Frankie smiled at her generosity. ”Well, let's see how these squirrels taste first.” he offered, looking at them. ”Think they’re ready?” he asked trying to look at this as a normal situation and not think about what the little animals had looked like before. It was kind of… weird. He knew that bacon was made from pigs and hamburgers and steaks were from cows, yet he had no problem eating that… But this felt different for some reason.
She nodded, "They're ready." While it might have been weird for Frankie, Selina was calm and unbothered as she picked up one of the squirrels on a stick and held it out to him, "If you don't like it, don't be afraid to tell me, I won't be angry or anything." The other one, she took for herself, not very hesitant as she started eating, though she did take her time and not let her wolfish bad table manners come out.
”Ok.” Frankie nodded gratefully as he took the offered… kebob. He was still a little hesitant but watching Selina eating helped to reassure him that it was fine. Finally working up his courage, he took a bite. It was a new texture for him, a bit stringy and a little bland but not unpleasant or completely off-putting. He let out a small hum as he finished chewing. ”It’s not bad. I can see how someone could survive on this.” he smiled a little before taking another bite, being careful of any bones.
"It's not my favorite thing to catch for food, they're always too bland, but they're good if I don't want to take down something big." Bones were a bit of a problem if you didn't catch them in time, but they were easy to spot and easier to pick out and place to the side as Selina did. She definitely would prefer squirrel with water or something to make it less dry, but it wasn't bad.
He nodded a little. ”They probably just need some salt or something.” he suggested before taking another bite. If he had the spices on him, he might have been able to make a quick dry rub to add some actual flavor. As it was, the blueberries had just enough juice to make the dryness bearable… Still an odd combination but he wasn't going to complain.
She smiled and chuckled softly, nodding, "Yeah, salt would be good, though it's not the easiest thing to carry around all the time. Salt and other spices are normally only kept at the pack den." Selina watched the fire between bites, listening to the soft crackles that sometimes came from it and also watching as it burnt through the fuel it had and was soon left to a tiny few flames.
”Makes sense. I have some at my camp too.” he shrugged, almost wishing he had brought some with him. ”But… really, it's not bad.” Frankie admitted before kicking a bit of dirt on the remaining flames to smother them without causing a large billow of smoke.
"It's definitely not anything that I would eat all the time though," She replied, laughing lightly as she finished off her meal and sighed, "As soon as you finish eating we can get you back to your camp." Saying goodbye to Frankie didn't sound fun at all, but she needed to get back to her pack and relay all her information to Alpha.
(Why can I already see her pack investigating the campsite when they get back there?)
He chuckled a little and nodded. ”Yeah. I can understand that.” Honestly, he didn't really want to say goodbye to her yet either but… she had an important job with her pack that she had to get back to. “I’m ready if you are.” he said, looking if there was anything they needed to pick up beside the few leftover blueberries.
(Lol I can definitely see that too XD)
Selina nodded, slowly standing and glancing around to make sure Frankie had everything, "Let's get going then, I'm guessing you want to get back to your camp." She smiled gently at him then once she knew he was ready, started back along the path through the woods to the cave he was staying in. At least the walk wouldn't take too much longer.
(Should we do that?)
”It would be nice.” He admitted with a small nod as he stood up, slinging his backpack into place. He paused for a moment to pick up the napkin and the remaining berries before catching up with her.
(Sure, were you thinking at his cave or his old campsite?)
Once again she settled into walking alongside him the best that she could, looking around the forest to make sure everything seemed alright. Hopefully, her pack would still be up at the den when she got back, that way she could check for Frankie's phone at his old campsite before having to talk to her Alpha again.
(I was thinking of the cave. But you can decide.)
Frankie smiled at her as she walked with him. "Thanks for everything you did yesterday. And this morning. I really enjoy spending time with you." he told her honestly. He thought she was an amazing person and the time he got to spend with her was the most fun he had at this park. "I'm glad we got to meet."
(The cave works)
"I'm really glad I met you and have gotten to spend time with you to Frankie," Selina replied, her smile returning. There wasn't much further to go, but as she walked, the girl slowed, confusion clear on her face as she stopped on the trail and went silent. "Why are they here?" She whispered, glancing at Frankie with a look of worry, "My pack is at your cave, I can hear them."
He slowed down with her, enjoying the walk and getting to spend more time with her until she completely stopped. ”What? Why is your pack…” he asked, whispering as well since he was clearly busted. If they found that he was the one who had been staying in the cave… He had no idea what would happen. Most likely he would probably be brought to the Alpha and… then what? Selina warned him that the Alpha didn't like humans.
"I don't know," She muttered, trying to think up a quick plan, "They can't see you with me, they'll kill you." For a minute she just stood, tapping her foot before hurriedly explaining her plan to him, "Look, I need you to get back to the river, take as long as you need. But as soon as you get there, turn around and start heading back this way. We need to convince them that we have nothing to do with each other, that you are just someone camper." Selina nodded to herself, almost as if she convinced herself that this would work, "I'll come to find you again, but I probably won't get away for a few days…so if you leave..I don't blame you."
He nodded, not wanting either of them to get into trouble. ”Yeah. Ok.” he agreed softly. ”If this works, I’ll still be here. And I hope to see you again.” he smiled, placing a hand on her shoulder before reluctantly walking away. He tried to walk quietly and cover a fair amount of ground to distance himself from the members of Selena's pack before slowing down to a more casual pace.
Selina smiled back at him, carefully brushing a stray twig from his jacket, "I hope I see you again too Frankie." With that she stepped back, watching until he was a safe distance away before slipping out of her borrowed clothes and hiding them just off the trail so maybe Frankie could get them back. She shifted moments later, taking her time to pad towards her pack, acting more tired and hungry than she was to give the impression that she had been scouting for a day. Hopefully the pack, and Alpha, would buy it.
(Do you want to be the pack or do you want me to do them?)
Frankie continued to walk towards the river, though he felt a little bad for leaving Selina… He knew that it was her packmates and she was the Beta, so she shouldn't have any real trouble but he couldn't help but worry.
(If you want to play the pack that works for me :) )
(I don't mind playing a few… I think I can at least handle the one's at the cave.)
(I'm going to play this one interaction with a pack member just so I can get a good response in, but then you can take over :D)
Selina reached the cave within a few minutes, being spotted by a few of the lower pack members even before that though.
"Alpha is looking for you," One of them called to her, their tail wagging and showing that they were happy she was back, "He's inside the cave."
She nodded, then headed to the cave, not stopping as she made her way inside until she was standing only a few feet away from him. "I'm back from scouting, I was told you wanted to see me?"
(Wait! Did you want me to be the Alpha?!? I was thinking I could just take a couple the others…)
(I can do Alpha XD Take whatever ones you feel comfortable with, maybe be a different one in the cave that is looking through Frankie's stuff or something lol up to you)
(Whew… ok. Thanks.)
The other pack member looked up respectfully as Selina approached before going back to sniffing around the camper's belongings. Whoever this human was… they had enough food to last a while. Maybe a month, depending on how much they ate. But why would a human come all the way out here? They normally stuck to the pre-existing campsites the park had. They were loud, inconsiderate, and just the worst.
(lol no problem)
"Report?" A sleek black wolf said, turning to look at her. They were clearly the Alpha, from their stance to how Selina seemed to shrink down slightly in his presence.
"No sign of the northern pack or any rogues, from the lake to Standing Cliff." She replied, meeting the Alpha's eyes for a moment before looking away, "No out of place scents either, no sign that anyone werewolves other than our pack had been in the area for a long time."
This seemed to be enough for the wolf, who nodded and then turned to look around the cave and over Frankie's various things. "There is a human in the area, as you can clearly see. Know anything about that?"
She immediately became more nervous as the Alpha mentioned Frankie's stuff, though lied, "I smelled them around, but never got close enough to get a glimpse of them." It hurt to lie to him, but to keep her new friend safe, she would lie as much as needed.
The other two members of the pack who were with the Alpha, continued to look around though they shrunk a little when the Alpha spoke. There was a reason why he was the Alpha and no one was going to challenge that.
”No sign of any weapons.” the bolder, light gray wolf spoke up respectfully. ”But whoever this human is, there’s enough supplies to last a while.”
The Alpha was silent, thinking for a minute as he turned and paced around the empty space in the cave, "No sign of weapons either means whoever is here is either just a very curious camper, or someone from the government who wants to find our kind." He stopped his pacing instantly, turning to talk to Selina, "Beta, I'm assigning you to watch whoever stays here until they leave. Report to me every night."
She nodded, instantly relieved at her assignment. Selina could easily watch over Frankie or pretend to for a while, without a doubt. "I can do that sir, I'll report anything that might tell us more about whoever this is."
Meanwhile, Frankie had finally reached the river and was pacing back and forth along the bank, trying to kill more time before going back. A part of him honestly would have liked to meet Selina’s pack but… he knew that was insanely risky and would get them both in over their heads in trouble. Even if they pretended that they didn't know each other. He let out a small sigh of frustration and slowly turned back to the cave.