lost in the green, in the tides of the sea

Nestled within a small thicket of flowers lay a silver moonflower with gold crusting along her chest. Eyes that matched the yawning sun blinked open, observing the world around her. Golden orbs casually and lazily raked over the hollowed domain before her stomach dropped. It slammed against the floor as she scrambled to her paws, tripping over them as she gained her balance. What the heck?

Lining the valley were thick, towering mountains that cradled the center like a sleeping babe. It was gentle, calm.... eerily beautiful. Flowers of all kinds bloomed at her paws, and if her heart wasn't about to fly out of her chest, she would adore them. Pluck them at their root and collect them happily while singing a tune. But the reality of not knowing where she was settled deep in her bones. 

Discomfort ladled her innards as the woman awkwardly looked around as if seeking someone to relay that this was a prank.  That they had somehow transported her from her home to this field of lilac and gold. Yet there was no one around. Not a single soul to ease the anxiety that lapped at her sides. No. She was alone. 

Or so she thought. The winds carried loose petals and the promising scent of... another. A wolf, perhaps? Surely it wasn't someone she knew, but may they could assist her? Guide her in the right direction? But that meant interacting and pushing herself out of a bubble she had so carefully woven. Was it worth it? 

Well... one way to find out.
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A warmth that he hadn’t felt in ages kissed the fur between his shoulders and cascaded down his form. Blades of grass and the petals of wildflowers danced against his form, slowly waking the brute from an everlasting slumber. The dark raised his eyelids, revealing the amber gems to burst into golds upon their contact with the sun. He squints, his maw wrinkling the slightest as he raised his blazed face from the grass bedding. Perhaps he had taken a longer nap than he had originally intended…

But, that was not the case.

Blinking the sleep from his eyes, the world around him slowly sharpened. He was… in a valley? How in Gods’ will did he get here? His thick brow burrowed itself into a confused furrow as he attempted to rise to his feet. His limbs rattle as if he hadn’t used them in years. What was going on?

He takes a step before stumbling, cursing under his breath before finally regaining his footing. He gives his coat a shake, particles of pollen and stray grass blades taking to the sky, carried away by the gentle breeze that decided to tassel his fur even further. With a flick of his ear and a thoughtful grunt, he shakily takes his next few steps.

He wasn’t home.

Far from it, actually.

And there wasn’t a soul in sight. The mere thought could’ve put his innards six feet under. And it felt as if that’s where they were. He grows queasy, desperately trying to shake this sensation of equal loneliness and bewilderment, before the scent of a stranger causes his nostrils to flare.

With his ears flipping as far forward as they would allow, Elirius picks up his pace in the direction of the source. And it doesn’t take long for his golden eyes to fall upon a silver form, who happened to look just as lost, alone, and confused as he was.
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The lining of her stomach grew thin as the severity of the situation came crashing down. Somehow, someway, she had been transported to a new location. Plucked from her slumber and gently placed upon a bed of evergreen grass and series of flowers. Which – now that she gazed upon them with a sharper eye… were beautiful. Petals of yellow, pink, purple, blue and the rainbow alike blossomed at her paws. It allowed her pelt to stand out amongst the backdrop, which was twice as beautiful.

For the first time since waking up, the woman had allowed a small smile to tug at her lips. At least she woke up where her captures knew she would be comfortable – in a bed of fana. Before embarking on her journey to find the other she had scented not too long ago, Phoebe lowered her skull and literally – smelled the flowers. Their pollen tickled her nose in greeting as their leaves and stems waved in a kind hello. Thankfully, some things never change.

Now somewhat calm, the moonflower raised her skull back into a neutral position and froze. There, a few yards out, was another. Eyes of milk and honey grew wide, her pupils doubling in size as her body grew rigid. He looked like a sore thumb as his stark colors stood out against the pastel hues of the submerging light. Even from a distance, Phoebe could see the rippling muscle that outlined his frame. He was a stranger, and stranger meant death.

What felt like eons just staring at one another, Phoebe decided in a split second to spin on her paws and bolt. A blur of silver was all she amounted as she high tailed it out of there. A new space, with strange black wolf with a gold encrusted mask? No ma’am. Not today, satan.

Legs pumped as she flew across the meadow, hoping to lose him in… in she didn’t know what since there were no trees! Gods! Curse this beautiful, flower blessed land. Curse them! A low growl of frustration left her lips as she ran and ran and ran. Maybe she could tire him out and leave him in her dust. Or better yet, maybe he would simply leave her alone.
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The dark figure slowly draws his gait to a halt as his eyes fall upon the silver fae before him. Pulling his chin into his thick neck fur he watches with... Adoration? Perhaps not a word so strong. But something pulls the corners of his lips into a soft smile as this stranger studies the flowers around them. Had she just woken up here herself, as well? Or was she one of the locals in the area. Before the brute could open his maw, she raises her elegant neck from the foliage and locks eyes with him.

His breath hitches in his chest and he freezes, brows raising to fully expose golden orbs. Like a fool, no words spill from his maw. And perhaps he had gazed upon her for a moment too long- as she turns heel and bolts across the colorful valley. Blinking himself out of his trance, He begins his pursuit. His long, heavy legs thundering after the petite fae. What a first impression he was making. Did he want her to think he was going to kill her?

Finally, he musters up enough courage to shout “"Wait! Where Am I?! A- And how did I get here?!"” between breaths. It doesn't take long for the flame kissed male to catch up with her, heading her off at a small stream, his paws splashing the water as he rounds off in front of her, entirely out of breath. He takes a moment, hunched over, to catch his breath, before raising his head to look her earnestly in the eyes.

Fear gripped her like a young fawn pursued by ravenous coyotes. And he was the coyote this time. He takes in a slow breath, before speaking to her calmly. “"I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to know where I am..."” His brow pinched as he prodded with such a question, leaned his mighty skull down to her eye level, as to not tower over her.

He has a moment of clarity between his bouts of fear, and refocuses his gaze on her, asking, almost offended. “"Do I truly look that horrifying? Horrifying enough to run away from?"” The question is partially a joke, but truly, he couldn't look like that much of a monster, could he?
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Faster. She needed to run faster.

Small paws slammed into the soft lithosphere below her, crushing the elegant pops of color with swift and clunky movements. Since she had just woken up, her body was still taking its time. It refused to join her in the race for her life. Instead, her mind wandered to the flowers she zipped by. A very specific part of her brain itched to stop and exam them, to pluck them and bring them to a home that no longer existed. Yet, Phoebe persisted.

What a load of shit that was. His voice boomed across the valley, ricocheting off the mountain walls. It rattled against her skull, demanding her attention. If she had taken a moment to listen to him, she would have learned the man was just as lost as she was. He was just as confused and just as scared. But all she could do was run. That is, until he cornered her at a stream.

Goodness, he was fast. Before she could comprehend the drumming in her ears, the stranger launched himself in front of her, pinning her in the stream with a golden gaze. Instinctively, the woman’s ears pinned atop her skull and her tail tucked neatly between her legs. Eyes wide and wild, she recited, “M-My name is Phoebe. I’m three. I grew up in a den south of the border near the base of a mountain,” she paused, frantic, “I-I.. um. I really like flowers. Like the flowers in the valley were dianthus. They are symbols of love and affection,” she prattled before snapping her jaws shut with an audible click.

“You won’t?” she cooed gently, still shaking like a leaf. Talking to new people was hard for her. It made her uneasy and awkward. So to be in a new land with a wolf just as lost as her seemed to be her worst nightmare coming true. At least… at least he won’t hurt her?

It was then she took a moment to fully digest all his questions. “I.. I do not know where we are. I woke up in the meadow not too long ago,” she recounted with a scrunch of her brow. The wheels were moving as she stared at him, watching.

But before she could catch it, a soft giggle managed to escape her lips at his question. She could hear the underlying joke, but the sound wasn’t because she thought it was funny. No. Phoebe was uncomfortable, and it was her coping mechanism. “You’re cute, I’ll say that much.” It was out before she realized it.

Eyes that rivaled the sun blew up as she stammered, “I mean – no! Well, yes. I.. I don’t know! I just woke up in a new place, far away from what I considered my home, and now some stranger is chasing me? Yes! Yes you… you are scary.”
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