Navigation - Bent Canyon

Rain stained the canyon's side a more vibrant hue, bands of red and orange swirling along the stone and echoining the patterns of the river that had carved through the heart of this land.  Rœkia paused, eyes drinking in the sight.  The awe of the natural beauty stilling her for a moment.  Wolf hopped up onto her head and whispered in her ear  "I feel something in the air here, something mystic." Rœkia's brow would furrow. "It's probably just the humidity," she muttered before moving on.  She had a quarry to track down, Ayahuasca, a hallucinogenic.  Rœkia had little interest in spiritual realms… not that she believed any such thing existed.  That was foolish… surely.  Utter rubbish.

Her garnet eyes would eye the upcoming bend in the canyon and the rapids that increased in activity after the fall of last nights rain.  Shifting her course she started up the canyon wall, seeking higher ground for her travels, at least for now.

"Speech"

Navigation - Bent Canyon

While a nomad at heart, this was truly the furthest that she had traveled on her own. She didn't really like to be alone, but as of late she seemed to find herself without a companion more often than not. The rest of her band of hooligans must be busy with their own activities, ransacking and taking things for themselves. Making a name of themselves and all that jazz. Jaelle grabbed this opportunity to wander until her paws grew weary, the jingling sound of her bells her only company. She hummed softly, tail swaying behind her. Her scarf that was usually around her neck had been moved, she had tied it on the base of her tail instead today. Her neck fur needed to breath, it had started to lay flat where the fabric usually hung. Now her tail was adorned with both bangles and a scarf, but she was used to their weight. Slowing her pace to a brisk walk as she entered the canyon, Jay was careful to tread with caution. Everything appeared wet here, the rock face stained darker where the water touched it. It was almost like the rock itself was crying, tear like markings along the walls of the canyon. Blinking her mismatched eyes, she brushed her flank softly against the rock face, as if to calm it. Jaelle had never quite seen anything like this place before, in all her travels. Her face was a mixture of awe and pleasure, her bells chiming softly as she walked down one of the shelves. It looked like many paws had carved paths down the stone, some narrow enough for just one wolf, some wide enough to hold a whole pack of them. The monotone dame licked her lips, wondering what kind of beasts roamed this land. Probably the more sure-footed ones like goats and horses, although she saw none of them at the moment. She was so busy observing the bends and twists of the landscape that she wasn't paying attention. A very slippery rock made her front left paw slide out from under her, panic making her eyes grow wide. Letting out a sharp bark, her body fell to the ground, sliding partly down the smooth rock. Jaelle tried to pick herself up, but of course in her clumsy manner it was rather difficult. So she slid a bit further down the path, her bells singing out as she slipped. At last she was able to stand, letting out a huff as she stood with her legs a bit further apart than normal. Her gaze was still wide, her breath coming out in short pants. It wasn't until she was able to focus that she looked a bit further down the path, seeing a spotted wolf with a bird on her head. Oh... dammit all. Had the stranger seen the whole thing? A sheepish smile crossed her face, but she was still unable to move, shock making her limbs ridged. "SPEAK"

Art by Fox

Navigation - Bent Canyon

Rœkia's search continued fruitlessly. Wolf took to the air to help her in her search while she continued seeking out her quarry on foot. This wasn't going as well as she'd hoped. Why couldn't she focus? Her mind seemed to be wandering more and more lately and she couldn't figure out why. Rœkia turned the bend when a sharp bark alerted her to the presence of another woman who was sliding down a rock face. Rœ's garnet eyes stared in confusion at the unusual adornments of the mottled stranger.

Wolf had apparently seen the whole thing and landed switfly on her head. "Should we help?" Rœkia shot the magpie a glare. The woman was larger than she was how the hell was she supposed to haul her to safety, this wasn't her problem. Additionally her help wasn't exactly needed. The stranger managed to find her footing before turning to look right at Rœkia. She grinned.

"Nice save, for a moment there I thought you were buzzard food." Picking her way carefully toward the woman she settled on a flat patch of rock. "Who might you be and what…. uh…. are those things that are on you? Do you need any help getting them off-" Rœkia was about to continue when Wolf hoped off her head and gazed at the bells around the woman's wrists. "Soooo… preeettyyy… Can I have them?"

"Speech"Wolf

Limbs quivering slightly, Jaelle saw the female smirk at her. Dammit all, she had seen it, hadn't she? Cursing under her breath, she carefully shook out her limbs, bells calling out again as she did so. Brown and blue eyes narrowed slightly as she inspected the other woman, a bird on her body. Her head tilted to the side, she had seen wolves here with animal companions before, and it was an interesting concept to her. Maybe she should get herself one of those... The stranger called out to her, carefully making her way closer. Jay stayed where she was, afraid to move again. She said that she thought she was buzzard food, and she snorted. "Sounds like me, 'thief falls to her death because she tripped on her own paws'. It's really amazing how I don't get caught," she mused with a toothy grin, not having any issue sharing who she was. Okay so she really wasn't the best gypsy, but she didn't really care. She tried her very best, and was actually pretty good at remaining hidden and quiet when she wanted to. Until she tripped over herself. Shaking her head slightly, her tail flickered behind her. Her cheeks were still flushed from embarrassment, and perhaps that is why she was yammering on to the other woman. Nerves, apparently they made her less wary. The pale woman went on, asking if she needed help getting her things off, also asking what they were. She was about to answer when they both got cut off, the magpie gazing at her bells. Raising one of her limbs to inspect her treasures closer, she laughed softly and shook her head at the bird. "I'm sorry birdy, but these aren't for sale. These are bangles, and on them are bells. Those are the things making the sound. I have some on my tail, as well as a scarf," she said, answering them both at once. Turning slightly, and very carefully, to her side, she wagged her tail to show off the bells, as well as the scarf that was wrapped around the base of it. "I usually have the scarf around my neck, but I moved it for today. Thanks for offering your help, but I wear these by choice." Noticing that her scarf had actually come a bit loose from her fall, she turned back and tugged it tighter. It would be a real shame if she had lost it, it took her awhile to find these. Turning back to the stranger, she straightened herself out as she looked around the damp canyon. "Are you from around here? It is quite the landscape, I came to inspect it further," she said softly, turning back to the other woman to wink her blue eye playfully. "I'm Jaelle by the way." She added quickly, picking her way closer to the stranger. It looked like she was coming up as she was going down, and she wondered where she was headed. It must be nice to have a bird friend as well, it made navigation that much easier. "SPEAK"

Art by Fox

Rœkia eyes Wolf with amusement. She knew the magpie had trouble controlling himself around shiny objects. He used to relentlessly collect them and hoard them in her den until she got frustrated and started throwing all the objects out and scattering them around. He was furious and wouldn’t speak to her for weeks. Slowly they managed to work at his obsession but anything that glittered still caught his eye. Rœkia’s ears perked at the mention of the word “thief” and she eyes the other woman for a moment. Was she a thief? It was hard to believe and not because of the klutzy-ness. What kind of thief admitted she was one outright to a complete stranger? Unless she thought she could take Rœkia and the knowledge didn’t matter. Course it was also odd for a thief to wear bells. Rœkia’s head tipped to the side and she smiled softly. “A thief, hm? Do you always begin conversations with your profession? Some wolves might not appreciate your line of work. Don’t worry though, I’m not one of them.” Rœkia had stolen more than her fair share of items in her life. Rœkia eyed the scarf as the woman moved around to secure it. Why was that scrap of cloth so important? The woman introduced herself as Jaelle. “I’m Magpie, this is Wolf. I’m not from around here no but I travel everywhere.” She didn’t bother to mention that she was herb hunting, not with a thief around. “Tell me, are you the kind of thief that steals out of necessity or for the thrill of it?” Wolf suddenly dove forward, beak parting as he attempted to seize the bells on Joelle’s tail and yank them off. Rœkia let out a peel of laughter. “Oh Wolf! Behave yourself!” "SPEAK"