SnoBear
Junior Ceaseless
My girl Lucy
Posts: 22
|
Post by SnoBear on Jun 22, 2011 16:07:54 GMT -5
No wonder the air is so clear, was the first thought across his mind. His tawny eyes could see the smallest signs of urban life on the horizon, indicating a city was in the distance. He preferred it that way, to be honest. Cities were no place for a dog, in his opinion, with the minimal shrubbery and the inescapable feeling of hard concrete beneath the paws. Seville rested neatly on his haunches, not tense but also not quite ready to relax completely. His moistened red nose twitched, inhaling the somewhat comforting scents of nature, and he drifted off into thought.
His body was tired from travel. He had no destination, no goal in his search; he just felt it was safer to keep moving. Ever since the great outbreak of the disease that had wiped humans off the map completely, he had been homeless, just as he imagined every other dog was. Every creature that was still left, though he had seen few on his journey, was homeless.
Doesn’t exactly give one a great sense of stability. Man, the family was awesome to me. They didn’t deserve what happened. None of them did…
With a sigh, he hunkered to the ground to let his spent body cool against the soft forest soil. He yawned, thick tongue curling, emitting a not-so-manly squeak. Though he appreciated solitude, he also longed for a little company. He had grown up in the mountains, used to the come and go of dogs, wolves and foxes. Some friendly, some not so friendly. He was used to not making attachments, and rather, had learned to appreciate the uniqueness of each wandering individual. Most of that had changed since the extinction of the human race. Everybody was so…so…hostile now.
Except me. I’m the one with my head still stuck in the past.
|
|
|
Post by Serpentine on Jun 22, 2011 16:28:18 GMT -5
Kiara kept on circling around and around, not sure which way to go. She was lonely, hungry, and frightened. Ugh! What am I going to do? I'm lost...and my humans aren't here anymore. I wish I had been more thankful. She sighed. Kiara lost all hope, and gracefully laid on the ground. She decided this would be her death bed, besides...she would rather die then live a lonely, miserable, hungry life.
As she laid there oblivious to everything, she began to think about her past life; all the familiar scents of home flooded into her mind, clouding the real disaster that had struck. Oh, how she missed the rich taste of her favorite chicken her humans used to give her. She would kill to have another bowl...or two. But that won't ever happen again, until she dies and hopefully goes to heaven to visit her masters.
|
|
SnoBear
Junior Ceaseless
My girl Lucy
Posts: 22
|
Post by SnoBear on Jun 22, 2011 16:42:53 GMT -5
On the very edge of sleep, Seville’s ears pricked involuntarily to their alert position. He had heard pawsteps, and now his nose confirmed a scent: another dog, and a female at that. He couldn’t yet see her but he was too intrigued to let this pass. He hauled to his paws, giving himself a brisk shake to dislodge most of the clingy soil. He padded towards the source of the other dog’s scent, ears alert and muscles tense. He did not plan to fight, certainly not attack, but the few acquaintances he’d had were not the friendliest of creatures.
Wonder if she’s going to be as stuck up as the last girl I met, he thought darkly, but decided not to go in with a frown. Cheerful thoughts, Sev, cheerful thoughts.
He could tell he was getting closer by the steadily increasing intensity of the scent he was following. He slowed his pace a little when he knew he was close; it would be better to announce his presence than to barge into her comfort zone. Dogs these days weren’t keen on surprises. Plus, his breed’s reputation might precede him. Being a Pitbull, and a large stocky one at that, might have the little lady jumping to conclusions that he didn’t want her to jump to.
He halted now, a safe distance away but just close enough to see a mottled red coat. She was laying on the ground; he wondered briefly if she was sick or injured. A touch worried, he lifted his nose to scent the air once more before addressing this female, hoping his drawl wouldn’t lead her to believe he was a stumbling hick.
”Excuse me, miss? My name is Seville. You alright?”
|
|
|
Post by Serpentine on Jun 22, 2011 17:06:04 GMT -5
Kiara almost feel asleep before she heard slow pawsteps descending upon her. Usually, she would pick her head up quite quickly to greet the animal and try to make a friend; but with her morale at sub level, she decided to let the being either attack her or leave her alone.
As the being spoke, her icy-blue eyes opened as she listened to it speaking in a familiar tone...sounded like country. By the way it looked, she saw a large build. A male...a Pitbull male at that. Good. A quick death. She assumed it would probably be rude if she didn't respond to Seville. She hoped that was his name...it was kind of hard to tell with his accent.
"Hello, Seville. I'm...fine, I assume." Short talk. That's all she could really give, her energy was quickly dwindling from the lack of sleep and food.
|
|
SnoBear
Junior Ceaseless
My girl Lucy
Posts: 22
|
Post by SnoBear on Jun 22, 2011 17:33:35 GMT -5
With her greeting, he assumed he was in no real danger. He strode forward, feeling the drag of scrubby brush against his short fur. Seville saw striking blue eyes peering at him like he’d never seen on a dog. Upon further inspection, this girl looked as exhausted as he, perhaps more. Genuine concerned washed over him as he sat a comfortable distance away, so as not to encroach on her space.
”You look about how I feel, ma’am, but I guess I’ll take your word for it.”
It was his nature to be polite, friendly and concerned for the well-being of others. It was one of the things that was so contrary to the reputation his breed held. He had the look but not the personality to go along with it; he wondered again whether she was afraid of him, but she didn’t appear to be. It seemed she had other things on her mind.
Seville arranged himself more comfortably, making it obvious that he planned to stay awhile. Deep, open-mouthed breaths allowed him to relax his body a little; the journey to find this dog had been nothing close to strenuous, but his weakened, beginning-to-starve condition made any activity seem like serious effort. He cast a glance back to the patched young female and nodded.
”Hard times,” he said rhetorically, then, ”You know, there’s moles around here. I can smell ‘em sometimes. I bet they’re scrawny like us but better’n nothin’, right?”
|
|
|
Post by Serpentine on Jun 22, 2011 18:26:48 GMT -5
Kiara was too tired to really hear the next thing that he spoke. She guessed it wasn't a question, so she didn't bother to ask him to repeat himself. Her body was relaxed; the sun beating down on her fur was even a little comforting. At least that part hasn't vanished.
As he spoke about the moles, her hopes momentarily returned. "Well...I am quite hungry. Although I'm afraid I won't be of much help. Too...exhausted." She figured he would probably be tired too, but it didn't bother her much at the moment. All she wanted was something to take up some space in her empty stomach. "And yes...better than nothing I assume. Even if they aren't the most scrumptious beings in the world. Then again, there really aren't many living things in our world right now." Kiara spoke softly to the male. She hoped it wasn't too quiet, because she didn't feel like repeating herself.
|
|
SnoBear
Junior Ceaseless
My girl Lucy
Posts: 22
|
Post by SnoBear on Jun 22, 2011 19:15:22 GMT -5
A breeze had caught his attention and he turned his head just as the female had begun speaking. His ears barely registered her voice; his gaze snapped back onto her and he tipped his head quite comically, broad shoulders giving a small shrug.
”Wha—oh, gotcha. You know, miss, I could go take a look around the molehills and see what’s crackin’. You need it more’n I do right now.”
Without waiting for her answer, almost positive she wasn’t going to reject his help, Seville hoisted himself to his crimson paws and padded away, head low, eyes searching for the small, lumpy mounds of dirt that signaled a mole was nearby. The female had been right; they definitely weren’t scrumptious, but beggars can’t be choosers. That’s one thing he had learned in his post-human family life. The scraps that were thrown your way were a gift from above and you took advantage whenever the option presented itself.
Seville laid eyes on one of the small grayish mounds he had been searching for. He walked on light pawsteps now, trying to create as little friction as possible that might alert a mole. They weren’t fast-moving creatures but they could do something he couldn’t: burrow. With agonizingly slow steps, he approached, ears cocked and quivering, nose twitching for any faint whiffs of mole-scent. He was right over the mound now, staring down, tilting his head one way and then the other to capture what he thought was a faint scrabbling sound underground.
His muscles began to quiver with excitement when he heard the scrabbling grow closer to him. Though faint from being underground, the unmistakable scent of mole drifted to his nostrils. This is a thrill. I love me a good ambush on a blind, defenseless creature.
Seville waited a few more moments and then dove; rippling foreleg muscles aid in his onslaught on the soft gray mound. Scoop after scoop with powerful, compact paws threw dirt…and the mole. He hadn’t realized he’d hit it with his paw. Seville rose up on his hind legs and pounced, bringing his forepaws down hard on the tiny animal. It was almost assuredly dead. He gingerly picked up the velvety creature, resisting the urge to swallow it in one gulp. The scent of fresh kill made his stomach churn but the starving, weakened female was his first priority.
He jaunted back to her and stood a few paces away, opened his jaw and let the mole fall delicately between them, then stepped back. He knew the noise and friction he’d made would have scared off any other moles there might be and it saddened him a little. I’ll find something else, maybe in a day or so. I’ll be fine, she needs it. With a friendly sweep of his tail, he sat back and dipped his head.
”All yours, ma’am. By the way I don’t think I caught your name.”
|
|
|
Post by Serpentine on Jun 22, 2011 19:27:56 GMT -5
Kiara watched the male hunt; he seemed like an expert. She wasn't good at much except running, and looking pretty. She could almost feel the ground shake as he came down on the mole, killing it with his paws combined with his weight. She had expected him to eat it...but instead he brought it to her. That's odd...I just met him, and already he's brought me food. As he drew closer, she slowly began to sit up. Her muscles screamed at her in protest, and threatened to buckle underneath her with violent shakes, but she forced herself to stay up. Finally, what seemed like hours, she regained her balance and sat semi-comfortably on her hind legs. As she looked up, he had already dropped the mole by her paws and took a seat a few paces away. "That was...very kind of you." she muttered.
Embarrassed that someone else had to catch her own food, she ate the mole as quietly and slowly as possible, despite the intense hunger that settled in her stomach. After a few bites, the mole was already finished. Darn! I probably should have saved some for him...he did catch it after all. "Oh my...sorry about that. I should have probably saved some for you. But thanks again." Kiara instantly felt better; even though the mole was scrawny, her energy was already coming back to her. Maybe not a lot of energy, and not nearly enough to keep her satisfied, but it felt a hell of a lot better. "Oh...my name?" It took her a few minutes to register the question. "My apologies; let me introduce myself. I'm Kiara."
|
|
SnoBear
Junior Ceaseless
My girl Lucy
Posts: 22
|
Post by SnoBear on Jun 22, 2011 19:45:59 GMT -5
A twinge of hunger clawed at his stomach as he watched her eat and he averted his eyes, trying to dismiss his hunger. He was sure it wasn’t as bad as hers had been. He quickly, somewhat sloppily licked his chops to stop himself from drooling. After she had gulped down the last morsels and looked at him, he felt a twinge of guilt as she apologized. Nice going, Sev, way to be a green-eyed monster.
”Think nothin’ of it. I’m no stranger to good deeds, Kiara. By the way, pretty name, pretty just like you.”
There was that good ol’ southern hospitality coming to the surface again, and he almost winced when his drawl made him say ‘purty’. His mountainous, backwoods upbringing had made him a social sore thumb; not many dogs spoke with hillbilly accents. He shrugged that thought off and thumped the ground a couple times with his tail to smooth over the bristling moment of embarrassment he’d felt. He was glad to see her condition improving a little; no dog, friendly or otherwise, deserved to be that hungry.
A rueful glance down at the ground where the mole had been made him shrug and avert his eyes again. His paws were still tingling with adrenaline; moles were nothing resembling a hard catch or a long chase, but the thrill of a hunt was still in his bones. He vaguely remembered learning from one of his woodland acquaintances, back when life had been right and made sense, the tricks of the mole-catching trade. He was glad he’d taken the time to learn then. Even if prey was scarce now, it was still existent, and he was sure there were much better hunters than himself that he’d have to compete with eventually.
His eyes fixed on Kiara, studying her mottled red and tan coat and contrasting blue eyes. He had seen many dogs in his lifetime, mutts and curs for the most part, woodland cousins for the lesser part. Never before had he seen one like her; she was quite the sight for sore eyes.
Wonder if she’s got a family or pack around. Hostile as these lands might become, there’d be strength in numbers…
|
|
|
Post by Serpentine on Jun 23, 2011 6:14:41 GMT -5
Her ears were now as sharp as the usually are; it didn't take much to do so. As the kind hearten male spoke, she caught a compliment; pretty name, just like you. She smiled, and held her head proudly. "Why thank you. You know, for a Pitbull, your really very kind. And don't try to hide your country accent...I like it." She had been noticing he would get embarrassed quite often after he spoke, but she really did enjoy hearing it. It was...different.
"Well, it's getting kind of late...don't you think we should find some other dogs and stick with them for the time being?" She was starting to get a little anxious. The forest was way out of her comfort zone; perhaps the city would hold some other dogs seeking food and shelter. But she decided to let Serville pick where they would be going.
|
|
SnoBear
Junior Ceaseless
My girl Lucy
Posts: 22
|
Post by SnoBear on Jun 23, 2011 15:33:50 GMT -5
His face relaxed into a broad, panting smile and he realized with a subtle twinge of embarrassment that it had been far too long since he’d endured some friendly conversation. The female’s mention of seeking out others was tempting; he believed whole-heartedly in a pack’s strength, but he didn’t know if they would be able to cooperate. Lately, the vibe he’d gotten from survivors was they were into the notion of survival of the fittest and wouldn’t like intruders. But then again, he’d been wrong before.
”Know anybody around? I certainly don’t. I come from a ways off.”
That was his one downfall. He was strong, capable and not easily overwhelmed but he was in this alone. Hopefully I’ve found an acquaintance I can trust in Kiara, though, he thought as he laid his tawny-colored eyes on her once more. She don’t seem prickly and she don’t seem like a loner, neither.
|
|
|
Post by Serpentine on Jun 23, 2011 15:47:58 GMT -5
Kiara looked at her paws. "I'm alone too. Been alone ever since my humans left me because they got sick. Never did see them after they went to get better." She was sad at the memory of them. The feeling of being alone seemed to gnaw at her heart. "Looks like were in this together." She just met him, but he looks like someone who can not only take care of her, but makes good choices too. Seems to know the right things to say.
Even though she just ate, exhaustion was nipping at her heels. Yawning, she stood up to stretch out her sore, tight muscles and laid back down on the grass. Feeling a little bored, she scanned the land, and took in all of its scents. The only thing it's lacking is that sweet smell of chicken.
|
|
SnoBear
Junior Ceaseless
My girl Lucy
Posts: 22
|
Post by SnoBear on Jun 23, 2011 16:06:02 GMT -5
He felt a somber feeling wash over him and he nodded slowly, lowering his ears in respect to her loss. He had a feeling she was similar to him in that she’d once been a much-loved family dog. He remembered, with a sudden stab of pain in his chest, the feeling of his human’s offspring’s tiny fingers clutching Sev’s collar as the absurdly small human had hauled himself onto wobbly legs. Seville had never understood human young. At the age when a young dog would be entering adulthood, in the prime of their life, capable and with the world at their paws, human offspring were just learning to crawl on all fours and, perhaps, stand on yet inefficient legs in weak attempts to take their first upright steps. Seville had appreciated the weakness and helplessness of his human’s offspring and had taken on the role of “gentle giant”, so to speak, allowing himself to be used as a support beam whenever the youngster found the energy to make another go at his first steps.
”I never got to see my family again either. I miss ‘em, they were good to me. I was plannin’ on stickin’ around to see their youngster finally walk without having to lean on my shoulder.” he said grimly, his eyes fixed on the distance. ”Guess that’s why I stuck around my old place so long. Hoping they’d come back. I’d have hated myself if they came back and I wasn’t there holdin’ down the house, makin’ sure everything was just like they left it.”
He shrugged, heaving away sad memories and focusing on reality. He didn’t want to think of day after day, night after night, sitting vigilant on the front steps where they’d left him, ears quivering and eyes searching for them. None of that matters now.
”Well-p,” he said, forcing his voice to be brisk, hauling himself to his tired paws, ”If you don’t have any objections, I think we might better wanna move along. This here’s the edge of the forest and there ain’t much prey, I reckon. The way I see it, we got two options: head to the city or head deeper in the woods. I’ll leave that decision to you. “ He was confident that where ever they went, life would be hard. But he found himself wanting to protect her, where ever she went. He may not act the part but he had the appearance of a vicious breed, known for jaws that locked once clamped down on an opponent’s throat. He thought himself a useful back-up, should she get into a tangle.
|
|
|
Post by Serpentine on Jun 23, 2011 17:29:30 GMT -5
(this is going to be a shorty xD sorry!!)
Kiara nodded, and stood up. "Oh lordy my muscles are sore..." she muttered to herself. "But yes, lets go. Hmm...how about the city?" The more dogs, the more friends. More friends meant a better chance of survival; and that's what they needed. "Lead the way to the city; not sure how to get there from here." Kiara hoped she didn't sound as silly and hopeless as she felt. All she wanted to do was be with her friends and family.
|
|
SnoBear
Junior Ceaseless
My girl Lucy
Posts: 22
|
Post by SnoBear on Jun 23, 2011 19:34:20 GMT -5
{if they’re going to the city, does that mean this thread is done? } ”City it is then! And here I was gonna say ‘after you’, missy.” Seville tilted his head coyly, sending her a wink before gazing out at the horizon where the high-rise buildings were waiting. He didn’t have much of an idea of the safest route there; his only choice was to begin padding in the direction of the buildings that seemed so miniscule in the distance and just hope that they grew larger with each pawstep. He wasn’t really stoked to go there; it had been something he’d meant to avoid. Cities meant more dogs, yes, but also less prey. Prey isn’t exactly runnin’ anywhere…wonder if she knows she’ll be livin’ off’a scraps while we’re there…if we’re lucky. Brushing away these thoughts, Seville took a deep breath in preparation for this journey. He as tired, desperately tired, but had a new glimmer of hope building inside his chest. Maybe, just maybe, he might make it through this thing called life that had just gotten a whole lot more difficult.
|
|