Roughing It (Open)

[Kegan Emrick]

It was early morning in the Wildlands. Since Kegan had left his home in River Fall he had been camping and making his way around trying to find a good place to start living perminently. He was not alone I'm his travels though. Kegan had his trusted dog Arnett with him at all times. Kegan did not feel as though he owned Arnett in anyway though. Arnett was like a brother to him and due to that fact he introduced Arnett to everyone as his brother. His entire life he had lived in close proximity to animals. He respected them more than humans. His parents gave Arnett to him when he left home as they did for every child in his family. It was a tradition in the Emrick family. Both of his brothers had their own dogs and two of his sisters had them. One of his sisters had wanted a cat though. She was always different.  Kegan woke up in his tent after a good night's sleep. Arnett was laying happilly beside him. His long white coat seemed to glow in the morning's dim light. He was very thankful that he was accompanied by Arnett. He helped Kegan hunt and without him he would most likely never catch any food. Kegan was skilled in swordsmanship but that did not help when hunting prey that was far away. That is where Arnett came in. He could dart after animals and catch them and Kegan could slit their throat with his sword. Kegan and Arnett shared everything of course so all hunted animals were cooked by Kegan and them split between the two of them.  Kegan crawled out of the tent and Arnett quickly followed after. "Are you feeling ready to hunt yet or do you want to just rest until the sun rises?" He asked Arnett. Arnett sniffed the ground and then ran off. Kegan followed after loyalilly knowing that Arnett had sniffed out an animal for breakfast. As soon as he heard Arnett bark Kegan ran over to find him. Arnett had caught an animal in his jaws. Kegan bent down "Thank you brother for giving your life to feed my brother and I. I wish for a safe journey to where ever one goes from here." he said got the animal and then he slit it's throat.  Kegan and Arnett walked back to their camp and Kegan started a fire. He cut the animal in half with his sword and handed it to Arnett. "Good hunting today Arnett." he said petting him. Arnett panted and gave a smile only a dog could make. Kegan set the other half of the animal over the fire and looked at the rising sun. "I wonder what today will bring us Arnett my dear brother."

[Tristan]

Tristan sighed, the tired beast beneath seemed to heave it's own sigh in return. They were both tired and the morning sun would soon beat mercilessly down on them once more. He could have camped the previous night, but had pressed on only stopping to water Diemi and then move on again. The wildlands seemed to go on forever, he was used to this, but doing it alone was hard. Tristan no longer payed attention to the land before him, trusting his horse to guide the way. It took only Diemi's sudden halt to bring Tristan back from his thoughts. "Woah" He said in a calm voice patting the horse's broad neck. His eyes scanned the area with the quickness and skill of a hunter. In the distance, barely visable in the early morning light was a small smoke cloud rising into the sky. Probably a cooking fire, though who's cooking fire?

Patting the horse once more Tristan smiled, his curiousity had gotten the better of him. Maybe he wanted company, or maybe he wanted to be nosey, maybe he just wanted water for Diemi, he wasn't sure but he knew where he was now headed. "Forward" He said in the same calm voice, barely nudging the horses head in the right direction before the horse took the lead, trotting at an easy gait towards the mystery fire. As they neared Tristan slowed the animal to a walk, not wanting to spook up any trouble. Coming into sight of the fire Tristan could see what appeared to be a man and his dog enjoying their breakfast. Diemi whinnied softly, voicing his own opinion about the pair and Tristan delivered a short hush as he dismounted. Deciding that walking up to the pair and their camp would be much better mannered than riding in and possibly upsetting the dog.

"Hello there"He offered a welcome, stopping short of the camp by a few feet, after all he was an intruder for the moment. Holding Diemi's reigns tightly while the horse stomped it's feet.

[Kegan Emrick]

Kegan was almost finished with his breakfast when he heard a person approaching. He looked at Arnett "Do you hear that?" he asked his canine companion. Arnett gave a small woof and got to his feet. Arnett's breed, the Manitora was not known for being guard dogs but Arnett started to sniff around anyway. Kegan got up and looked around. The wildlands were dense and it was quite evident that Arnett had the upper hand here with his canine sense of smell. Arnett looked back at him and let out another small bark. "It must have been nothing. Finish your dinner." He said petting Arnett's head. After a few minutes he heard the person approaching again. Kegan looked up and saw a guy who looked about his age standing that the outskirts of his camp. He offered a welcome and Arnett hunched down and growled. Kegan frowned at Arnett and walked over to his side. "Arnett, be civil. I do not think this stranger means harm." he said placing his hand on Arnett's head. Arnett looked up at Kegan and let out a small growl. Kegan looked at the stranger and held out his hand. "Hello, I am Kegan Emrick. Sorry, about Arnett's rudeness. My brother is very territorial." He looked down at Arnett and he whined and sat down. "And what is your name stranger?" he asked. The guy who had some to his camp was interesting. He did not look like anyone he had ever met. He also wondered what it was about this guy that made Arnett so upset. Usually he was so friendly. He did not expect to meet anyone while camping in the wildlands. Even more so, he had not expected to meet anyone so friendly. He was intrigued about how someone who he had never met could be so friendly. Maybe he had just spent to much time with the animals in River Fall and not enough time with actual people. He was happy to welcome the company though. He had not had actual conversation in a while. It was nice to live just him and Arnett but still, he missed the two-way conversation that one could only get from someone who could talk back.

[Tristan]

Tristan glanced down to the disgruntled animal, "Well he doesn't seem to much care for me, now does he." Chuckling just a little he looked back to the man. "My name is Tristan and this here is Diemi, nice to meet you and Arnett." He said looking to his horse as he tousled the creatures mane in an affectionate way. Arnett, or so Keagan had called his dog continued to growl and bark and Tristan looked to Diemi who had begun to stomp his feet more agrressivly while snorting loudly in return to the other animal. "I'm truely sorry for intruding on your camp, I'll leave if you wish." He finished, waiting for his answer. The man stared at him as if he was a strange sight and Tristan glance over himself thinking maybe he was dirty or foul in some way. He was sweaty from the morning heat, but he was clean in the least.

Diemi began to nudge him, growing in force until he nearly knocked him forward. Soon, soon. Tristan thought, hoping the man would welcome him. It had been a long while since he had, had anyone to talk too besides Diemi and the thought of conversation was appealing. He was hungry, but he was more than capable of catching his own food, Diemi on the other hand wouldn't appreciate a fresh kill very much. He required water and Tristan would find some for his friend soon.

[Kegan Emrick]

OOC: Sorry, I didn't to make Tristan feel self conscious, lol. Your race says that you are Charoda but I looked at your character page and it says that you are Drykas. I'm guessig you are due to your horse. I could have never made Kegan stare at him if he was human (if any of that makes sense) XD

Kegan flicked Arnett's nose as he continued to growl. "Arnett, you need to be kind." he said. Arnett let out a small woof and then laid down. Kegan looked at Tristan and sat down next to Arnett. "Don't worry about him. He will warm up to you if you are around him long enough. he said. Arnett was really not a hard dog to win over. All someone would need to do to get him to like them would be to give him food or scratch his belly. Arnett laid his head on Kegan's lap and he ran his hand over his shaggy white hair. He saw Arnett's brown eyes looking up at him. He knew that all this hostility was just to protect him but he wished that Arnett would try to be a little nicer when he let him know that the person he was growling at was not a threat. Kegan looked at Diemi and then at Tristan. "Your horse is most likely the most beautiful horse I have ever seen. What breed is it?" he asked ruffling Arnett's fur. He had not seen many different kinds of horses. Mostly just the ones that the Akalak rode over in River Fall where he was from. He always loved horses but he could never have one because Arnett would have to run behind it and making him do that would be extremely unfair. Yes, Kegan would have loved to ride on one of the beautiful animals but right now that was out of the question. Kegan felt bad when Tristan started talking like he thought he intruded on his camp. "No, really I don't mind. I welcome the company. Feel free to stick around as long as you like. he said with a smile. He looked around to see if he had any food on hand to offer to Tristan. He found a loaf of bread and a deer that he and Arnett had caught yesterday. It had finally finished bleeding out which meant it was ready to cook and eat. "Well I can't welcome you to the camp without giving you food. All we have is venison and bread but if you want some thing else we can go hunting. I know a good river up the way that is full of fish and your horse can drink there. It is surrounded by grass and vegetation. It is the reason I set up camp here. It's not every day one finds a river that great." he said poking at the fire in front of him. He cupped his hand around one side of his mouth and whispered to Tristan. "If you give Arnett food or a good scratch behind the ears he will love you forever." he said. Arnett huffed and licked his snout. Arnett was so responsive. He could swear sometimes that Arnett knew the human language just as well as any person but he chose not to use it. Of course, that was a silly thought. Arnett was a dog and even though Kegan respected all animals he knew Arnett only spoke his foreign tounge, the language of the canine.

[Tristan]

Tristan watched the man flick the dog, who continued to growl before laying down. It was no surprise to Tristan that the dog had treated him as a threat, it was natural instinct to fear the unknown. What use would the dog be if he showed no attempt at guarding his master, or brother as it had been put. The dog showed obvious affection for Keagan and Keagan returned it. It was how it should be and Trstan nodded as he spoke, agreeing. "Just haven't been around dogs in awhile" He paused, his gaze hardening for a moment, "That is unless you count the occasional Kelvic." He had known a few of them who were dogs and they were also friends.

"Ah Diemi, he's a leopardbred. Not my first horse, but he's mine." Tristan said. His voice softened at the mention of a previous horse, trying to keep his face nuetral. "He's just a young one, barely two or so, but he's smart, loyal and willing to work. Good traits for a horse. What kind of dog would Arnett be?" He asked. It was a beautiful dog, Tristan preferred cats, big cats, but he'd never seen a dog like Arnett.

"Venison and bread is fine and Diemi will be fine until after we eat" Tristan replied. It was better than skunk meat and rain water. He thought as he looked back at Diemi who had stayed behind eating fresh shoots of grass. Tristan seated himself near Keagan, but not too close. He had no intentions of making the dog feel threatened, after all it was his territory and Tristan was at the moment a surprise guest. "Food huh?" Tristan smirked, reaching into his cloak for the last bit of meat he had on him. "Here Arnett enjoy" He said as he tossed him the food.

"Need any help with that deer, or anything else need done?" Tristan asked, he wasn't one to accept a free meal from a stranger without atleast helping in some way. He was thankful for the company. Diemi only pretended to listen anyhow.

[Kegan Emrick]

Kegan looked down at his furry companion and pet his head "Arnett is a Manitora. They are bred to pull sleds and stuff like that up in the north, like it Avanthal. Thats why his fur is so long and white. I've never been there but I've heard it is nice there. I would love to travel there someday so Arnett can see his homeland but now we are here in the Wildlands. I've always wanted a Ivaski but only Konti have them. Reguardless, I couldn't ask for abetter dog than Arnett. he said. Arnett looked up at Kegan and gave him a dog-like smile. When Tristan pulled out a piece of meat from his cloak Arnett's attention was instantly on him. Tristan threw him the food and he stared at it as if he was trying to decide if he was going to eat it. He looked from the piece of meat to Tristan like he was trying to decide weather or not he trusted food from him. He looked back at Kegan like he was asking if it was okay for him to eat the meat. "Go ahead you dork, it's fine." he said playfully to Arnett. Arnett inched forward and gingerly sniffed at the meat. Then to Kegan's surprise he actually ate it. After he swallowed it down he pawed over to Tristan's side and sniffed him. After he decided that Tristan was okay he rubbed his forehead against his arm and licked his cheek. Kegan smiled "See, he is so shallow. Now you'll be his best friend forever." he joked. Arnett stuck his head out and let out a small woof like he was trying to say "pet me". Kegan was happy that Arnett was acting more civil, he could get to testy at times. Kegan walked back to the deer hanging from the tree and pulled out a small dagger. "Yeah, can you get more fire wood? We are going to need a bigger fire if we are going to cook this whole thing." he said. He sawed the string away from the deer's ankles and soon the large animal was safe on the ground. He pulled it over to the small fire. He looked over at Arnett. "See Arnett, you know how to be nice. Sometimes you can be so catty." he joked. Arnett let out a small growl and laid his head on his paws. "Watch the camp Arnett, I'm going to get some water." Kegan set off and walked quickly to the river. He didn't like being off on his own without Arnett but he didn't want someone or something to invade his camp and kill Tristan's horse. He knew that Arnett could not do much against a large predator but he would warn Kegan by barking and he could get back fast. Soon he got to the river and filled his pails up with water. It would not be a ton of water but if they needed more he could head to the river again. When he got back to the camp he saw Arnett playing with a mouse that he had found. "You look like a cat." he joked. Arnett flicked his ear in protest but kept pawing at the mouse. He would let the mouse run and then slam his big white paw on it's tail before it could get to far away. He have Arnett a warning look. "Either you eat it or let it go. He is one of Caiyha's creatures just like you and me. You need to respect that brother." he said making reference to his goddess of nature. All of the Emricks worshiped Caiyha due to their close bond with nature. Arnett let out a huff and bit into the mouse killing it. Kegan smiled at him, happy that is furry brother listened to him.

[Tristan]

Tristan listened intently to everything Keagan had to say. Besides his need for intelligent conversation he noticed that the man was open and had dreams to fulfill in life. He was happy to see Arnett eat his peace offering. Animals were like that, their were always boundaries and friendships made better than enemies. Tristan had enough enemies already. The big white dog slowly moved towards him. Tristan laughed as the slobbery tongue swept across his cheek and he patted Arenett softly. As he scratched behind his ears letting the long hair pass between his fingers he smiled at him. "See we can be friends" He said before looking back up to Keagan. "Firewood it is then"

After pushing himself to the ground Tristan made his way to Diemi. The large horse was still happily grazing and he snorted in a disgruntled way. "Well now, sorry to disturb you" He said in a mocking way. Moving to the back of the horse he removed a long thick lead rope from the saddle bag. Diemi wore no bridle, and had there been less to haul he would wear no saddle either. Looping the rope around his broad neck Tristan patted the horse. "No wandering off" He said tying the other end around a nearby tree. Diemi would be fine he had plenty of room to move and the rope would hold him, but in the event of a large predator, be it human or beast Diemi knew how to slip the rope.

Tristan took one last look to his horse before wandering off in another direction, his hunt for wood had begun. The ground lay scattered with small sticks and branches, but most of them were rotted or damp, no good for firewood. He was looking for a nice dry log, or if he was lucky a few of them. Glancing back to camp before he left site of it he saw His new found friend moving down towards the lake and Arnett happily standing guard.