The Sentinels Time has come

y'all wanna come meet Tansy?

After her tour with Rowan, Tansea found herself wandering alone. The territory was just as beautiful from the inside as it had been from the outside. The trees were gigantic, so large Tansea had to frame her head back to see their tops. There were fallen trees in some places so huge she couldn't even climb on top of them.

Tansea slowed as she reached what must have been the heart of the territory, a grove of roses that made her smile as she passed through its entrance. The perfume of the roses was strong and Tansea found herself sniffing at some of the roses as she passed.

The dryad sat, a peaceful expression on her features as she breathed in the scent of the flowers.

ooc: welcome to the pack!

Almost two months ago a swarm of locusts had destroyed everything that was green and flourishing in the area, leaving little hope for survival to the folks that resided in the valley. However, nature had proved itself to be a hardy being, for, when you looked around now, it seemed almost impossible that this lush oasis had been a desert for several weeks.

Osprey too - during her breaks as a doting and caring mother used to spend some time on her own - had been drawn by the smell of roses. The first instinct had been to believe that her mind was playing tricks on her. And then, when she saw them with her own eyes... it was like a miracle. Yet the flowers there were not alone - a young wolf was their company. A new face, which made Osprey make a mental mark to Dante this evening about them and Lucani being the only oldies in the group now. 

"Hey - you must be new here," she said in a friendly manner, approaching the girl confidently. "What should I call you?"

thanks!

Tansea is not alone for long, joined by a middle aged woman of grey fur. She took on a submissive stance, not wanting to offend any of those in her new home. The woman seems friendly enough as she approaches, Tansea returning the smile easily as her tail picks up a wagging gesture.

"I am Tansea, though some call me Tansy," she introduced herself, nodding slightly. "What's your name?" 

"I am Osprey," the elder replied. "It's nice to meet you," she added, though she herself was not sure, if saying also that "it was always great to see new faces around" would be particularly true. Things changed so much lately that she found it hard to adjust to them right away. 

"How did you come to this corner of the world?" she then asked, genuinely curious about the story behind the name.

The dryad smiled slightly, nodding as if to say 'you too.' She was unaware of the inner turmoil of Osprey's mind much like she was unaware of the drama between Aria and Rowan. Tansea was new after all and it was unlikely she would know the cause of these types of inner workings unless she figured it out for herself.

"I had a different belief than those around me thus I was forced to leave," her smile was a bit strained now, the summary of events leading to her banishment sugar coated.

"Ahaa... this sounds familiar," Osprey remarked, thinking that the girl's name reminded her of the Sirensong cove, their inhabitants and beliefs that, though favorable to the women, were sometimes unneccessarily harsh. Perhaps the girl came from a similar background, but that the elder would soon find out. 

"And what belief system do you follow?" she questioned further, hoping that the girl would be willing to quench her curiosity. "In my five years of life I have met all kinds of people, therefore you should not be afraid - I won't judge you."

Tansea cocked a brow slightlt, wondering how it sounded familiar. Surely Osprey could not tell so much about her from the simple words. Even so, her story was not so uncommon was it? The nonbeliever ostracized by the cult and chased away, bearing the brunt of their attacks as they fled? It was not such a rare event, at least not where she was from, a land where heretics were forced out with violence.

"I believe in the Earth Mother and the Father Sky," she explained, a simple version of her religion, not the in depth version taught upon her conversion. Perhaps it was to be a short conversation if Tansea kept up the single sentence answers but the dryad could not find it in herself to change her quiet nature.

Some people say that after the Greeks had written down their myths, nothing new has appeared in the story-lines. Whether this statement is true or not - we can discuss it long, but the point of this is - history keeps repeating and while the circumstances might be different, the story essentially stays the same. Had Tansea elaborated on the matter, Osprey could relate to the reasons that led her to leave her birth pack. Her brother Tyrannus wrath and hatred for all of the other males in the back. Him driving them aggressively out one by one... wasn't that similar? And in a way familiar too?

"You are not the chattiest one, are you?" Osprey asked, tilting her head to the side and smiling. "You have caught my interest - do tell more!"

"I'm afraid not," her gaze fell to her feet shyly, though the smile remained fixed on her face. She had always been quiet, even as a child or so she was told.

Her head came back up, a brow cocked as Osprey admitted her interest in Tansea's religion. She was willing to teach the basics but her mentor had taught her long ago that the path only be completely revealed to those wishing to walk it. 

"My teacher, Crozie, she worshipped nature. She had a belief in respect of the world, wanted to leave the world better than when she found it," Tansea smiled fondly at the remembrance of the woman who had saved her life. She was practically Tansea's mother, had cared for her more than her biological one did.

"She passed the same beliefs to me, it was more tangible than anything I ever heard before," Tansea admitted, glancing at the forest she had been drawn to in the first place. There was power in it, of that she was sure.

"This is interesting," Osprey remarked, finding herself even more intrigued by Tansea's religion.

"I have done some travelling during my lifetime and I once met a group, who called themselves the wind nomads. They had their own unique belief system and they believed there was a soul found in every living being. It sounds a little bit familiar to, what you are telling now," she had liked the group and had her heart been more set on the nomadic lifestyle, she would have joined them. Yet there was a promise to Perry that she would return and you had to keep it, if you made it.

Interest colored her face, nodding in time with Osprey's words. She had never met anyone who practiced the same religion outside Crozie, though maybe if she had come across these nomads earlier on in her travels she would not have been in Donnelaith. 

"I have never met any that believed the same things I did, nor close to my beliefs. Things may have turned out differently though I don't wish it to happen," she admitted, happy with her choice in joining.

"The world is a very big place," Osprey replied. Even she with the inherited "wanderlust gene" and paws that had trodden thousands of miles, had seen just a small fraction of it. Sometimes the knowledge that there was so much she did not know yet was a little scary too. Made you feel very small. 

"But you are right about not meeting anyone, who practiced your beliefs," she agreed. "Many people live all their lives believing in nothing. Religious folks are a minority after all."

"That it is," Tansea agreed with a light chuckle, getting to her paws as her head cocked to listen to another valid point made by Osprey. "Also true, we are indeed a small number."

"I believe I will go seek out the rest of the territory, get a feel for it," she said, moving to leave the grove and pausing near its entrance. "If you wish to come, I won't mind the company."

"I will be happy to act as a guide - I daresay, I know this and surrounding areas as well as my own den," Osprey joined the girl, feeling glad for the prospect of being useful to her. 

"Have you been to the ocean-side yet?" she asked as they took a well-trodden path through the woods. "It's great in all length, but I won't lie, if I tell that Donnelaith has claimed the best chunk out of it."

Tansea nodded, following after Osprey. It was probably best that the older female lead her, rather than ending up lost and confused.

"I have not but hopefully I will soon," she said, padding after the grey woman. 

sorry it's so crappy, end soon?

ooc: whatever works for you - we can continue too. Osprey can be quite a chatter-box, when she is in the mood. :)

"Well then, what are we waiting for," Osprey smiled and quickened her pace, suddenly feeling very eager to see the beach again too. Not like she hadn't been there before. "If we are lucky, we will certainly be able to tickle some mermaid's tail," she continued as if mermaids and sea-folk in general were just as common as... well... sand, for example. 

"And it is said that the sea-serpents are also quite active around this time of year," she liked the idea of meeting those beasts too. It had been while. "If you had to choose - which water-dweller you would like to be?" Osprey asked.

Tansea blinked in surprise, not expecting that they would be going right this moment but soon recovered and continued to follow after Osprey. 

"I have no idea what either of those are," she laughed lightly, the strange names baffling her. "Perhaps you could explain?"

"Water-dwellers, mermaids or the sea-serpents?" Osprey asked, but did not give much time for the other girl to reply, because she was glad to share her knowledge about both. 

"There are many kinds of sea-serpents, but most of them look like gigantic snakes. That live in the sea - as the name suggest. The most known are Jormungandr and Apophis - and they are quite nasty, but there are a lot of kind and sweet folk among them too."

"Mermaids - they look like half-fish and half-naked bear like. You have to see one, in order to understand. It's hard to explain. They are considered to be very beautiful, but if you ask me..." her expression was skeptical. 

"And by water-dwellers I mean - any creature that calls water their home. Starting with a teeny-tiny sea-weed and ending with the huge giant whale."

Concentration etched to the witch's face, putting the information to memory. One never knew when she might need the stories of sea-serpents and mermaids again. 

"Fascinating," she breathed, awed by the strange creatures who dwelled so close to her home.

"Can't say I would like to meet a sea-serpent," Tansea joked with an airy chuckle before deeply considering what kind of sea creature she might be. "I believe I might be a sea horse." 

"What of you?" She turned to Osprey, curious what creature she would be.

"Dragon. Definitely a dragon," Osprey replied with a knowing smile, stopping briefly to listen and sniff the air. They were very, very near. You could almost hear the waves from this point. 

"They also live in the water, though they look a lot different from the regular air or earth types. Strong fins instead of legs, round bodies and long necks. Light blue in color and with a gentle demeanor, though you should not try and test their tempers. They can blast you with ice."

"Lovely things to behold and..." she spotted the sandy shore between the trees and, finding it hard to contain her excitement, she cast a glance at her friend, telling her to follow, and then dashed forward at full speed. A good two hours of scavenging and sea-tales awaited them.

ooc: would you mind fading this out in your next post? Thank you!

Tansea padded after Osprey, listening silently with great intrigue. The dragons sounded far fetched and yet, Tansea found it easy to believe in them. She had always been an open minded woman, if witches could exist then why not dragons?

Osprey broke off midsentence, leading Tansea to follow after with a wide grin as she plunged into the salty water. She resurfaced with a soaked coat, eyes cast heavenwards as the witch silently thanked her deities for bringing her to Donnelaith.