A thick, heavy fog blanketed the orchard. Whatever hadn't bloomed early over the hot summer was now ready for harvest, and the smell of crisp, overripe apples was heavy in the air. Apples, she had learned, were delicious, but the fog was so thick this morning that she had a hard time seeing the branches drooping low, heavy with fruit. Lore grumbled to herself, staying close to one side of the long pathway that cut between the rows of trees. She'd been following along behind Asta and Mythos when they left the den this morning, but she'd so quickly lost track of them among the fog once she'd stopped to inspect some of the freshly fallen apples.

In no time at all, the fog had gobbled both of her sisters up.

She slowly craned her head back and forth, pale eyes struggling to penetrate the blanket of fog. It seemed to hang right in her point of view, thinning out up above her head where she couldn't quite see. Lore jumped up, breaking loose from the low lying-fog to try and get eyes on her sisters, but she couldn't see a thing. When she landed softly on all four paws, she took a deep breath - they had to be here somewhere. Were they playing a trick on her...? She bit down the familiar but acrid sting of panic clawing its way up her throat. No, no, no - no need to panic. They couldn't have gone far. "Astaaaaa... Mythhh... Come out, come out!" She called in a sing-song voice. Her hackles slowly began to rise the longer she stood alone in the thick fog. "Come on, please!" She said, her voice growing just a bit shrill.

"speech"

wc: 293

coded by NachoMumma

Mommy had taught her all about drying fruit, and Asta was convinced she knew exactly how to do it. She'd told her, too, that when the world got cold that these trees would stop bearing fruit for awhile. She'd gotten an idea to start collecting some and working on the process of drying them, so she and her siblings could enjoy them throughout the winter.

Toddling along with an old piece of burlap she'd found lying around one of the barns, without a real plan in mind other than to collect, she set off with her sisters on a trek through the orchard. It was another foggy day, like so many they've had lately, only worse. The thick mist clung tightly to the ground, obscuring practically everything that wasn't directly in front of her nose. Exhaling had a way of clearing the fog at least right in front of her, but just for a moment.

She breathed and breathed out until she felt her head spinning, trying to blow away the fog so she could see. The dangling branches were oddly threatening, peeking intermittently through the shifting fog, hanging low to the ground like claws. Spooky.

Distracted by her own little task, she didn't realize she'd lost sight of Lore and Mythos until she heard a strange sing-sing voice. Muffled by the fog, it didn't quite sound like her sister... or did it? She felt the fur along her spine raise, a slight nervousness settling over her. "Hellooooo?" Asta called out, her voice sounding strained and thin as it faded into the swirling mist that surrounded her.

Padding away from the tree she'd been studying and abandoning her makeshift sack, she saw something moving up ahead... barely visible, but the shadow of movement was enough for her to act. She knew there was something strange happening in the outside world, some of it not far off from Avalon, and the girl couldn't help but feel on edge about it all.

Not thinking it might be one of her sisters, she didn't register who it was until she pounced, throwing her weight forward and into the fog as she aimed to tackle whoever was lurking nearby.

Astaroth vs Lore for Spar
Round 1 / ?
Age: Under 1 Year
Size: Extra large
Build: Heavy
Skills: Beginner Fighter & Beginner Intellectual

Code © Skelle/Witchdogtor DO NOT USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

A trip out into the thick, blinding fog did not feel as daunting with her sisters by her side–at least it didn't until her sisters were suddenly no longer there. She had been peering out into the fog, squinting at the shadowy shapes that she could just barely make out in the distance. Were they trees? The barn? Something else entirely? A creeping monster that was just waiting for them to be alone so that it could sneak up on them? Her imagination always ran wild and the fog was the perfect fuel to the fire that was her over active thoughts. Because of this she tried to be very mindful about where her sisters were so she could stay close to them, but what she didn't really account for was how quickly they could disappear into the soupy mist if she looked away for just a minute. One second Asta was right beside her with Lore trailing behind and the next she was all alone.

She stopped in her tracks and looked around for them, her ears perked up high on her head to listen. She heard a couple of oddly muffled voices that sounded kind of like her sisters, but also like it could be a ghost trying to trick her at the same time. Where those shadows getting closer to her? The tall, tree-like ones suddenly felt like they were getting taller and reaching over her. While trying not to panic, she went back the way she came–or at least so she thought–to try and back track and find her sisters. A pair of moving shadows that looked kind of like her size grabbed her attention and she called out, "Asta? Lore?" while hurrying toward them. However, one of the shadows leaped toward the other and she gasped, her imagination immediately piecing together that the attacker must be a ghost and the other must be one of her sisters getting attacked by the ghost! She had to help her! Gathering up her courage, she barreled forward (almost blindly since she was too scared to really open her eyes) and tried to pounce the shape she had seen attacking the other shadow. No sister of hers was going to get taken by a ghost!

WC: 376
Total: 1034 / 1500

"Mythos"