French. It was her native tongue and English words felt foreign and strange. Almost unnatural, her tongue was meant to roll her r`s and pronounce harshly. Emerald eyes blinked against the bright rays of the setting sun. The center of her universe. Since arriving here she has yet to meet anyone. That is, if anyone even lives here. A cold chill ran up her spine as she sat her slender, dainty little physique down. Her rump touching the ground softly, as if it would disturb the earth if she were to just plop herself down. Slowly, her forelimbs give out and she finds herself laying down, in the midst of a new forest. Saplings barely managed to stand straight, new flowers and undergrowth sprouting from places that most likely they shouldn`t be. A small sneeze emitted from within her and she dug her talons into the earth. "Univers..." she says, chuckling lightly to herself. The word meant Universe, and for some reason, she said it when she sneezed. It was a curse word in her book. A fancy sounding one, to those who didn`t speak her language.  

Night had fallen, and Versailles sat in the dark. Literally. She didn`t know of mucn else to do, except dwell in her thoughts. A soft tongue ran over her teeth as she inhaled sharply, and then exhaled, picking her body up from the terrain. She shook off any dirt and leaves that clumped to her long coat, and began on her way. Why not explore, while thinking? Maybe then she can figure out what to do with herself.

Solveiga was on the move, her slender legs propelling her forward as she chased a rabbit through a forest full of young saplings, most of them not much taller than her. The rabbit had nowhere to hide, so now it was only a matter of her chasing it down. She kept powering forward, her small body making it easy to change direction when her prey did. She was hungry. She didn't have her brother hunting for her anymore. She needed to catch this rabbit.

But as she ran she caught in the air the scent of a stranger, and her steps faltered just enough to give the rabbit a chance to jump down into a burrow and Solveiga let out a quiet, disappointed grumble. As soon as the possibility of catching the rabbit was gone, she perked her ears and looked around warily for where the distracting scent had come from.

She wandered for what seemed to be hours. Minutes dragged by so slowly, and excruciatingly quiet. The only sounds she heard was that of leaves and bushes rustling in the wind. Her legs leading her in no particular direction at all. Which was quite fitting considering she had absolutely no sense of direction what so ever. She could be wandering in a place she knows well and still end up lost and dazed. However, it was a new scent that made her legs slowly come to a pause. Her ears perking up as she listened for any different sounds. Where exactly could that scent be coming from? From what? Emerald eyes scanned her surroundings, searching for a glimpse of the owner of the scent. But all she saw was saplings, saplings, and more saplings. Hesitant, the lady begins to walk again. Her heart was thumping quickly, and she felt like what she was about to encounter was dangerous. Or maybe even just another wolf. The thought of that got her even more excited.  

What if they`re just as scared as I am! What if they`re a girl? What if they`re a boy? Will they try to kill me? Dear god I hope they don`t attack. Her thoughts raced a million miles a minute, and with each step she took she felt as though she was getting closer and closer to said creature. She weaved between trees, and branches, and walked. Faster, faster. Until, her paw got caught underneath a root from an older tree and she yelps in pain. "Bon Dieu!" Versailles shouts, hissing in pain as she sits in the spot where she paused, moving her paw to ease the pain.

As Solveiga stands rooted in place, the smell seems to get stronger. The stranger must be getting closer, and she doesn't like it. It's scary. She doesn't know what to expect. There is no one here to speak for her or protect her if the stranger turns out to be not so friendly. Solveiga finds herself walking backward slowly, her ears tilting back cautiously as her eyes move from side to side, and then she hears a voice. It is female and sounds like a cry of pain. She can't help but be moved to help the stranger, as her mother would have done. Should she? Would that be wise?

Her fears try to hold her back, but in the end her compassion wins out and she takes a deep breath as she walks toward the sound of the cry. "Are you hurt?" she calls out meekly. She just has to hope it's loud enough for the stranger to hear. She sniffs at the air and tries her best to follow the smell. She should help. It's the right thing to do.

Versailles cursed the root as she tried to tug her paw up from under it. Her teeth latched on to the root and she tugged trying to free herself from it. Her ears twitched when she heard rustling in the bushes and she panicked, tugging harder on the root willing it to free itself from the earth. She stopped, and rolled her shoulders. Versailles takes a deep breathe, exhales and then continues to pull on the root. She was growing more anxious by the minute and a small grunt came from her vocals. Suddenly she heard a voice, it was small but it was there. It belonged to a woman and the girl relaxed. Her body felt calm and she stopped tugging at her paw. Wearily she called out as well, "Yes, yes I`m here!" her quiet voice was projected as much as she could. "It`s my paw. I`m stuck!"

Solveiga stayed where she was and listened for a response, her heart fluttering nervously. Then a response came, and the voice is soft and feminine, immediately making her relax a bit. "Okay! I'm... I'm coming!" she called out, starting forward in the direction of the voice. "Keep talking so I can find you!" Solveiga walks carefully through the little forest, her eyes combing her surroundings for the creature in need. Eventually she finds her and comes closer, surveying the situation. She quietly looks over the paw that is stuck, seeing how the tree root is trapping it.

"Careful," she says gently, seeing that the stranger has struggled a bit already and that could lead to more injury. She paws lightly at the root to see how sturdy it is, and it doesn't budge at all. She even leans down to tug at it with her teeth, and still nothing happens. Her blue eyes narrow as she tries to think of another solution, and after a minute she comes up with one. "I'll be back, don't worry," she says with a shy smile, and then she goes to find a rock. It needs to be big enough to serve the purpose she has for it.

Soon enough she finds one and hurries back to the stranger in need, laying the rock down near her trapped paw. Solveiga then pushes the rock beneath the root as best she can, wedging it in and forcing the root up so the other woman can pull her paw free.

Versailles relaxed, hearing that the woman was coming to help her. She stopped struggling, feeling that the joint that connected her paw to her leg was beginning to hurt. The she-wolf smiled shyly at the woman that approached her, and watched as she tugged at the root. It didn't budge. Not one inch. Her emerald eyes met blue ones and she nodded as she said that she would be back. "Yes, okay." Verse says quickly, watching her figure retreat.

Minutes later she returns with a rock. Her eyebrows furrow at the sight. What could a rock possibly do? Nonetheless, she let the girl help her. With enough pressure the rock eased the root off of her paw. Verse quickly retreated her paw, winching at the immediate pain that settled into it. Yet she muttered a thank you to her savior. "What is your name, madame?" French accent oozing from every word she spoke, as she tried to ignore the pain. It would go away, the paw was stuck under a root, not an entire tree. Her banner swayed slowly behind her, expressing joy.

teach me gently how to breathe

Solveiga watched with a smile as the stranger was able to pull her paw free. She felt proud of herself, for helping someone, for being able to think of a solution. The other woman then asked for her name, her voice heavy with some accent Solveiga had never heard before. "I'm Solveiga," she said with a shy smile. It would seem she was making acquaintances left and right now that her brother was gone. Maybe it really was for the best...

Her baby blue eyes then landed upon the injured paw, and she took a cautious step forward as if to offer more help. "Does it hurt badly?" she asked, her voice as soft as ever. "You don't think it's broken, do you?"