Cyanide’s ankle was still tender after the previous day’s spill, but she was doing her best not to let it get to her. No, it wouldn’t slow down her exploring… but it would sour her mood. Already volatile at best, the creature moved over the land in a way that lacked some of her trademark grace. It wouldn’t keep her from making the absolute most of things, though. With a keen eye trained on the land, Cy moved north. North, towards the sweet smell of just blossoming fruit trees. Cy was happy to move in that direction, hoping to catch an easy meal. If nothing else, maybe there would be a few early apples she could settle with. Though it wasn’t exactly filling, it was better than nothing. Still, with any luck, she’d be able to scoop up some wayward squirrel or maybe even a hare. It was early afternoon by the time she arrived in the orchard. Brilliant pink gaze setting about on the place, it was true that there was plenty of prey scurrying about in the underbrush. Sounded delicious, if you asked Cy. In the shadow beneath one of the plum trees, the wraithlike girl sat and waited. No, it wasn’t long before a chipmunk pathed too close, and she was able to pounce on and devour it as a morsel. Still, she winced after coming down too hard on her bruised ankle. Beneath the tree, she curled up carefully. This wouldn’t be a bad place to rest either.

This was a wonderful place, full of perfectly ripe fruits, and others still ripening up that she could take with her on her travels for a snack when she got a bit peckish. She munched happily on a crunchy apple as she walked, not caring at all to chew with her mouth closed as there was no one around to chide her on her manners. Once the apple was finished she began snuffling around on the ground under the trees, searching for another quick fruit snack that the birds and other critters hadn't gotten to yet. Instead of fruit the scent of fresh blood filled her nose. Her ears perked up immediately, mouth salivating at the thought of a more meat-based, but for a fraction of a second she wondered if perhaps the scent was from an injured wolf instead. Well, she would just have to find out. Inoki sniffed the air deeply, closing her eyes to focus on the smells around her, and tried to hone in on the metallic nature. The scent of wolf drifted into her nose along with the blood, and as she opened her eyes her paws gingerly brought her closer to the source. It didn't take her long to spot a large black form curled up under one of the fruit trees. She stopped a good distance away, not wanting to disturb them and get a set of snapping jaws to the face. Inoki was too pretty for that to happen. Instead of bothering them, she stepped to the side, snuffling around once more under another tree for a piece of fruit. She figured it was best to let sleeping wolves lay undisturbed.

Ever alert, it didn't escape Cyanide's notice for long that there was someone else out here. The sound of crunching drew her from her nap, eyes flickering open in the low light. The tree had a long shadow cast around her shoulders, and the girl figured she was reasonably safe. Still, if there was someone interesting out here, what was the use of sleeping through it? Cy let out a big yawn, capped with a grumble. Carefully, she stretched each of her muscles in turn. How long had she been able to rest? Brilliant pink eyes shining out from her space beneath the tree, Cyanide attempted to get a gage on the sun. Nope, too much tree cover, especially here in the orchard. She'd have to get up for that, and the jet black creature wasn't sure how she felt about that yet. When the full-body stretch traveled down to Cyanide's injured ankle, she couldn't hold back the soft whine that grew in her throat. It hurt more than she cared to admit, and she'd maybe overdone it in the morning's travels. Maybe... absolutely... Cy would plead the fifth. Taking it easy wasn't something that was in her plans, and it never was. No, Cyanide couldn't handle being stagnant. Not for long, at least. Staying in place, doing nothing-- too boring. Boredom would drive her out of her mind. Carefully, Cyanide climbed to her feet. She took one stiff step forward, grumbling as she did. "Shit," exclamation was quiet, grumbling to herself. The pain was a dull throbbing, and in looking at it, Cy could tell that there was some swelling in the area. On second thought, maybe it was better she stayed put for now, beneath her tree.

Her investigation of the foliage underneath the fruit trees had only taken her a few strides away from the slumbering wolf before she heard rustling behind her. With a quick turn of her head, muzzle still down by the grass, Inoki glanced at the wolf, seeing that they were now stretching and getting to their feet. Well, she hadn't directly woken them up, so she didn't feel bad at all about ruining their sleep. It wasn't very smart to sleep in a place where there was basically free food around anyway, the chances of taking a long nap undisturbed wasn't very likely. The larger wolf mumbled out an expletive as she stepped forward, and Inoki's ears flicked forward in intrigue. There could be many reasons why a wolf would curse aloud, perhaps the stranger had just remembered something important she'd forgotten about, or overslept. Trying not to show her interest too much, Inoki took a few steps towards another fruit tree, nose sniffing over the pear that lay on the ground to see if it was edible yet. "I didn't bother your sleep, did I?" She said without looking back at the other wolf, taking a tentative nibble of the pear. Her mouth pulled away in a grimace, sticking out her tongue at the sour taste. Nope, that one was definitely over-ripe and not good to eat anymore.

Napping here, of all places, was likely ill advised. Still, it wasn't like Cyanide would have easily made it to somewhere quieter with her ankle in its current state. That, combined with the fact she'd felt inclined to pounce on the chipmunk... not her finest moment. Hell, she didn't have many truly fine moments in herself, but that was beside the point. Cy stood proudly on her feet, albeit stood still. The stranger was browsing the fruits on the ground, sniffing and tasting. "I wasn't asleep, I was just resting my eyes," she explained, maybe a bit defensive. "And no, you didn't bother me." Right, had to not sound like too much of a bitch. That drove others away, and when she was on her own... it was unlikely the wraith could afford that. She watched as the woman tasted the pear at her feet and then pulled a face. Ah. "If you sit really still in the shadow of the tree, a squirrel or chipmunk or something will probably come try and take the gross-tasting one. They're too small to carry them away quick, makes 'em easy to catch." Pink gaze trailed from the smaller woman back to her own ankle, laying down with a grimace. Cyanide took a moment to lick at the sore joint before resting her chin on her legs to watch the stranger openly.

A soft huff left her mouth, disguising the snort of laughter at the defensive response of the other female. Sure, that was what everyone said when they were caught sleeping. But Inoki wasn't going to tease her about it as she seemed a little testy on the subject. Better not to poke at something that was just going to antagonise the stranger. The other girl went on to explain how Inoki could basically get a free meal, and at that she turned her full attention to the other wolf, brows raised curiously. "Thanks for the tip, I wouldn't have thought to try that." She ambled closer to the girl, taking care not to get too close, but wanting to rest under the shade of a nearby tree to wait for a small critter to hopefully take the bait now that she had bitten it open, releasing the slightly sour smell into the air. It was then that Inoki noticed the grimace on the girl's face as she lay down, licking an ankle almost tentatively. Inoki's eyes narrowed slightly, glancing from the ankle to the girl's eyes. "Your ankle okay there?" She asked as she sat down underneath a tree next to the girls, not wanting to settle down too close. Personal space and all.

Cy caught the huff, the disguised laugh, and she gave a rakish smile in return. Though sharp, she had a humor to her... chaotic humor none the less. Still, she was cranky, the pain in her ankle enough to weigh down her usual humor. Frankly it was really cramping her style. All she wanted to do was get up and explore the orchard, but it didn't seem like that was in the cards today. The yearling could be grumpy on her own for now. She offered a soft hum of acknowledgement as the woman thanked her for the advice, and a small nod. The wraith was quiet, returning to licking at her ankle. Her gaze flickered up for a moment, considering. Would it be a mistake to tell a stranger that she was injured? What if this was a stranger that could help? The smaller girl had taken well to Cy's unsolicited advice about the hunting, so maybe she'd have help to offer in return. An eye for an eye, but in a positive way... was that a thing? That had to be a thing. "I fell in a hole yesterday when I was running... it feels worse today." Her brow furrowed, chin setting on her paws once more. Honestly, it was mostly to hide the extent of the swelling, something Cyanide was beginning to realize was worse than she'd initially thought. From the angle at which the wraith sat, she could see a fat, squat chipmunk approaching the fallen pear. Subtly, so as not to catch the rodent's eye, she inclined her muzzle to draw the stranger's attention to it.

Inoki's maw opened in an 'o' shape as the girl mentioned falling into a hole, feeling just a little concerned. Sprains could be dangerous, not life-threatening, but debilitating in that they could prevent a wolf from hunting or defending itself if the injury as bad enough. "Have you been resting it?" From the sounds of it likely not, as indication by the injury being seemingly worse today than the previous day. Rest was the most important thing in taking care of an injury caused by a fall, or at least that's what she had been taught. "I have a bit of training as a healer, I can maybe help you out, if you'd like me to take a look." Inoki didn't move from where she sat though, wanting the girl's permission before she did anything. However, the girl made a small motion with her muzzle, uncannily quiet, and she slowly turned her head to look in that direction. She could see a chipmunk inching closer to the pear she had just disturbed, and her eyes widened at the prospect of an easy catch. Sure, they were pretty small, but so was she, and food was food. So far the chipmunk was skittish, not quite focusing on the pear it was slowly heading towards, and she would wait for it to be thoroughly enthralled in eating the fruit before making a move of her own.

Have you been resting it? The question came, and Cyanide whimpered for just a breath-- a little sass, nothing serious. "I mean... theoretically if I hadn't been resting it, what would you say?" She didn't want to admit to it. Cy was too proud, really. Still, she left her chin where it was, pink gaze settling on the stranger. A healer, the wraith had luck on her side. Her gaze was on the small prey animal, though she still spoke to the stranger. "After your lunch, sure." It was a soft smirk that played on her lips as she spoke. She did her best to stay still so as not to contribute to anything that would scare the chipmunk away. Stillness, the sound of the wind whispering through the trees and the distant song of birds. Relaxed. "Who are you, anyway? I'm Cy." Still conversational, curious... but quiet. Right. She aught to let the stranger hunt.

She squinted at the lager female, not exactly frowning, but her expression couldn't be mistaken for a happy one. Not resting a sprain wouldn't necessarily be the worst thing in the world, but it would lead to a longer recovery time, and more pain as the joint would be continually inflamed from use while it was still in its most injured state. "I'd say to stop using it unless absolutely necessary, even asking another wolf to hunt for you for at the very least a few days, maybe even a week for a really bad sprain, before slowly walking on it. Rest is the most important thing in healing a sprain." She nodded at the mention of lunch, her gaze returning back to the chipmunk. Right, food, then healing. Inoki watched the chipmunk as it ambled over to the pear, her front end very slowly lowering into a partial crouch so she could better pounce when the time came for her to take action. "The name's Inoki," she said somewhat absentmindedly, her focus almost completely on the small prey before her. As soon as it looked to be nibbling at the spoiled fruit and not looking at its surroundings, Inoki pounced forward as silently and quickly as a viper striking, landing upon the chipmunk and snapping its neck with her jaws before it could get more than a shrill shriek out. Her tail waved behind her excitedly at the successful hunt, and she turned to face Cy, the corpse hanging in her jaws. Right, the sprained ankle. She walked back to the tree she had been sitting under, taking little time to eat her kill in as few bites as possible. "That's a good strategy, I'll have to use it in the future." When she finished eating, Inoki licked her lips clean of the mess she had made, and began to lick clean the fur around her paws as she stared at Cy. "So have you been resting your ankle?"

The girl talked about actually resting her ankle. This wasn't the answer that Cyanide was looking for. If she was to take time to rest it, then she couldn't explore. She couldn't progress. She couldn't learn every single godforsaken inch of this place, and that was less than ideal. Really, she was already restless. There was so much of this orchard she wanted to see and get to know, and then she wanted to leave, and go to the next place. It was that easy... it should have been that easy. The sprain had put her in a sour mood. Inoki, she was called. It was nice to actually meet someone out here, she had to admit. The dark girl leapt upon the chipmunk, and Cy was satisfied with herself. "It's easy here, or really anywhere with fruit like that," she let an easy smile cross her lips. Though animals that small weren't the best meal, they were filling. The wraith was only a yearling, and found herself not needing anything big to keep herself going. There was something rakish about her as she lay, slender head upon delicate paws. So have you been resting your ankle? Damn it, she'd remembered. Cyanide let go a grumbly sigh. "No," she finally admitted, "I just get so bored." It was maybe a bit dramatic, but she flopped over on her side in exasperation. Cy wasn't keen on being idle, she needed something to do.

"I'll have to keep that in mind, it's a good tactic," Inoki commented idly, still staring directly and almost unblinkingly at the younger girl as she cleaned her paws to perfection. The girl finally admitted she hadn't been resting her ankle, and spontaneously flopped over onto her side with a dramatic flair. She sniggered softly to herself at the sight, well aware how boring doing nothing could be. After a minute she finally finished cleaning herself off, and propped her right paw over the left as she somewhat dramatically heaved a sigh. "Well, would you rather be bored, or lose all use of your ankle?" She pretended to be nonchalant about the situation, trying to make her words sound as factual as possible, even though she knew that not resting the ankle would only mean the joint would take longer to get back to normal. Cy was at no risk of actually losing function in her ankle, unless the girl went and did something stupid like break it, but from what Inoki could tell she'd be perfectly fine in a couple weeks. Not that she'd tell Cy that at first. She then feigned interest in one of her back legs, kicking out the leg to stretch the muscles as she turned her head to nibble at the fur of her hip, pretending like she hadn't just delivered some devastating news. Inoki wondered if the girl would fall for her lie, or if she was smart enough to see through it.

The yearling watched Inoki carefully, antsy as she lay on her side. Easily bored, and always on the run, Cyanide needed something to do. Something to be-- always in motion. Always exploring, always looking for something new. Explore, do, and be. Maybe that last bit was the most important. Cy needed to be more. She needed to do more. No, the girl was far too antsy to be at rest. Far too much energy to ever be at rest. Filled with life, and rest was... well, it was akin to an allergy. Lose all use of the ankle, at this, Cy's eyes went wide. "What the shit, really?" She sat bolt upright, the side that had been pressed into the ground covered in leaves and dirt. It was no secret that she believed the words of the stranger, and now she was worried. She'd never be able to go back to normal if she kept stressing out the joint. No, no, that couldn't be. She couldn't let something like that happen. The girl quivered slightly, concern ringing in her brilliant pink gaze. Maybe amputation would be a better choice... sooner lose the leg than not be able to use it. That seemed... extreme. No, Cyanide wouldn't do anything rash. But still. No, the drama would take her over, and she'd let out a long suffering sigh. "D'you think I've already screwed it up past the point of no return?" Cyanide had to know, of course. She had to know if use of her ankle would ever return.

The younger girl shot up with a speed that defied her larger form, worry present in her voice as she spoke. Had Inoki any sort of shred of decency in the mischievous mood she was in she'd feel bad for making Cy worry, but she was simply enjoying herself in this moment. As she turned her head back around to face the girl she shrugged in response to the second question, making herself look as nonchalant as possible. Maybe she could use this to her advantage and somehow coerce Cy into taking better care of her ankle, as it would be a shame for her to struggle unnecessarily and delay the healing process. "I don't think so, not if you only injured it yesterday." Her words were accompanied by a narrowing of her eyes as she pretended to think deeply, and with a long drawn-out sigh Inoki motioned with her muzzle towards the ankle. "But if you wanna make sure you don't make it worse, I can make up a splint for you. It'll be quick, easy, and mostly painless." The painless part really depended on Cy's pain tolerance, and how badly she had injured the ankle, but if it was from falling into a hole then it was likely just a bad sprain at most. Healing 1/3

Cy's gaze on the world around her was an intense one. For as much as she longed to explore the orchard, being stuck in one spot was already torture. Maybe after Inoki left she could get up and at least look around slowly... but... well, what if she was right? What if she'd strain her ankle and be stuck here forever? That would probably fucking blow, and she wasn't here for it. Cyanide was fretting over it. Anyone who knew the ghoul wouldn't be surprised. The threat of her freedom being taken away like that... it wasn't her style. There was a relief in the way that she flopped back over on her side, ever dramatic. Okay, well if she'd only just hurt it yesterday then she was fine. That should bring Cyanide some comfort... but still, what was she going to do? Just sit around, bored and rotting, until it healed? That sounded... well, it sounded hella unfun. Inoki offered to splint it, and the wraith didn't skip a beat before nodding her head. "That would be good," the nod came with more and more enthusiasm. Still, her ma would have kicked her ass for the lack of manners. "Please, er, and thank you," she added, trying to not make it sound like an afterthought. Really, she would be grateful to get back on the leg as soon as possible.

The girl flopped back onto her side again, just as dramatic as before, but with a greater sense of relief in her features. At least she agreed to have her ankle splinted, which would leave Inoki with some peace of mind when the two parted ways. She grinned as Cy added on a rushed 'please and thank you', already getting to her feet in search of a useable piece of wood and rope to make a rough splint with. She wasn't prepared for a moment such as this, and hence wasn't carrying anything on her that would be of use. Actually, she wasn't carrying anything at all. She'd need to work on that. Searching around, Inoki managed to scavenge two thicker sticks that would be long enough to splint from the girls paw up past the first joint which would prevent her from walking properly, and therefore force her to rest it for at least a day, maybe two if it didn't fall apart by then. Looking around some more she found a strong and taut strand of what looked to be a type of weed, but it was long enough for her purpose so she grabbed it as well. Returning to Cy she set the items down, and sniffed in the direction of the ankle. "Apologies for the less-than-ideal items, but I wasn't expecting to make a splint today so I'm a bit unprepared item-wise." She sat down and began chewing around the middle point of the weed to sever it into two pieces, and then used her blunt claws to scrape away any sharp edges on the sticks so that they wouldn't poke or stab painfully once tied to the girls ankle. "As long as you stay still it'll be a quick process," she said with a pointed gaze and a single raised brow. If Cy struggled she wouldn't hesitate to sit on her, as even though she was quite light she could still decently immobilise someone. Healing 2/3

Cy peered curiously at the healer as she hurried about, pulling together the materials for a splint. The wraith took some interest in the process-- it was all so strange to her. Healers did their work and had ways that she'd never really know or understand. They were an odd bunch, but most of them seemed to have good hearts. This one was taking time out of her day to bail Cy out of a rough situation, and really, she had to be grateful. "You're the one doing me a favor," she spoke, eyebrows raised. "You have nothing to apologize for." It was a lesson that she'd been taught as a young child, and one that she hoped Inoki would take to heart.

The woman returned, bringing the pieces of the splint. Her gaze was curious, taking in the process as Inoki went about it. "I'll do my best." Cy offered a smile and her swollen ankle, prepared to grit her teeth. It wasn't going to be comfortable, but she'd get over it. Cyanide had been through worse, right? Yeah. Something like that. And it would offer her reasonable stability and support while it healed... so she'd get over it. The wraith had to pretend to be tough, even if she didn't feel tough like this.

"speech"

CODE BY SHELBY