Of course, Auru had seen many places in his life, as short as it had been. His parents had never known the meaning of settling down, of having a home, so Auru had seen everything a wolfdog could imagine, and then some.

He had seen the ocean, even managed to use the fact that he was a pup to beg a snack from a human, and had gotten to play in the waves while his parents went looking for any beached creatures to make a meal of.

He had once seen a forest that never seemed to cease to rain, and he had climbed mountains taller than his own imagination. The sheer fact that his parents never settled down, that walking was their favorite activity, day in and day out, they kept traveling, kept exploring, had shown him so many wonders in this world.

But he had never seen a desert.

Not until now.

And he never wanted to see it again.

He had all but collapsed when he came to the oasis a few days ago, all but falling into the water with the bottom half of his muzzle under the surface and drinking without bothering to get up. Once he had filled his belly with water, he slunk into the liquid, letting it wash over him and soothe his sand-filled fur.

Never.

Again.

No, it wasn't happening.

He may have grown up a nomad, but he would live here forever. He would never leave, not when leaving meant going back out into that hellscape.

He had made something of a nest for the past few days, buried beneath ferns and overhanging canopies as he flattened the small plant life near him, scraping a small hollow in the soil to curl up in and rest his head.

The water was plentiful, and the fish abundant. The scenery was lovely and such a blessing after the hell that was the desert outside. Why would he ever want to leave?

It was... nice here.

Auru Geniven was fast asleep in his makeshift nest when the others arrived, and far too deep in his dreams for their presence to awaken him. By some stroke of luck, he had not been stumbled upon yet, and remained quite unconscious as the other men got settled in, until after several hours, he began to slowly rouse from his repose, his rest finished for the time, and his body deciding it was time to wake up.

The man rolled onto his belly with a great yawn, stretching his paws before him and smacking his lips almost contemplatively as he observed his surroundings with sleepy blinks. He was still too asleep to even notice the fact that the scent of other wolves was fresher now, as opposed to the old, faded scents he had picked up when he first came here.

A dryness in his mouth bid him to rise, and he slowly staggered to his feet before dropping into another stretch, popping his back before straightening and stretching his hind legs behind him in turn. A shake later to loosen his fur from the rumpled stiffness of sleep, and he slowly began padding in the direction of water.

It was only a few minutes of walking before his head poked out of the ferns, the sound of the waterfall drawing him as he emerged near one of the banks of the pool, ready to take a step further towards the water when a flash of white in the corner of his vision caught his eye, and he paused mid-step, looking up.

Oh...

There was... someone here...

His nose twitched softly as he scented the air. Oh, so that was a wolf. He was not hallucinating, that was indeed a wolf. He had just been so bleary that he had yet to notice.

Auru was noticing now.

He quickly stumbled back a few paces, bumping into a tree that caused him to jump with fright before sidestepping and backing up so he was half in the underbrush once more. His heart beat a tumultuous pattern against his ribcage, and he lowered his head, ears wilted as he dared a small glance at the other male, before looking down once more and his jaws working uselessly for half a moment before words managed to stumble out in a shaky voice.

"I-I-I'm s-so sorry... d-do you l-l-live here? I-I-I thought th-this place w-was u-u-uncl-claimed I-I-I was just r-resting I-I'm sorry."

There seemed to be all but no coherence or pauses in the words, all of them spilling forth like one great rush of water after the breaking of a dam as he stuttered at the other, much larger, man.

He hadn't realized someone lived here. But he should have known an oasis like this being unclaimed was too good to be true.

Of course, Auru had seen many places in his life, as short as it had been. His parents had never known the meaning of settling down, of having a home, so Auru had seen everything a wolfdog could imagine, and then some.

He had seen the ocean, even managed to use the fact that he was a pup to beg a snack from a human, and had gotten to play in the waves while his parents went looking for any beached creatures to make a meal of.

He had once seen a forest that never seemed to cease to rain, and he had climbed mountains taller than his own imagination. The sheer fact that his parents never settled down, that walking was their favorite activity, day in and day out, they kept traveling, kept exploring, had shown him so many wonders in this world.

But he had never seen a desert.

Not until now.

And he never wanted to see it again.

He had all but collapsed when he came to the oasis a few days ago, all but falling into the water with the bottom half of his muzzle under the surface and drinking without bothering to get up. Once he had filled his belly with water, he slunk into the liquid, letting it wash over him and soothe his sand-filled fur.

Never.

Again.

No, it wasn't happening.

He may have grown up a nomad, but he would live here forever. He would never leave, not when leaving meant going back out into that hellscape.

He had made something of a nest for the past few days, buried beneath ferns and overhanging canopies as he flattened the small plant life near him, scraping a small hollow in the soil to curl up in and rest his head.

The water was plentiful, and the fish abundant. The scenery was lovely and such a blessing after the hell that was the desert outside. Why would he ever want to leave?

It was... nice here.

Auru Geniven was fast asleep in his makeshift nest when the others arrived, and far too deep in his dreams for their presence to awaken him. By some stroke of luck, he had not been stumbled upon yet, and remained quite unconscious as the other men got settled in, until after several hours, he began to slowly rouse from his repose, his rest finished for the time, and his body deciding it was time to wake up.

The man rolled onto his belly with a great yawn, stretching his paws before him and smacking his lips almost contemplatively as he observed his surroundings with sleepy blinks. He was still too asleep to even notice the fact that the scent of other wolves was fresher now, as opposed to the old, faded scents he had picked up when he first came here.

A dryness in his mouth bid him to rise, and he slowly staggered to his feet before dropping into another stretch, popping his back before straightening and stretching his hind legs behind him in turn. A shake later to loosen his fur from the rumpled stiffness of sleep, and he slowly began padding in the direction of water.

It was only a few minutes of walking before his head poked out of the ferns, the sound of the waterfall drawing him as he emerged near one of the banks of the pool, ready to take a step further towards the water when a flash of white in the corner of his vision caught his eye, and he paused mid-step, looking up.

Oh...

There was... someone here...

His nose twitched softly as he scented the air. Oh, so that was a wolf. He was not hallucinating, that was indeed a wolf. He had just been so bleary that he had yet to notice.

Auru was noticing now.

He quickly stumbled back a few paces, bumping into a tree that caused him to jump with fright before sidestepping and backing up so he was half in the underbrush once more. His heart beat a tumultuous pattern against his ribcage, and he lowered his head, ears wilted as he dared a small glance at the other male, before looking down once more and his jaws working uselessly for half a moment before words managed to stumble out in a shaky voice.

"I-I-I'm s-so sorry... d-do you l-l-live here? I-I-I thought th-this place w-was u-u-uncl-claimed I-I-I was just r-resting I-I'm sorry."

There seemed to be all but no coherence or pauses in the words, all of them spilling forth like one great rush of water after the breaking of a dam as he stuttered at the other, much larger, man.

He hadn't realized someone lived here. But he should have known an oasis like this being unclaimed was too good to be true.

Of course, Auru had seen many places in his life, as short as it had been. His parents had never known the meaning of settling down, of having a home, so Auru had seen everything a wolfdog could imagine, and then some.

He had seen the ocean, even managed to use the fact that he was a pup to beg a snack from a human, and had gotten to play in the waves while his parents went looking for any beached creatures to make a meal of.

He had once seen a forest that never seemed to cease to rain, and he had climbed mountains taller than his own imagination. The sheer fact that his parents never settled down, that walking was their favorite activity, day in and day out, they kept traveling, kept exploring, had shown him so many wonders in this world.

But he had never seen a desert.

Not until now.

And he never wanted to see it again.

He had all but collapsed when he came to the oasis a few days ago, all but falling into the water with the bottom half of his muzzle under the surface and drinking without bothering to get up. Once he had filled his belly with water, he slunk into the liquid, letting it wash over him and soothe his sand-filled fur.

Never.

Again.

No, it wasn't happening.

He may have grown up a nomad, but he would live here forever. He would never leave, not when leaving meant going back out into that hellscape.

He had made something of a nest for the past few days, buried beneath ferns and overhanging canopies as he flattened the small plant life near him, scraping a small hollow in the soil to curl up in and rest his head.

The water was plentiful, and the fish abundant. The scenery was lovely and such a blessing after the hell that was the desert outside. Why would he ever want to leave?

It was... nice here.

Auru Geniven was fast asleep in his makeshift nest when the others arrived, and far too deep in his dreams for their presence to awaken him. By some stroke of luck, he had not been stumbled upon yet, and remained quite unconscious as the other men got settled in, until after several hours, he began to slowly rouse from his repose, his rest finished for the time, and his body deciding it was time to wake up.

The man rolled onto his belly with a great yawn, stretching his paws before him and smacking his lips almost contemplatively as he observed his surroundings with sleepy blinks. He was still too asleep to even notice the fact that the scent of other wolves was fresher now, as opposed to the old, faded scents he had picked up when he first came here.

A dryness in his mouth bid him to rise, and he slowly staggered to his feet before dropping into another stretch, popping his back before straightening and stretching his hind legs behind him in turn. A shake later to loosen his fur from the rumpled stiffness of sleep, and he slowly began padding in the direction of water.

It was only a few minutes of walking before his head poked out of the ferns, the sound of the waterfall drawing him as he emerged near one of the banks of the pool, ready to take a step further towards the water when a flash of white in the corner of his vision caught his eye, and he paused mid-step, looking up.

Oh...

There was... someone here...

His nose twitched softly as he scented the air. Oh, so that was a wolf. He was not hallucinating, that was indeed a wolf. He had just been so bleary that he had yet to notice.

Auru was noticing now.

He quickly stumbled back a few paces, bumping into a tree that caused him to jump with fright before sidestepping and backing up so he was half in the underbrush once more. His heart beat a tumultuous pattern against his ribcage, and he lowered his head, ears wilted as he dared a small glance at the other male, before looking down once more and his jaws working uselessly for half a moment before words managed to stumble out in a shaky voice.

"I-I-I'm s-so sorry... d-do you l-l-live here? I-I-I thought th-this place w-was u-u-uncl-claimed I-I-I was just r-resting I-I'm sorry."

There seemed to be all but no coherence or pauses in the words, all of them spilling forth like one great rush of water after the breaking of a dam as he stuttered at the other, much larger, man.

He hadn't realized someone lived here. But he should have known an oasis like this being unclaimed was too good to be true.

Of course, Auru had seen many places in his life, as short as it had been. His parents had never known the meaning of settling down, of having a home, so Auru had seen everything a wolfdog could imagine, and then some.

He had seen the ocean, even managed to use the fact that he was a pup to beg a snack from a human, and had gotten to play in the waves while his parents went looking for any beached creatures to make a meal of.

He had once seen a forest that never seemed to cease to rain, and he had climbed mountains taller than his own imagination. The sheer fact that his parents never settled down, that walking was their favorite activity, day in and day out, they kept traveling, kept exploring, had shown him so many wonders in this world.

But he had never seen a desert.

Not until now.

And he never wanted to see it again.

He had all but collapsed when he came to the oasis a few days ago, all but falling into the water with the bottom half of his muzzle under the surface and drinking without bothering to get up. Once he had filled his belly with water, he slunk into the liquid, letting it wash over him and soothe his sand-filled fur.

Never.

Again.

No, it wasn't happening.

He may have grown up a nomad, but he would live here forever. He would never leave, not when leaving meant going back out into that hellscape.

He had made something of a nest for the past few days, buried beneath ferns and overhanging canopies as he flattened the small plant life near him, scraping a small hollow in the soil to curl up in and rest his head.

The water was plentiful, and the fish abundant. The scenery was lovely and such a blessing after the hell that was the desert outside. Why would he ever want to leave?

It was... nice here.

Auru Geniven was fast asleep in his makeshift nest when the others arrived, and far too deep in his dreams for their presence to awaken him. By some stroke of luck, he had not been stumbled upon yet, and remained quite unconscious as the other men got settled in, until after several hours, he began to slowly rouse from his repose, his rest finished for the time, and his body deciding it was time to wake up.

The man rolled onto his belly with a great yawn, stretching his paws before him and smacking his lips almost contemplatively as he observed his surroundings with sleepy blinks. He was still too asleep to even notice the fact that the scent of other wolves was fresher now, as opposed to the old, faded scents he had picked up when he first came here.

A dryness in his mouth bid him to rise, and he slowly staggered to his feet before dropping into another stretch, popping his back before straightening and stretching his hind legs behind him in turn. A shake later to loosen his fur from the rumpled stiffness of sleep, and he slowly began padding in the direction of water.

It was only a few minutes of walking before his head poked out of the ferns, the sound of the waterfall drawing him as he emerged near one of the banks of the pool, ready to take a step further towards the water when a flash of white in the corner of his vision caught his eye, and he paused mid-step, looking up.

Oh...

There was... someone here...

His nose twitched softly as he scented the air. Oh, so that was a wolf. He was not hallucinating, that was indeed a wolf. He had just been so bleary that he had yet to notice.

Auru was noticing now.

He quickly stumbled back a few paces, bumping into a tree that caused him to jump with fright before sidestepping and backing up so he was half in the underbrush once more. His heart beat a tumultuous pattern against his ribcage, and he lowered his head, ears wilted as he dared a small glance at the other male, before looking down once more and his jaws working uselessly for half a moment before words managed to stumble out in a shaky voice.

"I-I-I'm s-so sorry... d-do you l-l-live here? I-I-I thought th-this place w-was u-u-uncl-claimed I-I-I was just r-resting I-I'm sorry."

There seemed to be all but no coherence or pauses in the words, all of them spilling forth like one great rush of water after the breaking of a dam as he stuttered at the other, much larger, man.

He hadn't realized someone lived here. But he should have known an oasis like this being unclaimed was too good to be true.