Ocean's Breath Plateau i'll be a stone, i'll be the hunter.

The darkness in the sky was beginning to fade to a hazy gray overhead. Where before the black Ostrega had sunken into the black of night, he now stood like an obsidian statue silhouetted against the backdrop of drifting storm clouds. His fur was damp from the rain that had walked with him through the night, but he paid it no mind as he looked out across the Wilds with bright yellow eyes that had pierced the night and now did so also to the gloom of breaking dawn.

Summer had never truly considered one place home over another in his life. His time with his birth pack by the Creek had been too short-lived for him to form any real attachment, and so too had he considered his time in the Teekon Wilds. Sedona had come close, but it had more been his family that he had considered his comfort rather than the actual place.

Now as he stood upon the edge of the plateau, gazing silently upon the lands he had roamed through his adolesence did he believe he felt as though he was returning now to a place where he belonged. It was a faint emotion, and he certainly did not feel as though he were quite there yet. But as Summer eyed the distant peaks that lined the horizon to the South and East, a longing came over him that he had not anticipated. Somewhere, he knew stood the Sunspire - a watchful sentinel standing guard over the whole of the Wilds. It was to those familiar peaks he headed, hopeful his former pack would reside there still but prepared for the fact that they may not be any longer. Ultimately, it would not matter for the dark Ostrega's plans.

Though Summer's heart urged him onward, the young wolf turned from the view to set a course back away from the ledge. He had not rested since dusk the day before, and he was not foolish or headstrong enough to believe that he needed time to rest before starting again. So, he sought a soft patch within the tall grass where he could sleep for a spell.

A part of her had been tempted to drift southward – seeking the company of @Floki, who she had promised to visit upon and together the two would steal away to visit Jorunn at his new pack. Much had changed since that promise – the famine had struck, devastating the Teekon Wilds, and tow litters had been born in Neverwinter Forest in its midst. But even worse – Allure had already seen Jorunn, and he had informed her of her brother’s death.

Unable to relive that moment right now, where she would need to explain to him that she had already seen her adopted brother they shared, she instead trailed to the direction of the ocean, hoping the salt water would help clear her mind. The mountain ranged along the horizon in one direction, and the sea stretched to the farthest expanse before her – truly a brilliant difference in comparison to the ethereal evergreens she lived within.

But with the scent of salt did another come to her, and as the wind teased at her black and white fur, the slender girl paused upon the plateau, her bright eyes casting out across the land before her. She did not see the swarthy male curled within the grass – not yet, and while his presence felt more ghost-like than anything, she couldn’t help but wonder if perhaps the stranger had passed through only moments before.

Summer had just settled down when he sensed someone nearby. Her scent faintly teased the breeze that drifted lazily over the tips of the grass. He was prepared to ignore it until he caught sight of her and his interest piqued enough to rouse him from his weariness. The young wolf pulled himself back onto all fours and sent a low, short tone to her so as to announce himself.

His yellow eyes glinted as he strode towards her. He tried to remain nuetral in his posture, yet impressive. He pulled it off rather nicely until he came within talking range of her, at which point he wilted ever so slightly out of a shyness that he was never pleased to realize still plagued him. It softened somewhat an air that would likely have been perceived as arrogance, and so in a way it was a favor to him, as little as he liked it.

Summer faltered for a moment, unsure of what to say before uttering a gentle, "Hi."

Rising as if he were a dark cloud in the sky, the wolf seemed to appear before her form the tall grasses and foliage below, causing her own form to stop abruptly and stumble. Her eyes widened at the sight of him – betrayed by her nose in to thinking he had passed through before her only moments before, and now she not only felt shame at this realization, but also embarrassment from her reaction.

“H-hi,” she stammered, her own posture like a deer caught in headlights before she tried to recover. The wolf had bright yellow eyes – his dark fur causing them to light up even more. She did not notice the wilting of his own form – instead, she could only note how he had seemingly appeared from nowhere and how large he was in comparison to her own diminutive form. “Sorry. I didn’t see you there.”

The girl seemed nervous as well, which put him somewhat at ease. He gave a reassuring smile to her before standing a little straighter, his confidence growing by the simple fact that he didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable. He shrugged her apology off with a light shift of his shoulders. "It's no problem," he replied, "Not being seen was a little bit the point."

Summer was quiet for a beat then, allowing his eyes to glance over her petite frame before landing upon her eyes. They were just as bright as his, only a brilliant shade of blue that reminded him of sea waves in the afternoon light. "I'm Summer," he said.

He remained casual, and the she-wolf felt her own muscles ease slightly. Only then did she begin to study him, and with a light nod in turn to his introduction, she withheld a gentle sigh as she gained back her nerves. "Allure," she offered then, pausing for only a second. "From Neverwinter Forest." She tagged in her pack, only if to coax perhaps more information from the swarthy stranger before her.

With a nod to the direction of the ocean, she gave an idle flick of her tail, easing her shoulders back in a leisurely roll. "Do you live by the ocean?"

Her name was Allure. Summer marveled briefly over how absurdly fitting it was, which was so much, he thought it might have been a pick up line at first. She struck him as too shy to be so forward, which was endearing as hell, he had to admit.

The name of her pack meant nothing to him. Perhaps he had been there in his youth, but there were many gaps in his memory throughout his time in the Wilds. He had wandered far under the influence of the poppies - something he craved even then though he'd long ago learned to control his addiction. His gaze traveled North as she gestured, smiling lightly at her question.

"No, actually," Summer responded, "The last place I lived barely even had a lake nearby." He grinned faintly, remembering Sedona with fondness. He looked at her again. "I've never actually been a fan of water, to be honest," he admitted, feeling a little sheepish, "Never really was any good at the whole swimming thing."

She considered his words momentarily, thinking back to her own previous homes throughout her youthful life. She had been born upon a mountain, though she held little memory of Nova Peak itself. There had been days when she had been younger that she dreamed of returning with her siblings – they could resurrect the pack once more and it could be much like the days it had been before Jade Fern Grove and the bears – before her parents had seemed to begin to hate each other.

But that thought had long gone now – Whittier was dead, Swift was blind, and now it was just her and Pasha, looking after Scimitar’s next attempt at a perfect family life.

“Have you given it a fair shot?” Her eyebrows lifted slightly, a teasing lilt lacing itself to her voice now as she wondered if he avoided it because of its unfamiliarity.. or if he was truly just a terrible swimmer.

He didn't know her well enough to give anything to know what thoughts were running through the girl's head, but it was still safe to say that Summer would have given a lot to be given a hint. He sensed emotion upon her that she was holding back, and that she had let go of within seconds of his notice. Curiosity had always been a crux of his, but fortunately for Allure, poor manners had not. He would keep his prying to himself.

"You... may have caught me there," Summer admitted with good-humored reluctance, "There's a good possibility that I have little experience in the water.. and it may or may not be because I'm far too vain and don't like having wet hair." He grinned with a flash of his white teeth, brilliant against the stark black of his fur. His yellow eyes glinted with amusement.

She felt a small smile tug at the corner of her lips at his response, her eyes brightening with light mirth now. Suddenly, the awkward air seemed to release, or so she felt, and she found herself relaxing in the swarthy male’s presence. She was not charismatic – nor was she used to the company of those outside of her pack, and yet there was something about the stranger before her that encouraged conversation.

“You’re missing out then,” she mused with a flip of her tail, her own bi-toned muzzle tilting slightly. She herself though had been born on a mountain – and had then resided on other mountains and in forested areas. She had only learned to fish during the famine of their latest months from sheer desperation. “If you’re ever looking for a home, my father might offer you a home – no water expertise necessary in the pine trees of Neverwinter Forest.” She had never invited another to their home before – but what could it hurt?