[[IntoTheShade]]

[[.FirestorM.]]

A small figure trotted soundlessly through toward the waterfall, pelt ruffled by the north wind. This wan't his first time at Canine Ridge, but he was born in the city, and new it much better than he did the ridge. He scented the air calmly, he'd almost forgotten the two wolevs he had met that morning. It was now late in the afternoon and the sun was in full heat, and Barley's spirits were at an all time high.
His thoughts wandered to his sister, as he paded through the mid-day heat, glad he was under the shade of the forest tree's, their sihoutted canopy keeping him cool.

His jaws parted, and he realised a loud yawn, pausing to stretch out his forepaws, rump in the air. Shakng his head he stood uagain and began his exploring again. He'd never been to this place on Canine Ridge, and he wondered how he was going to find his way back.

The thought flew straight over his head, he wasn't bothered at all, he didn't even give it a second thought.

Halting abruptly as the forest came to and end, and a small rocky clearing came into view, a waterfall depicted in the center, foam spraying over the hot rocks. Barley tilted his head, mahogany gaze evaluating the rocks. They would be hot, from the mid-day sun, but if he got to the waterfall quick enough he would be able to take a sooze behind the descending rapids, while getting the cool spray of the water.
Smiling, he bounded out toward the waterfall, the heated rocks burnt his pads, but he kept movnig forward until he had reached the waterfall. Entering the small cave behind the tumbling falls through a tiny gap between rock and water, he curled up tn the shade, pads soothed by the spray of the waterfall.

Closing his eyelids he began to drift into comfortable dreams.

[melody]

The scent of water filled Melody's nose, her throst burning with the need to quench her thirst. The loud sound of a waterfall filled her ears as she ran, no, sprinted towards it. She almost ran head first into the pool in her excitement.

Melody had never seen a waterfall before. Sure, she had heard of them, they were great walls of water that poured into the ground below. Well, that had been what Lion had told her. He had been here before, in this same exact spot. He had even marked a tree with his claws.

Dipping her maw into the water, Melody inhaled the water, coughing before making her way over to a smaller tree, one that looked only a few years old. There it was. A heart, engraved into the bark, with the messy sign of Melody, a music note, and below that, a lion's fang. Melody shivered at the fang, remembering the death of her beloved.

Then, the scent of dog drifted into her nose, and she recognized it as a young animal, no more than a year. Of course, she didn't really want to be socializing, but the scent of the young male intriged her, and she lifted her head into the air anyways.

"Hullo??!! Anyone there?"[/b][/size]

[[.FirestorM.]]

Barley had just been dosing off to sleep, the crash of water comforting him. He somehow felt protected by the thundering wall. He doubted any dog would see him here, and he was glad. His ears pricked when he heard a demanding voice.
He frowned, raising his head, looking annoyed at being disturbed. He bared his teeth in annoyance. Turning and padding to the back of the cave, he attempted to drfit off to sleep, but it wasn't the same now that he knew someone was there, and he didn't like not answering when someone called him.
Rolling his eyes he hauled himself up and padded toward the waterfall, dark eyes peering into the crashing water and foam.

'Yes, thanks to a rude awakening.' His ears twitched delicately, but caught nothing bu the crash of water. A smirk formed on his face, and in one mighty leap, he crashed through the toppling water, for a second it dragged him down with him, but he had leapt clear of it soon enough, and was plunged into the river the flowed from it. The river swept him slightly further down than he anticipated, but clinging to the riverbank with his claws he hauled his soaking body out the water, shaking his pelt and spraying the loose water all over the place.

He looked up, eyes setting on the female. Grunting he began to pad toward her, not looking to happy.

[melody]

Melody wanted to laugh. She didn't know why, she had just gotten the sudden feeling that she was going to burst out laughing. She knew it would be rude, and knew that this dog wouldn't like it, but the look on his face when he walked towards her was priceless.

Melody wanted to ignore him, seeing as he was only a pup, in a way. And, because he looked completely and totally grumpy, and would love to tear her head off at any given moment. And Melody wanted to keep her head.

"You don't have to be such a grump, you know." Melody tried laughing, but it only came out as a cough. Sitting down, she laid her tail on her paws, watching the young dog as he approached her, no fear in her thoughts at all. Another sudden thought crossed her mind, and Melody randomly began grooming herself, running her tongue along her side like a cat would do. She wanted to look nice, and being a husky, it was hard to keep her fur shiny, forgetting the fact that all she did was shed.

Becoming quite bored with herself, Melody turned to the tree engraved with Lion's words, letters, she should say. Tracing her claws on the grooves of the bark, she found herself making the name Lion bolder, until it seemed that the word would stay there forever.

There. Now he'll always be where I am. She thought, a tear running from her eye to the ground.

She couldn't believe the pain in her heart, the tugging that came from her will to be with him. To kill herself and be done with it, to be reunited with her beloved. No, she couldn't, because her Harmony was still on this world, not in the Hell that she would be in trying to find Lion, a restless soul that had no place in heaven, or on solid ground. Searching for her loved one, who had already passed on and was never to be seen again.

Finding herself rambling in her head, Melody snapped back to reality, and turned to the young dog in front of her.