Welcome to Eden
Aspen Wreckage
The woods seemed to enclose themselves around the young traveler; last light of day barely breaking through the thick canopy above. The roots of trees stuck up out of the ground and intertwined across the mangrove, creating a tricky landscape throughout the vast area. Charcoal paws stepped with care, keeping her touch light as she moved across the grove; one wrong step could easily gain a twisted ankle and Aspen was not in the position to deal with such an injury. But arctic eyes were entranced with the delicate beauty that was laid out before her. It was a twisted, ever intertwining mess, but it held a unique characteristic that wouldn't be found anywhere else. It was that fact alone, that begged Aspen to venture farther into the wood.
Small frame was able to easily slip between the trees and running streams, but the land was so moist around the waters edge, she would no doubt make a wrong step in slip in eventually. So Aspen took to walking along the budding roots. It was delicate work, but it kept her dry and easily moving along the mangrove, hopping from root to root, one paw in front of the other. Her eyes followed the flow of the water, noticing how the roots practically stretched from yards away just to dip their tips into the crisp water. It was amazing to know how trees worked so hard, if not extremely slow, to achieve their goals. Walking along one of said roots, Aspen came up to waterway and allowed herself to lap up some of the fresh water for herself. It was summer after all. Even if she was hidden in the shade, dark pelted coat soaked up ever ray of sunshine and the thickness just asked the humidity to cling to her.
"Speech"
Summer was here once again and he was in full force with collecting and keeping his stores stocked to the best of his ability. Things had done fairly well for the first winter and he really did not have to chuck a lot of the herbs. This being said he really didn't have to collect much currently, accept for gems and trinkets. Those were always in need especially when he would start traveling to trade with packs.
Today he was searching for trinkets, he had been traveling but had to duck away from the sun for a bit. His thick winter coat had been thoroughly shed, but the dark tones to his coat still made it difficult to be under the hot summer sun. His large body was stretched out with his front paws hanging in one of the smaller trickles of water. He had just cooled himself down enough to stop panting, but he was reluctant to move from the shade yet.
He was thinking now he should just head back home to his forest of willow's and wait until nightfall before beginning his hunt. It might be the best option unless he simply stayed here until the sun went down. He didn't think the mangrove would have many hidden trinkets, but he could be wrong.
| Art by Nanarc |
Aspen Wreckage
The mangrove, though vastly different than any of the areas she had been to before, was oddly quiet spar a few loud insects and a random crow overhead. Mostly, it was just the water running through the trees that made the most noise. It was calm, peaceful even, but to Aspen, it was simply deafening. Silence was one thing she did not enjoy on her travels; constantly moving in hopes of running into someone new, someone to talk to. She let out a sigh, thinking this place held strange beauty but nothing else. It was a shame, but to be expected. Most packs lived in more practical areas, but to Aspen, places like this are exactly the kind of place a pack would prosper; because no one would look at a mangrove like this and think there was an entire pack of wolves hiding among the trees.
Bored with her current area, Aspen pressed onward, moving about the grove as she had before, treading lightly as she kept an ear out for anything of interest. It had been some time since she last hunted, perhaps if she got lucky, she might even find an unfortunate hare or something to munch on. Arctic eyes surveyed the land as she moved, finding much of the same; trees, water, bushes, wolf- wait what? Eyes snapped back to her right, where she saw the familiar charcoal and silver hairs lining the shoulders of her kin. "Branch? I-Is that you?" She would call out softly, not quite believing her eyes as she took a step forward, then another, and another. But once she was certain, a loud squeal would erupt from her vocal cords, and her fine legs would make a mad dash across the grove towards her elder brother. "Big brother I missed you!" She would holler as she leaped into the air, aiming to fall flat onto her much larger sibling's shoulders.
"Speech"
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Aspen Wreckage
There was nothing in this world that could possibly make Aspen happier. Seeing that big, goofy smile on her equally big and goofy brother, it meant the world to the young girl. For too long they had been apart, and seeing as how close they were in their younger years, it was like taking a fresh gulp of air after suffocating for so many months. Aspen landed on her brother with a soft thud, accompanied with many giggles and inaudible squeals of joy. Dark charcoal legs would squeeze her larger sibling tightly, afraid if she did anything less his body would disappear once more. Feeling the light touch of his skull against hers had crystal blue eyes snapping to his features, drinking in how much older he looked and assuring herself that he was indeed there, and very much real. Not simply a figment of her imagination like so many times before.
His question unleashed a hurricane of answers Aspen was all to eager to let out. "I'm great, well not great, but good! After you left us I was so alone! I missed you every single day. Then I told the sisters I wanted to go out exploring, to see the world but I also wanted to find you, so they told me it was okay and I've been out here ever since!" So much in between detail had been skipped, but her words were gushed out in a long breath, and she only paused to take in yet another deep gulp of air before she continued to rush her words once more. "I've been searching all over this place! I've been to the north, along the eastern coast, making my way towards the central and southern areas, but look at you! You're a giant! What have you been doing out here all this time?" That was the biggest question she had, for Aspen could only assume her dearest brother must've left for a reason, and she was beyond interested in knowing what reason could have possibly justified his disappearance.
Suddenly remembering all those weeks she felt the pain of his absence, Aspen's features turned into a frown. He left her! He simply couldn't be let off the hook for that! The raven girl would then reach down to grip the tip of his ear between her lips and yank it, not enough to cause damage but enough to get the message across of her displeasure with his actions. "You left me! How could you? You should have told me and I would've gone with you! Big jerk!" It was true, Branch was her guardian, her protector, her best friend. Watching him leave was the most heart breaking tragedy she had faced in her whole life. Despite her young age, there was no doubt in the young Wreckage's mind that she would have faced the unknown with her sibling, so long as it meant they could stick together.
"Speech"
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Aspen Wreckage
Aspen snorted at her brother's wine a pitiful excuse. He didn't know if his plans would work out or not? What did that have to do with any of it? He had left her alone, in their giant sea of family, just so she could spend her days missing him. The young woman had half a mind to yank on his other ear, but the look on his face told her his intentions were good, even if they were crappy. She gave a long roll of her sapphire eyes before she sighed. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Whatever." Her charcoal frame would slip beside her brute of a brother, letting her gaze sweep across the wood for a moment before turning back to him with a cocked eyebrow. "So? Did your big top secret plans work out or not?" Though her tone sounded irritated, Aspen truly hoped the answer would be yes. She could tell this was something really important to Branch, and although she was mad at him, she still loved him, and she still wanted him to be happy.
"Speech"