Don't have to be beautiful but it helps

Mal was back to the east, current project figuring out where the border of the territory would be marked. He wanted to keep the creek for themselves, so what was beyond that? He hoped to find a nice preexisting game trail that would be a natural border for him to both patrol and to differentiate at a distance to those who didn't live here. So far, the last couple paths he took weren't promising, he needed something more significant... Up ahead seemed to be a ridge of bushes, maybe on the other side, there?

He'd started to tentatively mark a few places so that those that were wandering through knew this place wasn't totally uninhabited. It felt like a familiar process. But he'd done it all before, hadn't he? At Neverwinter or whatever. It still felt so weird and distant to him. How much was still forgotten? Would it remain that way? What about the people? He tried to shove it out of his mind, and turned down another game trail.

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+1 Discovery Points

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Her, what felt like eternal, wanderings brought her up north. She passed across a natural bridge frim tge temperature south into the cooler north. It felt more bearable here. The scenery something more to her liking... Especially the ocean.

Her seafoam gaze was locked onto the shoreline as she walked with the rolling hills to her right and the water to her keft. It always felt like home. The waves, the ocean, all of it. She wanted to stay for a while but noticed the scent of another.

Border marks. Lovely. So this was claimed territory then? Or perhaps not?

She sniffed more deeply, focusing on the scent. There didn't seem to be multiple wolves from the smell... Was it just one ballsy fellow trying to take a whole area area? Really brave, she had to give him that... Was he nearby?

Who was this man that laid claim to this region? Part of her wanted to meet him, part of her didn't.

She could see different bits of scenery to her left, past the hills. Ridges of bushes. Promises of deeper mysteries within ... She didn't know if she wanted to go searching that way. Whoever this was might take offense.

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+1 Discovery Points

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This path was so far more promising. From what he could see, part of the path seemed to end at a short few-foot drop from a wash during the wet seasons. The trail itself wandered up to the edge and away from it, but just having little patches of rise like that and the shrubs that probably drank from the water, it did seem like a natural border. He'd have to follow the full path but... Progress.

Mental flip of a coin, he turned and started down the way that curved towards the sea. It was slightly downhill. Probably lined up with the fact that the cove he'd seen before was out that way. Water did run downhill. But it wasn't too long before he spotted a shadow that was alive, and not in fact a shadow.

Another stranger. No ring of familiarity again. The grey woman was about the same stature as him, but Mal definitely considered himself better looking -- he was well-groomed and had both his ears. However, that wolf was not one he recognized. He woofed at her, a single wag of his tail but it otherwise stilled behind him -- a sign that he would be friendly if she was friendly, even if this was his land. But at the same time, if he had to defend Hua, Mal wasn't gonna be a pushover. It was a weird middle ground, wasn't it?

He continued forward, closing the distance to one where they could talk comfortably as the strangers they were. He hadn't rebuilt his normal grinning attitude he'd worn in past eras, but he was at least not all that gloomy -- he was just neutral, a very faint smile because he was a friendly guy, “Who might you be?” For all the times he might have done this in the past, it felt foreign now.

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+1 Discovery Points

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She looked around, noting the pleasantly scenery. The soft call of distant seabirds and the gentle sounds of the waves. It was relaxing, even as the man appeared before her

She didn't even have to ask if this place was his. From his scent she could easily tell he was the mysterious marker. His soft woof and friendly enough demeanor let her know that he wasn't going to bay for her blood while chasing her out. The tail wag was in instinctual thing and since she was on his turf and he'd given the pleasantries first, she would give a single swoosh of her own tail brf6it stilled in a similarly neutral position. Reflecting that she was also friendly... Although she didn't smile. She hardly ever bothered with that.

He approached her and she stilled to let him draw nearer. "Blackfoot." Was her simple reply to his simple question. "You?" Part of her had expected to see some hulking gargantuan but she was pleasantly surprised with the man of similar physique.

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+1 Discovery Points

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So far, this chick -- Blackfoot -- seemed at least kinda friendly. Less than he was, for sure, but not a total jerkwagon. So in reply there was a bob of his head, “I'm Mal.” Simple on that front. Introductions still escaped him. It wasn't like he had a title or anything now. What was he before? Was it just Alpha? Too fuzzy, try again later.

He brushed the thought away, focusing back on the topic. “Just passing through?” A wider indication towards the territory's heart and the ocean beyond it -- the beach itself wasn't visible from the spot they stood, “This is Seeker's Bluffs. Tours for a limited time only, soon to be closed to the public aside from special invitation.” A little bit bigger of a smirk then. That was the sort of thing that felt right for him to say. It came to him easy -- easier than trying to sort out a memory at least -- so maybe he'd managed to dig up a little bit more of himself in this mess.

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+2 Discovery Points

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 Mal. If she thought her name was simple then his was also just as much, albeit for an entirely different reason. Then, he received a treat of, "Pleasure." Because honestly it was a pleasure to not run into some bloodthirsty brute. Not that that had happened yet but there was always the possibility that she wouldn't have run into this amicable-enough man.

 His next question was met with a nod. "Always been partial to the ocean." Said with a glance towards those waves and the wheeling seabirds in the distance. The gentle breeze brought with it the smell of fish, something she'd forgotten was one of her favorites. Perhaps she'd been an oceanside wolf in a past life.... not that it mattered much now. "Was following it. Came across your markers." A little nonchalant shrug. "Got curious." Although now she knew in the future it wouldn't just be little scent-hints, it would be him taking the entire space as his own with no tolerance for outsiders, as all packs did.

 Tours, he had said. If it was a joke, the blue wolf had completely missed it. She was about to remark on that when she realized what he'd said. A name. Did that mean he was more acquainted to this place than she was? "Seeker's Bluff... Know the name of this land? In its entirety?" She supposed what she wanted to know was, "Native?" Because she'd only seen wolves so far with similar stories to her own. Waking up with no recollection of who they were or how they'd gotten here or why.

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+1 Discovery Points

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“Hah, you're not the only one I've run into who'd rather be by the sea,” maybe a bit of a smirk at that. He was here because of Hua -- Mal himself would have been happy finding a quaint little forest somewhere out of the way, but because the sea was important to her, he would willingly stay -- especially since there was a fair amount of solid land here to wander. However, he didn't get to expand on the subject because she continued.

Mal shook his head, “No. We just came here and found this little patch nice and unexplored and the name seemed appropriate.” He looked out to the sea again briefly, thinking of Hua again, then back, “From what I've heard, a lot of people just showed up or something. Like it was all recently, I mean.” A pause, “A lot of things in the past are unclear to me, I'm not the best one to ask.” Which was true enough to be believed but also not revealing the depths that Mal had lost. As it were, he just was trying to build things up from what existed now.
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Oh? She wondered who else that he knew was a lover of the ocean. Maybe he was a well-grounded individual. One that was obviously with more connections than she... Although they had to have been gained fairly recently as he confirmed that he was not a native.

A shame then. She hadn't found someone that was born here... What strange implications. She felt deeply unsettled but one might not know with her rather blank face. The only indication of the inner discomfort was her tattered ear which would flick backwards very briefly. "Is what it is." She said with an air of nonchalance. Although she had wished he could have given her more information.

"Must move forward." Because what had been didn't matter, it was what happened now that was important. Lay down new roots, continue with what was now known.

The woman would shake her head then, as if dispelling those previous thoughts. She wanted to know more about here and not the past. For what was there to be done except nothing. "Starting a pack?" Clearly, but she knew it was a way to get him to provide more information. This really was a lovely spot. Maybe she could have one of those tours.
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Mal agreed. “Not much of a choice otherwise. I don't think anyone's figured out how to get back.” Maybe in some cases this was great to be away from the old world. But Mal felt like he'd maybe lost too much in the process. That was a different kind of hurt. He accepted this all because he had to.

A nod, “Yeah. Or maybe it's just restarting in a way, since it's new place and all that. Early days, but this is home now -- or will be once we work out the details.” Which was nice to think about on its own, if he set aside the lost and forgotten. He really didn't have much of a choice, so he'd make the best of it, even if there were some holes that needed to be filled by wolves that were still missing. At least Hua was here, he certainly was a lot more grounded with her around. “Right around here feels like a good eastern border. Harder to define stuff out here where there isn't a big forest or a sudden change in slope or something.” He probably was giving off "dad trying to figure out where to put the fence" vibes, which he then seemed to realize and tried to shake off by changing the subject a little because he still wanted to be cool. “Are you the type who's just heading through or would you actually want to know more about what we're building? Won't bore you if not.” At least he was upbeat about it, asking with a bit of a grin.
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Puh. Blackfoot wasn't sure if she even cared to go back. There really was no point. She had no life there, save for trying to get away from Amelia. And here? Well, if it was some magical place they all randomly proofed to then she likely wouldn't have to worry about that bitch.

But what was she to do here in this strange place?

So yes. New pack, working out the kinks, yada yada. The blue would nod her head in understanding. Commendable. "Things are easier in a group." Living alone was nice but having support was so much better. Although that ghost of her mother chimed in, warning her about trusting others. About being stabbed in the back. Although, her mother surely wasn't the authority on trustworthiness...

When he remarked on the difficulty of finding landmarks the woman would hum thoughtfully as she too looked around. "Your scent will define plenty." Her two cents were added as she saw his conundrum. Not at all reading into it as him being uncool. After all, proper borders and markings were very important. Not just to pack wolves but wolves in general.

To his next question, she was unsure herself. Was she interested? Or was this just a passing thing? One ear flicked back in uncertainty before resuming its position atop her dark head.
He wasn't a hard fellow to get along with. He was friendly but not overtly so to an annoying degree, he was also sensible enough... Finally, she decided, "Tell me more." What was the harm in learning, anyway? He seemed excited about it in any case, must be great.
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When in doubt RAMBLE!

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His tail wagged again as he was thinking about what he sort of had planned. Re-planned? Without all the negativity, it was easier for him to be optimistic about the future again. “It's been just two of us for now. My-- er,” a bit of a verbal fumble -- look, it was complicated ok? Forgetting giant chunks of your own history kind of made relationships confusing. Simple rewind, “It's Hua and I. The past is complicated -- at this point we just want somewhere safe and quiet to recover, maybe see if we can find missing family that might be here too, then build from there. We aren't the types to cause trouble, and never were in our past packs either. I just want my packmates safe, happy and all that -- and not just food and a place to sleep, but like if someone wanted to learn to heal or whatever? I'll help find a teacher if there isn't one in the pack and stuff.” It was the first example that came to mind... He'd done it in the past, right? 

He never knew if he was explaining things well. He tried, though, “I mean, in the end it's not just the two of us that make the whole pack down the road. Everyone's a piece of it, nobody should be neglected.” Even if he didn't remember his childhood except as some occasional flashes that his mother had uncovered in their talk, the core of it all was there. He was perhaps a bit more egalitarian than some wolves because he cared. “The pack grows together.” That much he was certain about.
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 Ah, just two. No wonder the scent was only of him thus far. They had not the numbers for proper reinforcing of scents and borders. Blackfoot noticed his stumbling over of the words and assumed that he'd almost said "mate". However, such trivialities were none of her business so she didn't pry and didn't even show that she'd noticed. If he wanted to share his personal life --and really, she hoped he didn't-- that was up to him. 

 What he spoke to her sounded appealing enough. Blackfoot wasn't the type to run around and poke her nose in everyone else's business. Everyone else's problems were their own, not hers. "You want to find family. And build it." Was what she could gather from him. It was unfortunate that he'd lost his but it was a story she'd heard a thousand times over. Woken up here, lost, no relatives to be found. It happened to her --which wasn't necessarily a bad thing-- and him and this Hua and those others that she'd met. "Respectable. Was what she said to his cause. A place to build wolves up, to help them should they seek the group out. It sounded better than some of the other places she'd heard thus far. 

 Everything he spoke sounded reasonable and she agreed, one hundred percent. Still there was hesitation given volume by a pensive hum from the woman's throat. "If I were to stay. What would be expected of me?" He's spoken of this family-like pack, where everyone could be themselves and work at what they wanted yada yada, but surely there must be rules. "And what of others that would seek to harm what you have?" Was there a plan? Would they run? Fight? What if the trouble was from within? How would they deal with that?

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He was glad she didn't ask or point out his verbal stumble. It'd take too long for him to figure things out to explain it. Once Hua and himself figured things out then it'd be way clearer. So, he continued on like nothing happened. “Pretty much the normal stuff -- help hunt and patrol, don't go try to make trouble, and all that. And if there's something you really like or are really good at then cool, specialize. But I'm not gonna throw someone off to go scout on their own or recruit or fight off every angry critter that wanders in unless that's what they want.” A kind of chuckle, “Probably gonna be all hands on deck for a bit though.” It wasn't like there were enough people around to have someone who specialized in how to stack rocks into pyramids right now. Shrug of a shoulder. “And look, I know maybe that isn't what everyone wants, so if you joined and later on said 'hey, this isn't for me,' okay, just be fair and let us know that's the case and as far as I'm concerned, no hard feelings.” A little respect went a long way, after all. And maybe there were a few remnants of being left behind that floated close enough to the surface that they were worth mentioning.

“I mean I've always defended my home in one way or another -- I don't just fold. But we also aren't alone out there. One of the other packs nearby is one that was friends with us before, will be talking to them again soon.” Moreso friends with Hua's pack than his, and it was probably up to her to go say hi to Hydra because of it, but minor details, he was on ok terms with them apparently. “There's always gonna be the one-off freaks, but if something gets more serious than that, we can figure it out.” Right now, that was planning too far ahead. They could have some burly as hell fighter by the time that happened.
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 "Can manage that." She assured him. Trouble wasn't really a thing she liked getting into. Taking things slow and easy, living life, that was where it was at. "Don't specialize in anything. Can hunt. Can patrol. Can fight... am pretty boring." The last bit was spoken just as dryly and was possibly a joke, possibly not, rather impossible to tell really. In any case, she was equally happy doing any other thing. Every task would be performed without discrimination. The benefit of being a jack-of-all-trades.

  Was this why she'd found him? Secretly hopeful to give this a go? To not be disappointed or let down? 

 She took a breath, easing the feeling in the back of her mind telling her that it would all come crashing down horribly. She could give this a go. 

 "Good to have allies." He should honestly consider making as many as he could, in her humble opinion. Not that she'd given it. Her tail swished behind her, pensive for one last moment before she nodded. Satisfied with the answers he'd given. "Will stick around for a bit." She finally said and tacked on, "If you'll have me." Because she knew she wasn't the most "friendly" wolf out there. She said what was needed to be said... and flatly at that. 

 It was the most logical decision to find a pack. One that wasn't going to run out and cause trouble.

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We're probably maxed out on points in this thread. XD Would you want another thread for beach exploration or something where Hua could show up and Blackfoot could meet her or something? Cool if it's BTS instead too, in which case, pester Summer, but just lemme know what you decide!

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He grinned, “Yeah, it'll be good to have you on board. All sounds good to me so far.” Or at least he hoped so. Always the chance he'd regret it, but right now he hoped now. “Just let me know if you need anything -- or if you're getting antsy and need something to do. Plenty of stuff out there.” Mal's grin was a little more lopsided at that. Want some work?! He could make up some! There was still plenty to do. He was thankful that it was still fall -- that winter hadn't quite crashed down on their heads yet or anything.

Either way, this was progress -- they had their first real recruit. His tail wagged. “We should go and have you meet Hua. She's probably over by the beach so I can show you around a bit on the way.” Either way, it was silly to stay out here.. Or wait, was it? “Unless you want to hang out and continue with the borders or something, but that's probably more boring.” Shrug of a shoulder. They did need to meet eventually, otherwise that would be really dang weird. A brief glance between the path he'd been taking and the distant shore. He'd need to come back and do this all later if they did head to the beach now.
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I'm one hundred percent okay with an exploration thread after this where Hua joins. We can end this here and do another <3

 A singular nod was given when Mal gave his approval for her joining. Good. She would see what this was like and decide later if this was to be her permanent home or not. She was certain she could find something to keep herself busy. This was very new and likely needed help with everything. Fishing came to mind for food. For some reason, she felt that she was a very good fisher. Patrolling as well, there'd be some of that... and border marking. 

 It was likely that someone would have to hold her down to stop her from working so hard because she wanted this to be a well-stocked, well-guarded place.

 "Should meet Hua." The woman affirmed. It would be good to see this other member and make sure that she got along with her and to see what she looked like. This would be... interesting... it would take some adjusting to get used to having others around like this. Plus, while they were walking to this woman, she could see more of the territory and walk along the beach which she oh-so enjoyed.

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Great! It might be a day or two before I get the other thread up, let's see how fast I can type... -- Can probably just archive at this point, your choice!

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And so it was settled! Off to Hua it should be. He did feel reasonably proud of himself (not that he tried to show it) that this had gone well. They were building the pack. “Well, let's get going, then. We're just about the farthest point we can be from the beach, and I have a sneaking suspicion that's where we'll find her.” He said it with a grin -- but then again right now he was grinning a fair amount. But who else would the sea-lover he'd previously mentioned be? It wasn't like there was lots of choices right now.

He turned towards the sea and signaled her to come along. “You'll get to see a good chunk of the territory along the way, but it's nice and easy traveling, especially in comparison to some places farther inland.” Yeah, it wasn't like they were walking vertically up a cliff or something. Okay, they'd sort of go down one eventually, but that was next thread. He started off, heading to find Hua and catch her up on what happened and make the introduction!
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