Log Date: 4/13/96
Log Cast: Hillock, Slate, Thicket
Log Intro: It's been a few turns of the seasons now that Slate has
maintained his guardianship of the reclusive Wolfrider Thicket. Between
searching for his missing sister Lily, Slate has hunted for Thicket,
and made her clothing; in her turn, Thicket has grown grudgingly
accepting of the other elf's presence in her territory. She is darkly
aware that her ability to hunt and make things for herself has been
hampered -- and although she would never admit it, she appreciates
the offered help.

Now, though, there is a new stranger in Thicket's territory, and,
suspiciously, the old she-wolf goes to check this newcomer out....

----------
Hillock sends openly ** I'm Hillock. ** She notices the startlement. ** I'm 
  just hunting in the area...I hope I haven't disturbed anything. **

Scrub paws slightly at the ground, eyeing the strange, obviously slightly 
  nervous, wolf. He snorts audibly.

Slate relaxes a fraction. . .**No. . .You're not disturbing. It's just. . . **

Tracker quits growling at the no hump after receiving an icy glare from slate.

Hillock cocks her head. ** Just what? ** She tucks the bolas back away, 
  picking up the spear to lean on it.

Slate sends openly ** I'm not used to others. . . **

Hillock nods understanding. ** Well, I won't be here for too long, if you'd 
  like. I just stopped for a drink and a swim. It's rather hot, after all. ** 
  She smiles and cocks her head in a friendly way.

High up in a tree's branches, a shadow crouches in the concealing leaves.

Slate sends openly ** It's allright. . . **
Slate looks around. **She doesn't like others much, either.**

Hillock looks up towards the shadow. ** She? **

Slate nods. **My. . . .I guess you would call her my friend. . .**
Slate follows her gaze toward the shadow. . .

Hillock looks around again, then into the trees. She indicates the shadowy 
  movement.

Slate sits and sets the ravvits next to him. **That's her. . .**

There's a glint of eyes. Or something... the shadow does not move.

Hillock nods to it. She smiles up into the tree. ** Well, I'm certaily nothing 
  to be worried about. <chuckle> **

Slate shakes his head and begins cutting into one of the ravvits. . .**doesn't 
  matter. ..It took me a turn to even et her to tell me her name. . .even 
  longer to trust me the little she does.**

Hillock nods in understanding, looking about her thoughtfully. ** Why's she so 
  afraid? *

Slate sends openly ** she's lived alone for a long time. . .others make her 
  nervous. . . **
Slate finishes with the ravvit and wraps the carcass in it's skin. he stands 
  and walks to the edge of the forest surrounding the clearing and sets the 
  meat high in one of the trees a few paces into the forest. He returns.

Hillock nods understanding, looking off to where you set the meat. "I guess I 
  can understand that..." She shrugs.

Slate begins on the second one. "I usually can eat with her, but since you're 
  here, she'll stay to the trees, watching. When you leave, she'll come back. 
  ..That's how she is.

Hillock chuckles and nods some understanding to that, again. "Although I still 
  say there's nothing she'd have to be afraid of...I think a wolf pup would 
  bite harder than I ever could." She grins.

Slate divides the second ravvit into two equal sized pieces. . . ."That's 
  beside the point. She almost ran when she saw my sister. it took a long 
  conversation to get her to accept her being here. . .Thicket sees everything 
  as a potential threat.
Slate says "no matter how insignificant."

Hillock raises her eyebrows. "Thicket? Did you say Thicket?"

Slate holds out the ravvit. . ."Yes, thicket. You want this?"

Hillock nods distractedly, thanking you with a nod of her head. "Cliffdancer 
  told me about an elf named Thicket..."
Hillock squints up into the shadows, as though trying to get a better look at 
  the elf there.

Slate nods. "I know of him. . ."

Up in the leaves, the shadow leans a little, as if to squint back at the 
  stranger.

Hillock smiles wryly. "He's mentioned Thicket, alright...although I haven't 
  seen him in a while."

Slate shrugs and looks up into the trees, idly munching on his ravvit. . ."She 
  talked of him once. . ."

Abruptly, the leaves rustle. An elf drops down into view, her eyes narrowed 
  supsiciously at Hillock.

Slate nods. "hello, thicket."

Hillock tears off a bite of her own ravvit and nods at Slate. She then blinks 
  at the elf who's suddenly dropped into sight.
Hillock looks at you for a moment.

Thicket barks, gruffly, "Saw Cliffdancer. When?"

Hillock looks thoughtful, then shakes her head. "Last time I saw him 
  was...quite a few turns ago. He and Mudstick both." She shrugs.

The new elf's eyes remain narrowed, as she sniffs intently at the stranger in 
  her territory. "Where Cliffdancer then?"

Hillock shakes her head again. "I don't know. Like I said, I haven't seen him. 
  Although if I know him, he hasn't gone too far..." She shakes her head. "I 
  can't believe that he's dead. He's out there still, somewhere..."

[End log.]