The day had passed mostly uneventful as Anabel spent some time honing her skills in the area surrounding the Stedding.  She'd never been completely comfortable around the others and sometimes it was good just to take the time to hone her skills on her own for a while.  She wasn't sure if Anton understood her need to be alone, but he never fought her on it, nor said anything to discourage her.  She could understand that.  She'd made more than one mistake when it came to Anton and she'd just been lucky enough he still considered her a friend. 

 

The woods weren't exactly empty today and though her silent companion wasn't giving her trouble, she was curious none the less.  There was a pack not too far from where she was, but beyond that, she was being trailed by a wolf.  She had barely caught glimpses of it as she had moved around, a grey monster of a wolf that had reddish tints in his fur as he moved among the trees.  He had trailed safely along, stopping behind her when she stopped and continuing on only when she did.  It was almost a game really, to see if she could get him closer, to see if she slowed down how close he would allow himself to come.  In the end, she spent the most part of the day just playing a silly game of catch with the wolf, It was well before true dark before she had the fire built and she was settled in for the long haul.  Just to see what would happen, she'd left meat out for the wolf to see if he would come this close while their game was stopped.   

Two-legs. Rumble had never acquired the same liking for them as some of the other wolves had. In his heart the big wolf knew that the ones living in the stedding were different from the ones that had murdered his family all that time ago, but he was still wary. It was a source of discomfort for him. Wolves mourned, and moved on. That was their way. Not so much for him, not on this matter. At times when he woke he could still taste ashes on his tongue. It was an unpleasant sensation at best.

 

Still, he liked the Stedding. It was a peaceful place, where the two-legs with fire wouldn’t come, because the two-legs with wolf thoughts wouldn’t let them. That was why he stayed. That was why he followed the she now. He’d seen her a few times before, as she lived with the one who was called Farpaw. That one had chosen to settle close to where Rumble spent most of his time, making him hard to avoid at times. He had made an effort though. Not that he thought that that particular he was bad, but he just preferred the company of his four legged brethren.

 

Not so much now, as he followed the she that was like red and brown leaves falling. There was something about her that was different. Rumble felt a great sense of time passing when he sought her mind. It confused him enough to intrigue him, and that was why he followed her. She had picked up on him soon enough, and that was when the game began. He could smell that she enjoyed it, and that she wasn’t afraid. That was good. Sometimes even the wolf-people were wary around him, because of his size.

 

The fire she set when it was time for her to sleep was a little frightening to Rumble. He remembered the fire, and the ash, and the light fading from his mothers eyes right after she’d told him to run. Timewalker didn’t smell of anger or hate though. She smelled like curiosity and kindness and amusement. He liked it quite well. He snuck towards her, keeping his belly low and his paws soundless. She had left a present for him. The other wolves told him that two-legs were very peculiar about their presents.

 

Though he wasn’t really hungry, he ate the food she’d left behind. Two-legs liked that, he’d heard EyesHigh say. Staying as far away from the fire while still staying close enough to Timewalker for her to see him as well as he saw her, he waited for her to speak.

 

Rumble

It was an interesting chase really, but as she sat beside the fire and the wolf approached she was briefly taken aback by his size.  He had seemed big before, but before the fire with nothing to hide behind any longer, she had to remember to breathe.  She smiled then, knowing that he wasn't there to hurt her, anymore than she wanted to hurt him.  He had taken the food she had offered and she was pleased she had thought to set it out.  It wasn't the sort of thing she normally did, but it was good to see that the wolf appreciated it for what it was. 

 

She grew nervous as she watched the wolf.  She needed to say something, to speak or contact it, but she knew what that meant.  She still had trouble with her emotions and she feared what it would mean to be in direct contact with a wolf.  Would it help her or hurt her in the end?

 

She shrugged to herself, then reached down and found a small twig on the ground.  Placing it in her palm she kept it there in case she needed to ground herself to this place.  She reached out then for the mind of the wolf, trying to show herself to him.  Her first attempt had shown him Autumn Flight and she almost cursed allowed for that.  Autumn Flight had been her wolf name once, long ago before the current world had stolen her home.  She tried again, showing the image that the others connected to her. 

 

Out loud, simply to prove to herself that she was still human, she smiled at the other.  "Hello my fine companion.  I am Timewalker, a friend."

 

Timewalker/Anabel

Time passed and the stars changed many times overhead within Rumble’s mind when he listened to and accepted the name of Timewalker. It was a name that suited her well. Ages had passed since she last walked the earth, but now she was here again, sitting across the fire from him. He seemed to nod for a moment, an oddly human gesture coming from a wolf. He accepted her desire to stay as she was, not wolf, but not entirely human either. That was as it should be. He was a wolf, and she was human. It was only in the dream that they became as brother and sister in species. Only in the dream, and only in their minds.

 

Rumble allowed the image that represented his character to seep through to her mind. The earth rumbled and shook as he walked, and mountains moved when he stared at them. That was who he was, and who he had always been. A little too big for his own good, but smart enough to know how to handle himself well. He had always been bigger than his siblings, and bigger than those around him now. When he was younger that had upset him, but as it was with all things, eventually he grew into it. He was certain that Timewalker would do the same. She was strong, to have survived all those ages. She would find her way.

 

All this was conveyed in the exchange of thoughts between wolf and woman. Rumble could feel that she was both fearful and confused, which lead him to settle his head on his paws, making himself as small as he could. All is well he thought to her, hoping to see her relax a little. A relaxed human was easier to deal with, or so his fellow wolves had informed him. Up until this day he had never quite understood his own reasons for staying near the stedding with the humans, but that was something he hoped he could figure out in time. Perhaps this particular human could help him out with that. Why are you here? he asked, thinking that perhaps in her reasons, he could recognise his own.

 

Rumble

 

It was odd, to be talking this way after she had been avoiding it.  She had felt the call of other wolves since awaking in this age, but once she had come to understand where she was, the contact had been limited as much as possible.  She feared forgetting herself with them, wanted to lose herself too much sometimes.  But instead of the desire to run with them, she felt calmed by Rumble's presence. 

 

His question was one that was hard to explain.  How did you tell a wolf that you were trying to find your barings in the world?  That so much had changed and part of you hated it while another loved the mystery of what was around the next bend?  The world was a new place to her, but she had loved the old one as well.  How did she explain that? 

 

She tried though, images of the changes that had come about, the uncertainty of the new world and the familiarity of the old, sometimes in the same places.  Images of her friends long gone and those she was trying to forge relationships with now.  She didn't know if he would get it, but she tried anyway.

 

She smiled at him though, trying to give the feel of warmth and friendship to the beast across from her.  She broke the night's silence then, "It's a hard world to accept sometimes, but I do what I can.  Getting away from the other's sometimes help.  The solitude, the lack of pressure to be what they want."  Images had accompanied it so that the wold might understand her.  "I try, but sometimes, I just need a little quiet."

 

Anabel/Timewalker