loss of his family, but with the growth came development. Rannoch was a right prince of the forest now, there was no other stag that could compete with the massive deer. He was the biggest of them, with the largest antlers, and had access to all of the best hinds. Yet he still felt like something was missing, he would never be with his own kind again. He hoped that some of the calves he had sired with the local moose population might come to challenge him some day, but there was no telling if any of them would even survive their first year. They were so different from either parent.

The giant Elk couldn’t dwell on these bits though, he had to follow the laws of nature and watch out for himself. He didn’t have any hoof in raising his offspring. Right now as spring was upon them Rannoch had lost his massive antlers and his head was nearly bare except for the nubs that were beginning to grow. His form remained massive, though the swelling of his neck for breeding season had subsided if only slightly. This caused a shake of flesh as he swayed through the forests of the north.

Bright flowers were blooming, birds were singing, fawns were dropping, and the ;and took on new life with the change of season. Without procreation being the forefront of his mind Rannoch was out exploring. He had taken the time to get to know his home, the northern reaches were where he was most comfortable. They were the most like his home land. However well he knew the forests and grasslands he wasn’t so familiar with some of the lands. Like this place.

The massive deer rounded a corner to find the gaping mouth of an unnatural cave. The huge cervine was least comfortable beneath the earth but he was feeling overly curious and explorative today. He cautiously entered, his soft eyes taking in the dark recesses around him. His nostrils flared at the strange scents that greeted him, and he very nearly stopped and turned around when the scent of wolf hit him.

However as he looked ahead into the tunnel he could see her. The she wolf was not paying him any attention, instead her gaze was firmly fixed on the ground.. That was moving. His eyes widened in surprise and he took an uncertain step forward. Finding that he couldn’t stray from such a mystery. He felt like he could hold his own against one, though rather tall, she wolf.

"What have you found here, wolf?” He asked as a wave of boldness took him and his cloven hooves brought him closer to where she peered at the strange finding. The worms wiggled and crawled beneath detritus beneath some strange vegetation. He had never beheld anything quite like it before.

"Speech"

wc: 539
total: 1016

Lumine is enraptured by the pile of worms that writhe on the ground. She knew worms existed, knew that you could find some while overturning dirt, but like this? Here? This was just odd! Her eyes widen more as another one appeared to glow ever so slightly. Even more peculiar! Lowering her head closer to the gathering lump of worms that seemed impatient attempting to wiggle back underground, she gives them a big sniff. Nope, they still smelled earthy and musty and all things wormy. Her gaze moves around the darkened cavern, ears flicking backward toward a sound, but ignores it for now. She had to get an answer to why these were worms were here and why some of them glowed. Moving her nose closer to one of the glowing ones, she almost reaches to grab it when a deep voice behind her startles her. Standing up straight with the hair along her spine rising slightly, she turns to see a massive elk standing just beside her. Blinking quickly a few times up at him, she wonders how he had moved so quietly into the cavern unnoticed. Taken by surprise, it is a moment before she can find the words to response. "Erm, worms," she says simply, turning her chin upward to get a better look at the beast of a creature beside her. Did they always get so large? Or was he special? No, save that for later! She had worms to investigate. "I found them here like this. Almost like someone... put them here?" Her voice is tentative as she turns to look back at the worms on the ground. "Do you see the glowing ones or is that just me?" Lumine questions softly, feeling almost a little crazy. Lumine Trygg

table coding by bunni ♥

total wc: 1308

Rannoch stifled a smile as he startled the little wolf in the darkness before him. Usually those roles would be completely reversed. He put the thought from his mind as she settled down and the gloom of the mines overtook them. Rannoch wasn’t usually so comfortable in a place like this. The walls were close and if he weren’t careful he might knock his head against the ceiling. For now he found himself concentrating on the find the girl had before her. A wriggling pie of worms. Creatures that Rannoch paid no mind to in normal times but as she peered at them so did the deer. Surprisingly he too saw them glowing in the deep darkness.

"No, I see them glowing as well.” He returned gently, refraining from poking them with a massive cloven hoof. He had no desire to squish them. "On the surface I’ve seen bugs that flash light. I believe it is to attract mates.” He offered what he might know to the young wolf. "Perhaps that is what we see here now. Though, I don’t think we can ever be for certain.” They couldn’t ask the little creatures anyway.

"Speech"

wc: 206
final: 1514