Welcome to Canis Major

a wolf and animal rpg (role-playing game)

Canis is a writing community for play-by-post (forum-based), freeform roleplay set in a fictional dream world in the intrusion fantasy genre. Most characters on Canis are wolves; many play elements are focused around wolves and canids, but the world makes room for a large variety of other animal characters such as dogs, horses, cats, bears, deer, and many, many more.

Our community is focused on flexibility, creativity, and collaboration. That boils down to a few important features:

  • There is no set activity requirement to write
  • The setting and plot are member-created and staff-supported
  • The game is continuously improved to increase fun and decrease stress

Learn more in our Rulebook!

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Lilac wine is sweet and heady where's my love?


Morning Snow 23° F
#1
P
Discovery
Shiroshika
06-30-2021, 09:59 PM (This post was last modified: 07-20-2021, 01:54 AM by Reiko. Edited 3 times in total.)
^^
Everything was calm and everyone seemed to be settling in despite their small group leaving much to the imagination still. But with their small numbers it simply meant they had plenty of time to build bonds between who was already here.

All they were missing now was @Haruki. Reiko still had to head back out soon to find her missing son... things would never return even remotely back to normal without both her children here, safe and sound under her watchful and loving eyes. 

Unfortunately she simply couldn't leave just yet. Not before the mountain was as safe as it could be for @Hotaru and the others while she would be away.

Until then — it was time to go see the man who seemed oh so lonely the day they met, Stark. They hadn't spent much time together since their arrival here on Tsukiishi, so perhaps today was the day to see how he was fairing among the ladies. 
 
“Sir Stark!” Following his scent, she called out as soon as his scent was as strong as ever. Tail flinging around happily. “Wakey wakey!”
^^

+1 discovery point

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[Image: df686pz-0c7a3fc2-8eca-4da1-8429-49fa07fd3bab.png]
translator, I'm sorry if it is horrible for anyone fluent in Japanese!
#2
06-30-2021, 10:14 PM (This post was last modified: 07-12-2021, 11:22 AM by StarkSpitfire. Edited 3 times in total.)
Stark was, to say the least… faring? He didn’t really know how to interact with others, let alone a bunch of ladies, he had mostly kept to himself. The only wolf of the group that he knew, to an extend, was Reiko, the one who had offered him a spot with them and asked him to come along. Stark was… not the most social sort, and females made him rather uncomfortable (cue his time back in the Brotherhood when it were just him and his brother Clint being the only men surrounded by women, and his sister snuffed out all his dreams). Then again Stark wasn’t too comfortable around men, either. Since he – well – he’d never really spoken much with men.

The man was kind of a sad sort.

His head shot up and his ears perked up, alert, when he heard his name being called out, followed by some weird type of… taunting? Teasing? Stark could not understand ‘woman’ okay? He had no idea what she wanted from him and he didn’t know how to respond to it, either. Should he be happy? Mad? Annoyed? Freaked out?

He was a little freaked out, certainly. But he tried to keep that internal.

When Stark saw her, he awkwardly shuffled a bit in the snow, trying to get in a more comfortable lying position, but nothing felt comfortable. ‘’Um… just Stark is fine. You don’t need to call me sir.’’ he let her know, awkwardly, almost shyly. Sir Stark. That sounded so weird. Made him feel a little sick to his stomach. He wasn’t that old, was he? ‘’Can I uhhhh- help you- Reiko?’’

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#3
07-01-2021, 01:59 AM (This post was last modified: 07-21-2021, 11:21 PM by Reiko. Edited 2 times in total.)
^^
First things first, she had to break through this awkward shell of his. He seemed uptight, but not quite... incapable of having fun or anything. It was like he was too afraid of opening up and getting comfortable around her, or any of the other members around. How could she reassure him that it was okay to get playful here, to joke and have fun?

He sounded more than just awkward, downright uncomfortable and shy which was just enough for her to see if she could just squeeze in there and get a chuckle out of him somehow.

After refusing her little title she gave him out of respect - so on to another one, this time she would put a little fun spin on it, a lilt in her voice as she spoke as if to try and add a little fun flair to it all. “How about niiiisaaan~?” This time she offered a silly little childish bum-wiggle as she exaggerated her word.
 
“No need for help, it has been a while since we spoke, I wanted to see how you were fairing. Have you seen much of the mountains?” 
^^
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[Image: df686pz-0c7a3fc2-8eca-4da1-8429-49fa07fd3bab.png]
translator, I'm sorry if it is horrible for anyone fluent in Japanese!
#4
07-04-2021, 09:37 PM
He had no idea what she meant. She seemed to be enjoying herself, though Stark felt uncomfortable. Was she making fun of him? ‘’What is… nisan?’’ he asked hesitantly, not sure if it was better or worse compared to the whole sir thing, mainly because he had no idea what it meant. Stark didn’t know if she was being friendly or teasing him for her amusement. It was something his sister had always done, so in fact it wasn’t a weird thing for Stark to think that all females were like this. He had grown up knowing nothing different.

But she changed the conversation, telling him her reason for approaching him. How was he doing, basically. Stark wasn’t sure about the answer to that, either. ‘’I’ve been okay. You?’’ he said instead of voicing his inner thoughts, his expression neutral and maybe leaning even a little bit pensive. Oh, and the mountains-

‘’I have seen them from afar, I haven’t really looked closer yet, though.’’ he admitted. He did want to go take a look at them from a closer spot. Probably later, though. stark was a rather indecisive man and often lackluster. ‘’Are you planning to stay here? At the mountains… I mean.’’

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#5
Discovery
07-04-2021, 09:58 PM (This post was last modified: 07-12-2021, 05:04 AM by gerra. Edited 2 times in total.)
^^
He was a hard nut to crack she had to admit - but none weren't worth the effort in the end. If only he could open up just a little more to have some fun and joke around as well. She could only hope that he would eventually do so, in time at least. They weren't in any rush here after all. Especially if this was meant to be their home - for him she had no idea how long that may have been, hopefully long enough for them to get more acquainted and he, well more comfortable in these new lands to find a more permanent home with which he could be more fomrotable with if this wasn't it.
 
“It means 'big brother'.” To which she hoped he would take less as an insult and more as an invitation to get comfortable. It was her way of trying to show him he was accepted here - but then again, not everyone was as open as she or so easily swayed. Still she looked at him hopeful with big bright eyes, waiting to gauge his reaction.

How was she fairing here? The question made her think of what to answer. Since they arrived she hadn't thought much of it other than busying herself getting to know the lands, those who remained since their travels and waiting for the right time to head back south and find the missing Prince. “I have been well, I still wish to find my son however.” Her answer was honest at least. She was well, but still missing something rather important.

“Would you like to come see them up close with me? I like to think I found some paths up~ The sights from above are rather quite lovely.”

A small pause for his answer before she continued to answer his own inquiry. “I think so, this place feels as close to home as any.” Now if only she could make it feel like home for others as well, and safe within its boundaries.
^^

+1 discovery point

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[Image: df686pz-0c7a3fc2-8eca-4da1-8429-49fa07fd3bab.png]
translator, I'm sorry if it is horrible for anyone fluent in Japanese!
#6
Discovery
07-04-2021, 10:20 PM (This post was last modified: 07-12-2021, 11:22 AM by StarkSpitfire. Edited 1 time in total.)
Big brother? Stark just stared at Reiko for a bit. A long and hard stare, even more pensive that before. He had been many things. A son, a little brother, a mentor, if only temporarily (and he hadn’t necessarily been good at it), a hunter, and a failure. A big brother was new. Add that to the list of many things Stark was and wasn’t. Stark tended to think into things too much, he tended to think too deeply. Right that moment his head was filled with the questions why she would call him that, why she would even try to get acquainted to him, or why she’d even asked him to come along.

Stark was Stark. And Stark would never be more than that. There was nothing appealing about him, nothing interesting. Nothing good. So why?

‘’Big brother.’’ he hummed, letting it sink in, and being unable to let go of it. Because- why? ‘’Why… big brother?’’ He was used to being things, but he’d never been some type of big or little brother to a wolf that was not related to him by blood. They barely even knew each other at all, so it just felt… odd, and out of place.

Oh yeah, her missing son. ‘’I’m sure he’ll be found.’’ the words left his mouth, and once again that awkward silence fell over him, not sure what else to say on the matter. What was there to say? But Reiko was on to something new. Seeing the mountains from up closer together.

Hesitantly Stark nodded. ‘’Yeah- sounds good.’’ And also extremely scary and awkward. It meant he had to be social for longer, and he had already started running out of conversational topics to bring up. Reiko was the one upholding the conversation. How did she do that with such ease?

She said this felt like home, though. This place. Stark looked at the mountains, the strange rock formations. So far, he’d not felt any attachment to the place. Then again, he had never really felt attachment to any place. ‘’Shall we go?’’ he asked, trying to shove the negative thoughts to the back of his brain.

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#7
Discovery
07-04-2021, 10:39 PM (This post was last modified: 07-12-2021, 05:04 AM by gerra. Edited 2 times in total.)
^^
Ah!

A little nibble of interest. It was small but maybe she could wiggle in a little further through this narrow opening he had left. “Well — you are bigger than I am... although... it seems most are in these lands.” So frankly anyone was considered "bigger" in comparison to her, unless she found others who stood shoulder to shoulder with the young mother - which there were some thus far, even though it wasn't many at all. 

“Aaaaand I cannot quite tell if it is the frowns or if you ARE older too.” Squinting, it was as if she was trying to study Stark's face for any obvious signs of age. She was certain he was a little older than she is, not by much at least, but maybe this could help him realize she noticed his constant frowning lately and should lighten up a little more often! “And why not brother?” She had no reasons not to, “there is more to family than simply bonded by blood.”

After accepting her invite, Reiko quickly got up. “Yay! Okay, come follow me!” There was no waiting even for him to ask if they shall go, she was already on the move. Only hesitant from time to time trying to remember the path toward the path up the closest mountain they were near. 

And talk she would. She was a natural conversationalist after all - hopefully not talking his ears off at least and leaving some time between conversations for the natural sounds of the mountains to be heard and appreciated. However, after a while, she had to break that silence to make sure it would not fall awkward between them. “Stark? May I ask where you come from? What is home to you?”
^^

+1 discovery point

the staff team luvs u
[Image: df686pz-0c7a3fc2-8eca-4da1-8429-49fa07fd3bab.png]
translator, I'm sorry if it is horrible for anyone fluent in Japanese!
#8
Discovery
07-04-2021, 11:01 PM (This post was last modified: 07-12-2021, 11:22 AM by StarkSpitfire. Edited 1 time in total.)
Huh, weird reasoning, but he did guess he was bigger than her. But then again Reiko was pretty much tiny. Stark was normal sized. Or at least he believed he was? Average in size, much like he was in his accomplishments. Okay Stark, stop thinking like that. Reiko had more to say after all, that made Stark frown a little. ‘’I guess I’m older. I don’t know anymore how old, though… Four, or something? Three? Lost track of time.’’

And then, there was the next thing, which honestly bothered him the most. ‘’So- if I’m big brother, does that mean you’re… little sister?’’ Uhhhhhhh could he pass this, please? It felt weird to even say that, honestly. ‘’Never mind, that’s uhh-’’ Weird. Though the word never left his mouth.

Follow her. To where? Oh. Wait. Oh yeah. The mountains. Come on, Stark, you can do better than this! ‘’Uh, yeah.’’ was all he brought out as he started following her. She’d bounced off before he could say those words, though, so they came out less enthusiastic. He almost sounded disappointed. She wasn’t going to race him there, was she? He knew he wouldn’t win if that was the case.

Probably not, because he did catch up to her. They walked for a bit and watched the scenery. The silence wasn’t so awkward this way, which was nice. He didn’t need to talk, so it felt a lot more comfortable. But then- she asked him about his life, and Stark paused for a moment, thinking- and clearly visibly panicking, the way his expression changed.

‘’Uhhh. Nice mountains, huh? Oh and um- I dunno what language you speak but if nisan is big brother- then what is sister? And uhhhh- it sounded kind of interesting- can I know more words-?’’ He didn’t want to really answer that question. He did not want to dive into the past, and he didn’t know what home even felt like, anymore. As far as he was concerned, he had none.

So Stark just… scooted over the question and awkwardly tried to steer it in another direction.

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#9
Discovery
07-05-2021, 12:22 AM (This post was last modified: 07-20-2021, 10:45 PM by Reiko. Edited 2 times in total.)
^^
As they climbed up the narrow path she had found days before, today she found it a little easier than the last time her paws found their way up this winding road to the top. It seemed she was slowly finding her legs once more, building up the muscles she had lost during her long slumber before awakening here on these strange new lands. Travelling to find Hotaru was easier as they moved as well, but this, mountain climbing was proving to put that extra edge on building what lean muscle was lost.

The trees grew finer as they climbed, their torsos less thick as it seemed perhaps they had less stable ground to root themselves - but still, life found a way for them to grow at these altitudes. 

As he questioned their pseudo relationship she simply smiled as he brushed the question away as quickly as he asked. Finding his awkwardness to be somewhat charming in a sense.

Speaking of awkward, he brushed away her question while avoiding it completely. Though she would not press the matter and dig into something she had no business into if Stark didn't want to share, it was no question that he was not ready to share his past if ever. So, as he moved on to a different topic, she moved on too without skipping a beat.
 
“Izumi, my daughter Hotaru and I all speak Japanese.” She began. Thankful that @Izumi was someone else she could speak their mother-tongue with. “Hmmm that is a little complicated - but if we are talking about the opposite for 'niichan', I suppose you are looking for is imouto. If you would like I can teach you some things every now and then!” Come to think of it, it would be nice if more knew their language. It would certainly help to make this place feel at home... at least those who wanted to learn and know of course. Never would she force such things.
^^

+1 discovery point

the staff team luvs u
[Image: df686pz-0c7a3fc2-8eca-4da1-8429-49fa07fd3bab.png]
translator, I'm sorry if it is horrible for anyone fluent in Japanese!
#10
Discovery
07-12-2021, 11:13 AM (This post was last modified: 07-12-2021, 11:22 AM by StarkSpitfire. Edited 1 time in total.)
He was surprised she did not continue to ask about it. Most wolves tended to try and get things out of him. He wasn’t sure if he should be glad about that or not, but he did not make anymore comments on the former subject. And Reiko was gladly steering it in a direction that was better suited for Stark to handle. Back to the talk about the language she and her children apparently spoke. Japanese? ‘’I’ve never heard of Japanese before.’’ he admitted. Never had anyone mentioned anything like that to him.

So niisan was big brother, and Reiko mentioned imouto. So in that case imouto was… little sister? Big sister? He assumed little, considering she said total opposite and they’d been talking about each other before they set out to view the mountains. ‘’So imouto is little sister, then?’’ he ended up asking. He would never know if he did not ask, he assumed.

Reiko mentioned teaching him more words, and Stark nodded. He was curious, and it sounded like an interesting thing to spend his time on, learning something now. Perhaps it would be useful in the future, who knew. Stark liked to be considered useful. Honestly being considered useful was the bane of his existence. But it was also his existence as a whole.

‘’Yeah, sure. I would like to learn some stuff.’’ If she wanted to teach him, why not? His eyes went back to the mountains, watching the edges of the stones and trying to see the tops of the peaks. He had never seen anything like this before. Nothing like these rocks and mountains. It was like it came from another world. ‘’These mountains look pretty special.’’ The words came out more casually than he felt on the inside.

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#11
Discovery
07-13-2021, 12:01 AM (This post was last modified: 07-20-2021, 10:47 PM by Reiko. Edited 4 times in total.)
^^
Maybe one day Stark would feel comfortable enough to open up around someone here, to feel like this was a safe place for him to speak and move on from his past and grow from his experiences instead of keeping it bottled up inside. But then again, everyone dealt with whatever he was going through differently. Perhaps forgetting about it was doing him just fine and mentioning anything of the sorts was only opening up an old wound. Such things were always such a 50/50. At least the door was unlocked for Stark, all he had to do was open it if he wanted to.
 
“Uh huh!” He seemed to be getting the hang of it! “Big sister would sound similar to brother, it is Nēchan~” A pause as her face contorted with a moment of realization. “Which... confusingly for you can also be interchangeably Niisan and Nēsan.” Ears flattened against her skull as brows furrowed, looking at nothing in particular other than as if she was trying to look at her own words and making sense of it all. “It.. is a little complicated - but if I were to make it simple,'- chan' is for more... for those you care closely for. San is uhh... like a form of "mister" or "miss".” As she spoke the explanation the best she could, Reiko turned to smile at Stark in hope that any of it at all made sense.

“Please do not stress about it.” Even if Ira would eventually tell her to take pride in her heritage and that others should learn it should they join Shiroshika... Reiko was far too welcoming to be worried about such small details. Words and language would come with time for those who wanted to learn and be one with the empire.

As they moved upward through the trail, higher onto the mountain they picked - she could already see the low hanging clouds approach on their trail. It would only take a little while longer to move past them (1 more post I suppose LOL). “Indeed! They are strange, I have not seen such mountains in all my travels. They are strange and beautiful.”
^^
the staff team luvs u
[Image: df686pz-0c7a3fc2-8eca-4da1-8429-49fa07fd3bab.png]
translator, I'm sorry if it is horrible for anyone fluent in Japanese!
#12
Discovery
07-20-2021, 11:05 AM (This post was last modified: 07-21-2021, 07:30 AM by StarkSpitfire. Edited 2 times in total.)
Big brother, big sister, little sister. There were so many variants. Stark had a hard time keeping up. Of course there were variants in his language too but they either just added big or little in front of it and with Reiko’s language the whole word almost seemed to change, sometimes. It was a lot to take in and a lot to process and Stark hoped he was going to remember all this and not fuck up in the future. Stark didn’t like to fail, he had already failed enough in his life.

Chan was for those you cared for closely. Alright then. So niisan meant older brother but not close. Stark just ended up shrugging it off. It was too much information for him to function properly so if he stopped thinking too much about it, he would be fine. His head was not going to explode, not today.

Okay, nah. Stark could not stop thinking about all these variants and he wanted to make sure he got it all correct from the start because he hated making mistakes. Mainly because he used to always be shit on for his mistakes. ‘’Soooo I’m niisan? And since you said imouto is little sister then that’s imoutosan orrrr…?’’ Stark couldn’t help it. he was a paranoid being.

Mountain talk, though. Ah yes. He was better at that. ‘’It are’’ what was the best word to describe them? ‘’cool mountains.’’
Really Stark? That was the word you went for? Not very good at small talk, are we? Could he make things anymore awkward?

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#13
07-21-2021, 11:37 PM
^^
She knew it would be complicated for Stark to wrap his head around it - it would be for anyone who wasn't surrounded by it regularly she supposed (and its okay Stark because Noki also made a mistake so its aaaaalllll good). “Do not worry bout it too much Stark.” Again she tried to ease his anxiety over the matter - her teasing wasn't meant to bring up any stress but at least it got them chatting at least. “Chan and San are honourifics, just used with different words to show respect - and usually the young respect the older individuals by using them. Little sister does not get one, it is either imouto simply or just Reiko when addressing as little sister.”

Of course there was one for their ranks as well, but that he would find out on his own. She was not about to bombard him with ranks as well as everything else as if demanding to called Heika, Denka or Hidenka. Plus, she didn't realize just how awkward it was for her to explain such things until now. Oh dear, what must he be thinking of her now?

“I have been having a hard time describing them to others, how would you describe these summits?” She really should get some kind of masseuse after today since she really was carrying the conversation. Once again she would try to lead Stark into an open ended question to reply with more than just "yes" or "no" or "cool mountains" as he so hilariously said before.

Also, perhaps he could come up with something better than just "strange spires" as she had been using before.
^^
the staff team luvs u
[Image: df686pz-0c7a3fc2-8eca-4da1-8429-49fa07fd3bab.png]
translator, I'm sorry if it is horrible for anyone fluent in Japanese!
#14
Discovery
08-18-2021, 07:20 PM
She told him not to worry about it, and in the end it looked like imouto was simply imouto or he could address her by Reiko. Either seemed fine enough according to her. Perhaps Stark just made it sound too difficult to himself. Perhaps he was overthinking again. He seemed to do that a lot. In the past with his family he would blurt stuff out and regret his words and actions later. With these wolves, he was less inclined to do that. Maybe because he didn’t know them that well, and perhaps they treated him differently than his family members did.

Describing the mountains to others? Oh fuck was she asking him for a way to describe them? Stark looked back at them, brows furrowed and uncertain. How would he describe such mountains to others. ‘’Uhhhhhh-’’ he began, not sure where to start off. ‘’I guess- high rock or mountain formations with jagged edges that look like they ummmmm go strsight up into the sky?’’ Yeahhhh, Stark wasn’t the best at describing things. He shot Reiko and awkward grimance.

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#15
08-18-2021, 09:18 PM
^^
Pausing for a moment to listen to Stark as he thought of a way to describe the mountains... She pondered. As lips pursed lightly while deep in thought at what he saw. It was always so interesting to see through the eyes of someone else even if it was just a glimpse. The way Stark explained it was rather simple but it wasn't simple as an insult. She liked it - straight to the point.
 
“I like it.” Seeing his awkward grimace, she chirped in with a breezy smile. “'Jagged edges'.” Especially that part. Moving on, speaking of the mountains and their peaks toward the sky, she scurried over to his side with a pep in her step. “How about a little race to the top? A race to the sky!” As he put it in his description. Once Stark would accept a countdown would begin as soon as they were both ready - she would only try to outrun him a little bit. Not one to lose a race but she wouldn't want to hurt his ego either now would she?
^^
the staff team luvs u
[Image: df686pz-0c7a3fc2-8eca-4da1-8429-49fa07fd3bab.png]
translator, I'm sorry if it is horrible for anyone fluent in Japanese!
#16
08-18-2021, 09:42 PM
She liked his explanation? Stark didn’t think he had really come up with an interesting one, and he didn’t think it sounded too special. He had not really outdone himself – he never did to be honest – but if she liked it then he guessed he had done a decent job. ‘’That’s great.’’ he said, with a shy awkward smile because he had no idea what else to add to that part of the conversation.

At least Reiko was better at keeping the conversation going than he was. She mentioned a race to the top of the mountain, and Stark swallowed, looking up at the very top and all the jagged edges. He wasn’t sure he would be able to make it. but he could try, he guessed. ‘’Uh yeah, sure. I’m ready.’’

Ready whenever she was.

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#17
08-18-2021, 09:51 PM
^^
“Aaaaand GO —” A part of her was certain Stark wasn't very fast on his feet, it wasn't a jab at his weight but she was always one of the faster ones on her toes. Going up the spire would be tougher even for her, but at least she could take it a little slower just for Stark's sake. It wouldn't be very kind of her to leave him behind in her snow dust now would it?

At least on their way back down later it would all be downhill and they could take it at their own pace, a leisure stroll and the race would help them fall asleep tonight. Good exercise always did that.

Every now and then in their race she would bump shoulders with him playfully, trying to make this a little bit more interesting and fun along the way instead of just purely some race. 
^^
feel free to finish with yours <3

the staff team luvs u
[Image: df686pz-0c7a3fc2-8eca-4da1-8429-49fa07fd3bab.png]
translator, I'm sorry if it is horrible for anyone fluent in Japanese!
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