Seasonal Skill Prompt: Crafting Makes Perfect Snow lightly dusted the crags up at the peak of the Maw, making every step that the lady took a well-thought-out part of a predetermined strategy for climbing this mountain. She was absolutely nervous being up this high on unfamiliar territory, unable to control the shivering in her thin legs due to the climate she was most accustom to. Her fur was much like a thin white doctor's tunic, unable to hold any significant heat against the temperature at this altitude. Still, a determination was evident in her portrait as she stood strong at the top of the Maw and surveyed the slopes beneath her. Thick green stalks of aloe, twigs of yarrow, and fresh large coca leaves with little red berries were held delicately between her lips as the wide crystal irises of her eyes carefully spent their time on every little crevice available to her sights. Pinhead pupils were barely visible as she studied, it was obvious she was under some sort of spell and nothing else in the world really phased her current goal in mind. Her heart raced within her chest as the piebald belle lifted her skull with obvious piqued interest. Below her, about thirty feet was the decayed skeleton of one of the Maw's native mountain goats half hid in shallow snow. Though it may have seemed uncanny for such a goal to mean so much to her, it was the last variable of her solution that she needed. Cautiously, her nimble paws carried her down her unsteady path to the carcass. She carefully placed the herbs and leaves she was carrying in the snow beside the skeleton before her numbed lips peeled back to expose her pale gums. She picked at the skeleton, searching for the angular skull and attached horns. The cold had granted some of the tendons attached to the mostly eaten corpse some of their strength even as time had passed by, though she worked fervently at removing the bottom jaw from the skull regardless. Once the spine and bottom jaw were finally removed, she was able to pull apart the only piece of the skeleton she had come for- the top part of the goat's skull. She carefully nosed it in the snow, checking for any imperfections. Part of it, closer to the nose of the goat, was cracked.. and that would pose a slight problem for her plans. She wished she had time to travel back to Auster, to the castle and the garden that held such wondrous inventions scattered about- left behind by the tall ones. She did not have such time, she had already taken so long gathering her herbs that her patient's pain was something that even she could feel deep in her soul. It motivated her to work quickly and innovatively, choosing to improvise for what she could not currently spend time recovering. One dainty white paw placed itself on the skull, her toes and claws gripping slightly until she could move it upright, as it would be had it been alive. She placed her weight on the skull while her teeth saught one of the long horns protruding the top, and with quite a bit of time and effort- she was able to pry it from the rest of the skeleton. That was it, that was the final step to creating her makeshift mortar and pestle. Carefully, she flipped the skull over- trying her best not to cause any more damage. Claws scraped out the debris from the inside of the skull as much as possible. She wished she had more time to clean it, though for now, she did her best by filling it and emptying it repeatedly with what snow was available. Once she was satisfied, she found her herbs once again. She chewed the yarrow and added it first. Her teeth carefully nibbled along the side of the aloe leaf until most of its rough siding was removed. She placed the leaf inside the skull and applied pressure, and then noticed that the cold was quite more useful in this situation than she initially figured it would be. The gel inside had slightly solidified and was easier to press from the leaf, once she was satisfied with the amount she removed the rest of the leaf and left the gel in with the yarrow. Lastly were the coco leaves. They were more potent than she had given them credit, as she wasn't used to working with them. She decided to only use half of one with the rest of her ingredients. Finally, she was done setting her ingredients in the bowl of the skull. Her lips found the horn she'd severed and plucked it up from the snow. It was awkward for her neck to manage a correct angle, but she would not allow herself to fail. She pressed the horn into the bowl and used it to grind the herbs together into a blended goop. Only when all traces of the coca leaf and yarrow were undetectable among the gel of the aloe would she be satisfied. Once it was fully blended, she inspected her makeshift ointment. It had to do. End Skill Prompt: 850 words ------- Beginning Roleplay Post: With the ointment and the remaining coca leaves settled inside the skull, she carried it with her jowls wide but tightly securing it within. She wanted more than anything to help the child waiting for her before it was too late, but she would not allow herself to slip and ruin all of her work. She had to be careful, and she made sure to take her time getting safely back down to the base of the Mountain, toward the warm dens closer to Mount Volkan. Like some sort of ghost, her paws barely felt the ground beneath her as she moved with haste down the entrance of one of the dens. She followed a short, dug-in tunnel until the child was in her vision. She did not know his name, she hadn't had a chance to ask him. When she found him, he was already in shock from the pain of his broken and exposed bones. She'd already done what she could to place them back where they needed to be placed, but the poor thing needed relief from the pain.. and she didn't have any sort of supplies when she stumbled across him. The first thing she did was place the goat skull beside him and then check his vitals. She lowered her form to his, forearms cradling around him carefully as she hovered her head over his and craned it so that her ear could be pressed to his nose. She listened hopefully for his breath, though his still body within her embrace already told her what she needed to know. The pup had passed while she was trying to get him everything he needed. Had she taken too long being too precise? Had she made a mistake? Was he hopeless from the moment she found him? She pulled herself away from him and backed up toward the wall of the den, putting as much distance as she could in the small space between them. Her eyes closed, and she could not help herself. She quietly sobbed as her mind reeled everything that had happened from the moment she found him, questioning what she could have done differently to save him.

The russet-colored brute had never really seen many interesting things upon his travels. He had traveled down the mountains into this little area some time ago anyways, and not many new encounters when it came to wolves or even prey graced him with his presence. His monotone expression showed carelessness, not really paying much attention. Even if he were close to death, his expression wouldn’t falter. When he was with his family, they taught him to stay strong and vigilant, heck, even his family seemed to posh and pristine to really care about expressions much themselves; deeming them as some form of weakness unless it was absolutely necessary. Plus, his quiet attitude and demeanor always seemed to scare others away, giving them only as much as a raised eyebrow before walking off himself.

His thoughts were soon interrupted when his ears flicked, happening to catch the sound of quiet sobbing. What were they even crying about? He heaved a deep sigh as he walked over to where the sound could be heard from. From the cries themselves, they sounded like a female as he stayed in the shadows watching her for a moment. The coloration of her pelt almost resembled that of a ghost. Though that was some superstition that mothers would often tell their offspring if they didn’t behave while going to sleep. He scoffed a little bit as he approached her, raising an eyebrow as his serious expression watched her for a moment, his expression pretty much asking his question for him, wondering why she was even crying in the first place. He would ask her, but he was always quiet unless he really needed to talk or give his name.

Her quiet sobbing and her internal thoughts tugging at all corners of her mind left her oblivious to the stranger that entered the den. It wasn't until his scent hit her like a wall did she cease her gentle mourning and look up to him, misty eyes wide and pale like twin moons. She quickly noted the 'what in the world?' expression he was giving her and dipped her narrow muzzle apologetically, looking toward her feet rather than directly at him. "My apologies," She took a minute to recollect herself and cease her crying, which was much easier to do now that she wasn't alone. After only half a minute, she lifted her head again with a new sense of strength as she daringly flashed a glance in his direction again. Her look was only brief before those crystal gems drifted in the direction of the lifeless child. "It's just so hard to see them go, you know? I didn't know him, but he was so young. I wish I could have done more to help him." A surprised whine choked the last of her words, but she held herself together. She lifted her light body off of the ground beneath her and stood to her full height. She was a tall creature compared to most women, but nearly entirely composed of legs- she barely weighed a thing. Her height did nothing to hide the true frailty of the woman. "Are you using this den? I didn't mean to disturb you if so, I just want to take him and give him a proper burial and then I will be out of your way." Her voice chimed with a kind tone, genuine remorse rang in every word as she truly did not mean to intrude.

So, someone had passed, which was why she was so shaken and saddened when he saw her. He hadn’t really seen much death in his life, but the thought of a young child being dead either from sickness or injury had to be tough on someone. If his children were to ever succumb to death, he was sure he would be sad much like the woman before him was. A slight sigh escaped him as he looked to the body after doing a thorough search to see what had happened before looking back to the piebald damsel. She was surely not like many females he had encountered upon his travels, but despite her kindness it really meant nothing to him. Showing emotion was rather hard for him, usually considering it to be weak unless it was absolutely necessary for him as he sat back down.

“Name?” He spoke, his voice deep and guttural as his icy blue gaze landed heavily upon the she-wolf. Perhaps changing the subject from the child’s death might make her feel a little more at ease. He never really considered himself much of a good guy, thinking of himself as someone who would use someone’s misery to his advantage.. However, when it came to this circumstance, the brute was unsure as to what he could possibly gain from this more or less a name but…

He sat upon his haunches, carrying a noble stance with the way he kept his head straight and properly positioned with the rest of his body, an eyebrow being raised as he waited for the woman’s response to his simple question. Even though he had better things he could be doing, some kindness did show a little bit by being some form of way for the dame to vent or voice her sadness; even if his expression read that he really didn’t care and didn’t want to be here at this point in time. However, that was what his face read all the time so nobody could tell how he felt or what he was even possibly thinking.

Something about the male told her to try to star as far out of his reach as possible. She felt partially guilty for being so wary about him, but why was he being so quiet? Whatever the case, she decided to be thankful for this stranger's presence. He pulled her out of a bad state of mind, and that was enough to be appreciative. She began to move toward the child's body when his voice made her freeze. She half expected him to remain there without a word as he waited for her to vacate the den, so a soft smile spread across her lips as she realized she was at least partially wrong about him so far. "I'm sorry, I completely forgot to introduce myself. I'm usually good about remembering... I swear. My name is Moon Wreckage." She wanted to ask him for his but decided it best maybe not to ask this man for anything... perhaps he would feel inclined to share it? She looked away from him again and continued to get to work. She picked the pup up by the back of his neck and would attempt to move past the stranger as she aimed to get out of the shadows and back into the sun.