It had been a expected amount of time since she last saw Stolas with his move and probably settling in the new territories Ashen provided. She wouldn't hold anything against him of course. She did work up, or not so much, the courage to ask her mother if he could come stay for a few nights and with that approval she sent out one of her ravens to make the journey to invite him. She agreed to meet him about halfway just so he wouldn't have to have the whole journey on his own. She looked forward to that time together though honestly.

It felt like a lot had changed since they last met. She was starting to get familiar to the more emptiness of her own den, maybe finding herself filling it with more stuff to make it feel less hollow. Not intentionally of course. She wouldn't admit at times that she felt lonely especially after feeling so strongly about getting the den just like her older siblings. And on top of that, she was adorned with a number of piercings, one specifically an amulet of the moon which may have seemed more than fitting. She assumed things may have changed for him too with the move.

She made her way to the swamplands where she said she would meet him. With the number of packs in the area she wasn't exactly sure what would be more "fair" distance wise. He surely didn't care but she still tried to be considerate. She had never traveled so far from home before but she was a smart girl and of course had her companions to help if needed. About midday they could make back to Elysium hopefully before dinner time, and surely he was looking forward to that. If he didn't show soon, she'd give him a call. Because there was no doubt in her mind that he came and would be nearby to hear. She wasn't aware of what trouble may have been lurking in the shadows.

Word Count: 337 words

"Fiametta & Stolas"

As expected, Stolas was giddy to the point of being over the moon with excitement at the chance to get to see his best friend again! This time, the two had made plans for the Klein prince to spend some time in Elysium with Fiametta, the two wolves meeting up at about the halfway point to walk back together. Stolas had packed his grimoire in his leather satchel, not needing anything else from his personal effects since he was only going to be gone from home for a short while, and set out that morning from Ashen's new lands, letting his parents know he was headed out so they did not need to worry about him. Fia had designated the nearby swamplands as their rendezvous location, a fair point roughly equidistant from both of their homes. So Stolas set out eastward, passing through the snow covered valleys and plains to reach the swampy quagmire where his friend would be waiting for him.

The trip to meet with Fiametta had been mostly uneventful. Stolas made good time, and just as the sun began to crest its zenith at midday he reached the edges of the icy swamps. Being upwind of them, he did not notice the scent of lingering coyote hovering above the funk of moss and muck, and casually made his way across some floating logs to bounce between the segments of dry land until he picked up on Fia's scent close by. A smile spread over the young wolf's lips and he picked up the pace, trotting through the maze of gnarled trees until he spotted her flame-marked form amongst the gray and brown of their environment. "Fia!" Stolas called out to his friend, waving his paw her way to get her attention before briskly making his way over to meet up with her with a spring in his step and a happy wag to his tail. "Hello again! I hope I didn't keep you waiting for too long."

WC: 330
Total: 667 / 1500

"Fiametta & Stolas"

Fia wasn't fond of the swamplands, but she didn't mind all that much either. She obviously kept up well with her pelt and personal hyenine, but she very clearly didn't mind getting down and dirty either. Not that they ever discussed but Fia did care a lot of her external imagine, not that she was really one to care about what others thought of her overall. It was almost two different sides of a coin. Stolas wouldn't have any reason to believe she was mean or rude though. It wasn't usually intentional, he was just lucky to get that warm side of her from the start.

She couldn't help but smile a bit as Stolas came to view from her call, a feeling that was starting to become familiar to her. As he drew closer she lifted her front paws to wrap around his shoulders in a hug, a casual greeting or so she thought. It was almost acting on impulse really. They were getting to know each other more as time went on. She was definitely comfortable around him. "I just got here." She reassured him as she pulled her neck back to lay her eyes on his. It was at that moment that she noticed a movement behind him in the swamplands, funny how silent the paws were through the marsh. Immediately her fur stood up in bristles while she slowly let go of Stolas and moved a couple steps to the side of him, looking out at the twisting roots of the trees and brush ahead. She went completely silent, like she wasn't even breathing anymore. All of her senses zoned completely into where the suspect had been seen.

It wasn't but half a minute later that a different coyote lunged from behind her, or behind them if Stolas had turned to see what she was looking for. Fia had quick reaction to the sound of splashing behind, leaping to the side and swiveling on her paws to face the immediate threat. She didn't know if it had targeted her or Stolas, she could have been the easier target for being a little smaller than him or it could have gone for him looking stronger to take out the more obvious threat first. How wrong could they be though. Without thinking much at all, she dove forward taking a harsh grasp at the coyote's back leg with her teeth. And it was then the the rest of the pack came out from the shadows to defend their comrade.

Total Word Count: 1088 words

"Fiametta & Stolas"

Stolas was pleased to hear that he had not kept Fiametta waiting long for his arrival, the fire-marked girl having arrived just shortly before he had. She greeted him with a friendly embrace and he was keen to return the gesture, bringing a strong foreleg up to wrap around her shoulder and neck as a smile grew across his face. It was always a treat to get to see his best friend, especially after being apart for some time since Ashen's move to the western territories. Stolas had intended to tell her just that, but he did not get the chance to. No sooner had the adolescent boy pulled back from their hug to speak, he saw Fia's gaze shift to look over his shoulder, her fur bristling and ebony eyes narrowing. Stolas' expression shifted, growing concerned. He almost turned around to see what she was so focused on—until he saw the blur of tawny movement coming at them from the marshlands.

"Look out!" shouted the prince, but Fia was already moving as the sound of sloshing water erupted to his front and Fia's rear. A coyote propelled itself toward the two wolves, Fia pirouetting out of the way expertly while Stolas sidestepped just in time for another loathsome mongrel to come charging at him from behind. Fia had rounded to face off against the coyote at her rear while Stolas did the same to the one that had tried to ambush him, midnight lips peeling back from pearlescent fangs to snarl at the coyote. The poor wretch was gaunt with its ribs showing through its fur. Being the dead of winter, prey was scarce, and the canines were starving—clearly enough to consider trying to chow down on a pair of wolves. That would be their mistake to own. The coyote snarled back, making its stance known. It would not back down, but neither would Stolas.

Stolas lunged for the coyote, jaws snapping down near where its forelegs were and causing it to recoil slightly. Around them, the rest of the hungry pack began to emerge. The wolves were outnumbered, but not outmatched. With Fiametta at his back, Stolas pressed his attack, dancing around the coyote's desperate lunges and snaps to find an opening he could exploit. On one such lunge, the coyote had left its neck exposed, and Stolas struck with speed and precision. Powerful jaws grabbed the back of the smaller canine's neck, biting down through fur and flesh to give it a good shake before tossing it aside back into the swampy water with a splash just as the others converged on the wolves.

WC: 437
Total: 1525 / 1500

"Fiametta & Stolas"

The two of them fought side by side, maybe not much of a team but that didn't matter. They seemed to handle themselves just fine. Fia faced one direction and Stolas the other, and together they were able to fend off the coyote threats.

She easily mangled her opponent's leg through her serrated teeth, causing the coyote to whine and limp away when she finally released it. Stolas' show off pure strength throwing his own opponent back into the water of the swamps seemed to give the pack the idea and without much thought sent the rest of them to disperse into the swamps. They'd have to find their dinner somewhere else though honestly they were pretty dumb taking the two of them on. That's what Fia thought at least.

Standing tall as the pack ran off into the shadows, Fia finally turned to face her friend, not too worried in her features but at least a little in her voice, "Are you alright?" Dark eyes quickly scanned over the front of him before she looked over her shoulder at the short distances the dense trees let her scout from here. "We should get moving." It was a little fun but she hoped the journey back to Elysium would be a lot more peaceful. It was better when everything could be in their control, not when they were ambushed.

"Fiametta & Stolas"

Stolas had never fought alongside anyone else in a multi-foe melee like this before. The most collaboration he'd ever done was partnered spars with his siblings in Ashen during their training, but this was a real fight with real stakes and a real teammate. Fiametta's safety was paramount for him, and though he knew she was more than capable of handling herself from the way she was tearing into the ravenous coyotes, he still wouldn't have forgiven himself if she got injured when he could have helped protect her. Fortunately, the fight was not to last long, and as soon as Fia had all but crippled her opponent and Stolas had veritably yeeted his out of the fray, the others got the hint and began to back off, slowly at first but then fleeing en masse. Stolas maintained his fierce disposition alongside Fia until the scavengers were well out of sight, only then did he allow himself to relax and begin the battle damage assessment.

Fia was his priority. Thankfully, she didn't seem to be harmed at all. She asked about him, and the dark-furred Klein gave himself a quick once-over. No blood, no injuries, no pain... "I'm good," he replied, looking over her for injuries in turn. "Are you all right?" This area was no longer safe, and if they lingered there was the chance the coyotes might return with more numbers to overwhelm the young wolves. They had won this fight; best to take their victory and scram while they still could. "Agreed," he said with a nod, turning to leave with his friend, bound for her home pack.

"Fiametta & Stolas"