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all welcome! But looking for Chakliux or any currently hanging around with him!

The sun rose like an answered prayer, and from the sky fell scattered showers from little cloudbursts. The hardpacked soil beneath Cecily's feet was cool to the touch as she meandered along in a beam of golden light, sidestepping neatly as the surf ebbed at her feet. The saline breeze was cool but gentle- a sign that by the time low tide hit in the afternoon, it would be a warm day. She would welcome it- swim in the ocean and groom afterwards, to rid herself of thick, stubborn winter fur that she had yet to shed.

A scuttling sound caught her attention and she froze just in time to see a reddish crab scramble toward a pile of driftwood and kelp. With a buoyant gait she pranced toward the jetsam, and began to pull it apart. She tugged long, wet strands of kelp free and cast them aside, before bracing her paws against a smoothe-skinned log and heaving another aside with a push of her roan shoulder, creating just enough of a gap in the pile that she could see down to the sand. Shadows fell upon her as a cloud drifted overhead, but the crab's slick shell reflected the dim light enough to reveal its position. She lunged, her hips catching against the driftwood as she thrust herself into the small crevice, nabbing the creature that flailed its claws angrily as it was pulled from its shelter.

With one deft movement she pulled herself free and sent the crab flying into the air in an arc above the beach, further from the waves and the driftwood. It bounced and rolled as it hit the ground, and the little predator was upon it in an instant, taking advantage of its dizziness to pull first one menacing claw free and then the other, leaving it defenseless. Its suffering wouldn't last long- nor would the meat within the creature's shell. Once she had finished with that, she searched for each of the claws, and scavenged what she could from those as well.

Meal finished, she returned the bits of its shell to the edge of the water, to be reclaimed by the ocean, and to ensure that her catch wasn't wasteful. The patch of shadow shifted down the beach, leaving her to bask in the golden sunlight again. Still savouring the taste of her meal, she sat where the waves could rise, tickle her toes, and draw back again, and watched the glinting waters of the horizon.

[as told to cloud lash, chakliux had come back to procure more whalebone for the valley. it belatedly occurred to him that had he brought more sharadoii, one of the entire ribs might be able to be broken and carried back. but it seemed those in the valley were a loose collection of siblings and young hunters, girls who were militsik and men who were not as experienced. not considering this uncharitability of age, he had loped away from their wetu homes and back down the beachstrand in search of the whale once more. this time he carried a fine hide and he would use it to retrieve more things from along the shoreline. he stopped to dig clams, scrape oysters, and even procure a salty sort of lichen that might deepen the flavor of any valley-prey. a pile of wood along the sands grew larger, and chakliux spotted movement as his trot went on, draped skin bouncing jauntily across his back. half a tail and reddish fur that slid to the oddest of spots, this wolf moved in a way which said she had been born to the sea. he did not stop himself from an appreciative glance across her hips as he slowed, and laughed in awe to see the crab break its wide loop in the air. she fell upon it, and his ears flicked to hear the satisfying crunch of fangs in shell. these pieces were put back to the salt, and it was then that he called to her. "you are a good hunter!" long tail lashed to and fro, but the seal hunter did not come closer. he had spoken his own tongue and found more of his kith; therefore he wondered if it might be the same, thrilling to think that there were more of his people here.]

as told to cloud lash, chakliux had come back to procure more whalebone for the valley. it belatedly occurred to him that had he brought more sharadoii, one of the entire ribs might be able to be broken and carried back. but it seemed those in the valley were a loose collection of siblings and young hunters, girls who were militsik and men who were not as experienced.
not considering this uncharitability of age, he had loped away from their wetu homes and back down the beachstrand in search of the whale once more. this time he carried a fine hide and he would use it to retrieve more things from along the shoreline. he stopped to dig clams, scrape oysters, and even procure a salty sort of lichen that might deepen the flavor of any valley-prey.
a pile of wood along the sands grew larger, and chakliux spotted movement as his trot went on, draped skin bouncing jauntily across his back.
half a tail and reddish fur that slid to the oddest of spots, this wolf moved in a way which said she had been born to the sea. he did not stop himself from an appreciative glance across her hips as he slowed, and laughed in awe to see the crab break its wide loop in the air.
she fell upon it, and his ears flicked to hear the satisfying crunch of fangs in shell. these pieces were put back to the salt, and it was then that he called to her. "you are a good hunter!" long tail lashed to and fro, but the seal hunter did not come closer.
he had spoken his own tongue and found more of his kith; therefore he wondered if it might be the same, thrilling to think that there were more of his people here.

A peal of laughter and a jovial voice roused her from her daydreams. She threw a glance over her shoulder to spot the cotton-grass man, and having missed his salutation completely, she recognized only the mirth in his features and amicable wave of his tail. "Oh, sorry!" She responded, swirling as she raised herself to her feet and turned to face him, an unashamed grin on her face. "I was a little lost, there," She explained. She glanced to the skies, where defined pillars of shadow still roamed down the beach beneath meandering clouds. She drew in a breath as if to speak again, but when she felt the temperature of the air shift with a draft of wind, she shifted her gaze to an approaching veil of darkness and rain.

"Another one!" She was delighted, and pranced on the spot as the cloudburst slid toward them. She bounded sideways, deerlike. "Come on- don't let it catch you!" She invited, before she began to bound down the beach, whirling every now and again so she could keep an eye on the creeping shadow- and tease the man with a girlish grin, so he might join her in her game.

[a storm-runner. chakliux left the hide there upon the beach and trotted over the sand, allowing the wind to lift in life the fur of his scarred shoulders. playfully he splashed through the shallows after her bobbing tail, keeping wolven pace even as his body ached with travel. he was good and healthfully alive; a storm at his back, a beautiful woman before. sweet salt to the air and the threat of rain. the seal hunter found these moments glorious. a series of driftwood lay logged upon the sand; he leapt this smoothly, though he traded some speed for agility and began to flag after the storm-runner on the strand. flat out now, hips curling, airborne in quartet, tail streaming, mouth open for air; he sought to catch up and then perhaps to overtake. little chance of it unless chakliux pushed hard, and so he did as this was meant. it did not matter that there was no shared tongue between them; the seal hunter discovered glee as he always did beside the ocean.]

a storm-runner. chakliux left the hide there upon the beach and trotted over the sand, allowing the wind to lift in life the fur of his scarred shoulders. playfully he splashed through the shallows after her bobbing tail, keeping wolven pace even as his body ached with travel. he was good and healthfully alive; a storm at his back, a beautiful woman before. sweet salt to the air and the threat of rain.
the seal hunter found these moments glorious.
a series of driftwood lay logged upon the sand; he leapt this smoothly, though he traded some speed for agility and began to flag after the storm-runner on the strand.
flat out now, hips curling, airborne in quartet, tail streaming, mouth open for air; he sought to catch up and then perhaps to overtake.
little chance of it unless chakliux pushed hard, and so he did as this was meant.
it did not matter that there was no shared tongue between them; the seal hunter discovered glee as he always did beside the ocean.

Outpacing the roaming clouds was a simple task, and allowed her the freedom to dance and spin, raising her voice to crow as the scarred man leapt over a pile of driftwood. His lead changed, and his gait- seeing him tuck in and bolt flew the hackles at the base of her neck and with her short tail flagging like that of a white-tailed deer, she fled. Her buoyant step was not that of a wolf running in fear, but of one who sought to allow her companion to close the gap between them- so she could then match his pace, and streak along the beach at his side. So airy was her spirit that she misjudged his pace completely- and her own capability of accelerating smoothly- and when he breezed past she had to scramble to catch up.

He raced with the power of a thoroughbred, his long, ground-devouring stride left sparse footprints in the sand behind him. Cecily, on the other hand, a whippet- her short, fleet strides sent her surging forward twice for each of his though they moved at the same speed.

One cloudburst was left behind, like an upset toddler dragging its feet- but ahead, another one loomed. This one, she hoped to chase and catch. She barked, a high pitched noise squeaked out between her rapid strides, and thrust her freckled nose toward the heart of the downpour ahead.

[chakliux had not believed he would pass the woman; his eyes lit with pleasant surprise, and he let out a thunderous whoop which cracked ahead of the storm he and she meant to outrace. but she meant to pursue the second, and he glanced up toward dark clouds with their pregnant bellies of rain. the seal hunter was flagging, saved only by the great stamina amassed from swimming below water for long minutes. more than that, he did not want to affect any idea of his abilities, and so gave a sharp bark. charging into the thunderhead, he kept shoulder to shoulder for a moment with the slender woman, long legs eating the ground where she flew fairylike. a show of agility. a display of wolven power. his pulse pounded and still he swept the ground behind him with shadow as he flew into the cloudburst. oil father raced beside them, and he drew renewed invigoration from the idea that the seal spirits were happy with this illustration.]

chakliux had not believed he would pass the woman; his eyes lit with pleasant surprise, and he let out a thunderous whoop which cracked ahead of the storm he and she meant to outrace. but she meant to pursue the second, and he glanced up toward dark clouds with their pregnant bellies of rain. the seal hunter was flagging, saved only by the great stamina amassed from swimming below water for long minutes.
more than that, he did not want to affect any idea of his abilities, and so gave a sharp bark. charging into the thunderhead, he kept shoulder to shoulder for a moment with the slender woman, long legs eating the ground where she flew fairylike.
a show of agility.
a display of wolven power.
his pulse pounded and still he swept the ground behind him with shadow as he flew into the cloudburst. oil father raced beside them, and he drew renewed invigoration from the idea that the seal spirits were happy with this illustration.

She flew like a rosy dandelion puff on the breeze- held aloft by the drafts she chased, pulled toward them as if drawn by a fierce inhale. She huffed a wispy reply as he called the charge, his booming, jubilant voice a spur to her hide. The veil of darkness drew nearer and nearer until she crossed simultaneously into both shadow and rain. She squinted against the sudden downpour and chuckled as the rain found its way past smiling lips to tickle her tongue as it trickled past her gums. She threw her head back and whirled, felt the rain beat against her freckled cheeks, pattering against closed eyelids, and running down the top of her crown where it could spill over her shoulders in tiny rivers of shining water.

She threw her head down and bucked, kicking heels up toward the sky, sending sand flinging from her paws. Over and over again she wheeled, until she caught sight of the pale man and cut a dizzied course toward him- staggering wildly to the side as she did until she stumbled and kissed the ground with her shoulder. Quickly she righted herself, rosy pelt now speckled with sand, and leapt again for the man with great bounding frog-leaps that might make an antelope arch its brow.

[a storm chaser. a water-woman. he was reminded of a pantherine story in which beautiful women shed skins and climbed from water. this was the reverse of that, and the superstitious part of the seal hunter waited vaguely to see if she would be taken by the stormcloud. but in its touch she grew frenzied and his heart grew light to see her. chakliux slowed to describe small circles in the sand, to chase her as she chased him; he looped through her marks and made whorls of his own, the two leaping around one another. a whoop broke from the man's throat; his berry-bright eyes danced with delight. once! once she slipped but before his legs could carry him to her aid, up she was once more, freckled hinds catching his approving eye once more. and when she came for him, this cloudburst, chakliux laughed aloud and moved to meet her, to lift for two legs and dance as many steps as he was able while her high pronking went on along the seacoast. he was coming to the end of his energies but unwilling to admit it, for this was such a striking diversion as to be arrestingly distractive.]

a storm chaser. a water-woman. he was reminded of a pantherine story in which beautiful women shed skins and climbed from water. this was the reverse of that, and the superstitious part of the seal hunter waited vaguely to see if she would be taken by the stormcloud. but in its touch she grew frenzied and his heart grew light to see her. chakliux slowed to describe small circles in the sand, to chase her as she chased him; he looped through her marks and made whorls of his own, the two leaping around one another. a whoop broke from the man's throat; his berry-bright eyes danced with delight.
once! once she slipped but before his legs could carry him to her aid, up she was once more, freckled hinds catching his approving eye once more. and when she came for him, this cloudburst, chakliux laughed aloud and moved to meet her, to lift for two legs and dance as many steps as he was able while her high pronking went on along the seacoast.
he was coming to the end of his energies but unwilling to admit it, for this was such a striking diversion as to be arrestingly distractive.