Blacktail Deer Plateau miles, miles, miles
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@Tryphon

Solveig snarled and the cornered doe balked and lashed out, catching the she-wolf across the shoulder. Pain bloomed across the region as blood welled to the surface of the cut. But she was not to be so easily thwarted. Once more the deer cut left, and Solveig followed like a dog hassling sheep, blocking the escape for the doe. It cried out, the whites of her eyes flashing, and muscles quivering. If she could just find an opening...

What she did not anticipate, however, was the rut.

A well-aimed antler tine caught her in the side and she rolled once—twice! She could smell the musk on the air and feel the wind rush over her as she regained her senses. The buck snorted sharply and rounded up the doe; Solveig watched as she lie there, defeated, while the her quarry vanished into the thicket with her knight.

It was only after the branches ceased to rustle that she rose to her feet, shook the pine needles from her coat, and began to tend to the minor scrape with careful ministrations of her tongue.
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For an inexplicable reason, Tryphon had doubled-back after meeting with Saena and pledging himself to her. Perhaps he wanted to linger upon that ledge a little longer with his thoughts? He could see forever from up upon the plateau, or he liked to think so, and caught himself wondering where in the world Saghani had gone - if she would return to him. But Saena had been right. He had to move on, find something else in life. He clings to what he knows though, for he knows so very little.

But while he is watching the horizon Tryphon thinks he hears something in the depths of the forest — a shriek? A call of some kind, which rouses him from his thoughts. He pulls himself to his feet and begins to meander down from his chosen throne, and comes upon the scene of shapes retreating, and a wolf turned inward upon itself; he sees the flash of a tongue and smells blood, albeit faintly, and is made curious.

He doesn't speak - but he does chuff softly, alerting the stranger that she is not alone, and then casts a nervous look upon the dark path that the deer used for their escape. Would they be back? He'd stand guard just to be safe.
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The wound stung but it would heal just as all the others before. It was her pride that suffered the greatest hurt, as the gnarled twist of her groaning stomach. Winter was roaring down from the great white north; it was not long now until it began to take, and take, and take.

A chuff jarred her--she whipped her head around and her falcon-yellow eyes quickly settled on the wolf who'd made it. She stared, breath held fast in her throat and muscles coiled tight in the event she needed to defend herself. He was not so large but just as muscular as she, with a coat that reminded her of the jagged mountains just northeast of them. His face, however, bore a similar mask of gold and an expression that could never be mistaken for ire. 

Solveig remained where she sat but slowly twisted both ears forward, "'tis foolish to disturb an injured wolf." She remarked coolly, clearly uncertain what his purpose with her was. "Have I intruded?"
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It had not been his intention to bother her; he had sought out the sounds in the brush and seen the retreating darkness, and thought, maybe Saghani came back. Maybe she had followed the herd like they used to. However, she would not know to visit this place lest she had found traces of him elsewhere, and tracked him here. By now Tryphon carried Saena's scent; he smelled of the cliffs and the caves, the pine forest and the musk of wolf he had not carried in some time. If the dark woman had returned, perhaps she would be turned off by Tryphons shifted alliegance?

He kept his eyes upon the section of the foliage where the deer had vanished, and only turned his ears to the sound of the stranger's voice; then his head, as he regarded her carefully but was too nervous to look directly at her for any lengthy period, so he couldn't tell. With a muted tone, almost sounding insincere, he muttered, Sorry, and instantly his body melted into a defferential stance of submission and apology. When Tryphon looked back to where the deer had traipsed, he added, you hunt alone?
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There lacked a reckless foolishness in the other wolf that she'd seen in yearlings before him, and it endeared her a bit to his presence. His eyes remained transfixed on the place where the herd had vanished; she found it curious, indeed, that he did not make a single attempt to even passively affirm his rank between them. Only the subtle switch of his ears told her he was even paying her any mind at all.

She hummed to herself and swiped her tongue over her wound one last time before rolling to her feet and giving her pelt a quick shake. "An opportunity arose." She explained as her fur settled into place. Everything about him bled submission, so she did not bother asserting herself. "There is no pack here. Why are you, a robust young male, without?"
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Robust? He'd never heard the word before, but could assume its meaning. She spoke of his youth so it was likely a comment on his size, and his ears fanned either side of his head with a brief display of embarrassment. Tryphon would always feel like the fat kid at the party no matter how fit the rogue lifestyle made him. Yes, he was big, and yes that bigness was because of his broad figure and ample muscle, but he didn't know that.

The question itself made him shrug. He turned to regard her with a shy (almost skeptical) glance, and again betrayed his nervousness with the swift diverting of his attention to the ground at his own feet. I had someone fer a-while, but... thinking of Saghani always depressed him. As a naturally sad individual, this wasn't much of a change, and he got over it within a few moments. I don't fit. With packs, with people in general... Within his own skin. It was a vague answer but also, oddly, very telling. 

It felt wrong somehow to press her for information, so the socially inept Tryphon fell silent after speaking, and idled.
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Troubled, Solveig's brow knit as she attempted to acertain exactly what he meant. Was he not, in fact, a wolf? A creature built for the Wilds? She raked him over with her hawkish gaze, but found nothing out of the ordinary that would merit a damning sentence of ostracization. It was clear he would not be forthcoming with anymore information without proper prompting. She lashed her tail to vent her confusion; she was a physical being, and did poorly dwelling on confounding social problems.

"The answer is to create a place for yourself." she remarked, stepping towards him with her head level with her spine and her muzzle tilted up towards him. Her tone was so matter-of-fact, it almost came across as condescending. But Solveig was not the mocking sort; she simply wanted to understand. "Your lungs draw air; your eyes still see. What is stopping you?" 
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Create a place for yourself? But he had a place, and that was alongside Saghani. The fact that she was missing did not detract from that sentiment. She was his partner. To find anyone else, any home or any alleigance at all, felt wrong to him. And yet, here he was. Alone, drifting, filled with sadness and in need of someone to fill the void her absence had created. All other places had failed him - or he had failed them, more like. 

The stranger's question might've otherwise invited silence from the boy, but this time he would answer. He wasn't afraid to be plain-spoken at the moment, and was keen to keep his company entertained, so strong was his emptiness. None would want me. he admitted, and while his tone was far from pathetic or sorrowful (rather more factual, as if he were discussing something plain as day), his eyes were sad.

I have tried... But.. there are always problems, he was going to say. Except he knew, deep down in the depths of his heart, he was the problem. He had been corrupted long ago in some manner and, to Tryphon, there was no going back. He breathed a slow and thoughtful sigh out of his nose prior to adding: Of all the places, none felt right. In leaving them, I feel I have... I have doomed myself.