Sleeping Dragon our backs tell stories no books have the spine to carry

There has been a lot happening OOCly and some of it is unresolved but I didn't want this delayed any longer since it is tied to an already active thread. This is to be light and fun and I hope you guys enjoy it. :) Gifts are encouraged as well as other foods such as fruits or small game. In addition, this is a mandatory activity. You're welcome to have assumed your character to be in the hunting party! Please reply by Saturday, December 3rd. @Dio @Wildfire @Freyja @Gyda @Gavriel @Hush @Portia @Rosalyn @Tanja @Chessur @Thyri @Hvitserk @Eske

Thuingwethil and the rest of Drageda have waited long enough. The elk has begun to wither away without a proper life and the wolves were anxious. With everything going on, especially since the night the moon had been large and the ground shook beneath them, one after the other kept getting pushed back. But now, they needed the time together more than ever and Wildfire is beginning to heal. Around them, winter is upon them, but the warmth of the dragon has held it off for a while longer but now they are to welcome it. She called her wolves together, a number of them coming together to plan how to take the elk down. The geyser field is to their advantage but one slip up can put one of them in the same position, with most of their face (if they were lucky) burnt off from a geyser. The elk is no easier to look at, blinded from the accident the night of the quake.

Between her most able wolves, the elk fell. The body laid on the ground behind her, still warm, enticing, and as the hunters settle near the other wolves that have gathered.

“This is our first Winter. Drageda saw the ending of the last and Seageda barely saw the beginning of the last,” she begins, looking across the group. Drageda did not get by sticking to the laws but if they had, would they be here now? “It will be the first of many and with it we welcome Wintam Dina so that we may see the other side. A lot has happened in the last few weeks but it still has brought us here to this—” she gestures the kill behind her. She’s silent for a second as she refocuses her attention. They’ve had a few newer wolves in the last few weeks, Chessur and Tanja among them, and she hopes this will help bring them all together.

“Eat!” she encourages, as she turns to break bread—or meat—with her comrades.

There was to be a feast. He was excited by the thought of the pack coming together, sharing food before winter forced them into a collective sullenness. It would be a great time to foster relations with those he did not know: the new wolves especially.

Hush caught a bushel of pika, five of the small plump rodents that scurried along the mountainside. Recalling something he saw long ago, the mute gathered juicy fruits at the foot of the mountain and in the Maplewood — berries, mostly — and stuffed them into the carcasses. The berries squished easily, practically covering the rodents (and Hush) in berryjuice, adding to their flavor. When Heda called them together, he proudly presented his treat — sweet and savoury — nudging one towards Heda and Wildfire, and one to Gyda, his present to them. The other three he left in the pile for the others to try.

Freyja had checked in the elk daily and had quickly seen it wither before her eyes. Temptation to go in and end its miserable existence was something that she fought in the days of trapping it, but soon enough, her Heda gave the goahead. She stepped in line with the rest of the hunting party with a plan to take on the creature. Though it was relatively easy to take down with the party, given the advantage of the geyser field, Freyja couldn’t help but stare at the blinded beast.

She found her gaze still glued to it even after the group pulled up to the feast. Once it had been placed, Freyja broke off from the group and sat herself near the prey as she wondered when @Hvitserk would get to the clearning. She only broke her gaze away as the Heda spoke. Wrapping her tail around her forepaws, and listened. When the group was told to eat, Freyja lingered despite her temptations, allowing the group to eat before she did. Though she was often territorial about food, she knew that this was a different circumstance and should be treated as such.

She would have liked to be part of the hunting party, yet Wildfire was still recovering. The many shallow cuts, scrapes and bruises littered over her body were knitting well, especially thanks to Portia's due diligence, but the larger wound on her thigh would take longer to heal properly. It had swollen a bit painfully overnight and upon waking this morning, Wildfire couldn't resist the urge to nibble at the scab. She knew Portia would probably yell at her later but when she peeled away some of the dead skin, it wept pus and released some painful pressure. She cleaned the freshly broken skin carefully.

By the time of the gathering, the renewed bleeding had stopped and a new scab was already starting to form. Walking very carefully, Wildfire made her way to join the group. Upon arriving, she settled beside the commander, leaning her weight on her good hip and stretching out her opposite leg to let the ugly lesion rest. When Thuringwethil called for the group to eat, she didn't move. She simply watched, a quiet smile on her lips.

When Hush approached, Wildfire looked at him a little apprehensively, immediately feeling awkward. He presented a small rodent which smelled strangely sweet. Gingerly, the Bandrona bent down to sniff at it, her chestnut eyes flicking up to Hush as he retreated. She managed a grateful smile, then glanced over at the commander to see what she made of the treat.

Chessur had known the feast was coming, and had thought about what she might bring. She had never been the sentimental type, so she wasn't about to bring pretty flowers or anything of the sort. And she didn't want to show up with something too small, so Chessur had caught a raven, a foolish bird who'd stayed on the ground far too long. When she had arrived at the feast, she'd tossed her kill upon the pile and walked away. This was meant to be a light and happy meeting, and normally she would've put great effort into trying to bring an impressive gift but not this time. Here, the only person she wanted to impress was Heda. Everyone else was either a trusted friend or an 'outsider', as she still believed the non Trigeda wolves to be. Suri was a close minded bitch sometimes.

Hunting side by side with the others had allowed her a little more room to respect. They'd brought the ruminant down with such ease, she almost felt like she was back at home again. When they'd finished, she waited patiently, staring respectfully up at Heda. She observed the others as well. One in particular caught her eye. A tiny red female, clearly injured, who went and sat by Heda. Was this the Bandrona she'd heard about? Heda's mate? Suri wasn't quite sure she approved of the relationship, it was very uncommon and against tradition for Heda to have a mate. However she still had faith in Thuringwethil, and trusted her. Plus if that tiny red wolf brought her Heda happiness, she would try her best to understand.

Soon Heda called for them eat, and a hungry Suri obliged. She was not one to hang back and watch the others feast. She walked forwards proudly, after waiting her turn of course, and ripped whole heartedly into the carcass. It's meat was hot, delicious, and she practically drowned herself in it. When she'd finished, she backed up and waited for her clan, for her Heda.

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The dragon child had found the hunt to be the most thrilling aspect of her pack life. It had been truly instinctual – carnal to the point that she had longed for the chase once it had finished and they had scored their mark against the prey animal. The lingering emotions that fluttered about inside of her had caused the young girl to distance herself from the others. It had been an intended moment of joyous celebration; they were to share the blood of that beast they had slain, and yet she watched with pale eyes as the wolves gathered around their meal and they hungered for the taste of its meats. Thyri was an observer, if nothing else. She had found herself keen on the thought of knowing her fellow pack mates merely from watching them, studying from a short distance. Though it had kept her from forming relations, the storm chaser did not see this as an issue. Instead, she found strength in her isolation.
 
While the others moved toward the kill, she hung further back and prepared herself for a moment in which she could approach the meat and steal away a chunk of it without forcing herself into a social interaction. Her eyes lingered on the slate coat of her sister and she curled her lip in disgust. The distaste that she felt for Freyja had not dampened in her time of growth. The others ate and Freyja waited with a tiresome patience; as if she were proving her worth by denying herself the food that she hungered for. Thyri could join her in her game of resolve. With a dutiful expression, the wolf of thunder placed herself nearby and cast a sharp glance toward the Feisripa with a brutal defiance.

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Due to her current status of hanging around the geyser fields, Rosalyn had seen what happened to the unfortunate beast and added yet another danger to this (honestly rather inhospitable?) place.  She tread much more carefully round the areas where warmth touched the ground, having no desire to be the water's next victim.

They gathered when it was finally time to dispatch the poor creature, but Rosalyn did not participate.  She teetered, and time grew short.  

But when the leader called the pack, she rose reluctantly.  She did not bring anything, but when she arrived and saw the pile, she thought perhaps she should have.  Hadn't even crossed her mind.  With a small chuckle she shook her head, then sat down with little ceremony.  She'd wait; others in the pack, those who had contributed, could start in first.

He had kept himself at a distance from the rest of the pack for as long as he could have, but Tanja had always known that he would have to face the music at some point. He had not been far from the geysers when the howl filled his ears and with a quick trot over to a hollow log, the man pulled out his treat he had kept stashed away for the hunt. A honeycomb he had been fortunate enough to find the prior day, though his reward was not gained without a few stings here and there.

He arrived soon after retrieving his treat and placed it next to the pile where hopefully nothing would become stuck to it. Tanja only thought it fair that he help take down the beast that would fill his stomach, but in his selfish nature he also thought it reasonable that he be one of the first to eat since he had contributed in hunting it. So when Heda allowed for them to feast, Tanja was quick to go in and pull away a slice for himself. 

He tore away at the flesh until none remained and when finished devouring his meal, he moved to sit beside Chessur and offered her a friendly nudge to the shoulder. He glanced around to the others and forced a smile to his face for any that might have looked his way. He was not in the mood for socializing, but he figured the least he could do was act like he was enjoying himself.

Portia was extremely excited for this meeting, practically dancing her way to Heda when she heard the call. She collected herself, however, when she got close. Unlike Chessur, Portia did actually bring flowers. In her jaws she carefully held a bundle of flowers. It was getting pretty cold, so the Skayona had originally worried that they would die off before the meeting, but she'd taken them inside her den and paid extra special attention to them-- and they faired well.  She placed the flowers at their feet, giving them each a humble bow and a playful smile, still finding great joy in their outed relationship. "Lavender, sweet pea, and field daisy," she offered before headed back into the crowd, eyes scanning for Dio.

She didn't see him right away, but assumed he would be sitting with Wildfire and Thuringwethil-- so she sat alone instead.

When Heda gave the go ahead, Portia moved quickly to take her share and back off a bit, letting the larger wolves and the hierarchy take a bigger share of the meat-- they did deserve it, after all. She then turned, looking instead for Chessur-- opting to sit with her, giving the woman a bright and friendly smile. Even though the woman really didn't seem to like her, Portia was determined to not let the Kru replace her, and she figured a good place to start was to at least make the other like her. Easier said than done, maybe. 

While it feels like only a blink since the warmth of the summer, winter's come upon them in full finally, cold and quick just as he's always known it. But his spirits stay lofty this turn of the season, something simply encouraged by the bounty spread before them to celebrate this Wintam Dina.

Together they made short work of the elk and next, his attention falls to the commander as he settles nearby her for the time. There remains the faraway memory of his last winter, so very unlike the one he faced this time around. It almost feels like more than a year since then. Yet, soon, the Dragon will have stood for one full year, and not long after that it would mark his anniversary among their lot as well. Just as Heda had said, this would only be the first of many.

But, introspective nostalgia aside, his lips watered and the hunger he had worked up pinched at his belly. Soon enough, it was time to feast and he dug his teeth in, being more than content to eat his share among the comrades of the Dragon. When the meal began to taper off, he drew back to observe quietly (lingering halfway on a few of their newer faces sometimes) and groom up a bit more. When he felt satisfied with that, he drifted silently to a seat beside Portia, opposite Chessur, and greeted her with a soft nudge before he waited to see where this all would go next.

Even though they had an advantage against the elk with their numbers against the weakened and disabled beast, Gavriel doesn’t come out entirely whole as things began to settle. He’d somehow managed to be stepped on and so his gait turns out to be more of a hobble as he settles himself nearer to his wife so that he can take pressure off his front leg for a few moments and listen. The speech is short and sweet as the wolves, eager as ever, are nearly drooling over their winter welcoming dinner. Even his own stomach cries out in protest to the meal before Heda gives her go ahead and eat.

He makes his way into the crowd to take his own shake and it is when his stomach protests a second time and he nearly has to roll himself out of the chaos so he can once again reorient himself.

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They made quick work of the hunt, even though most of the wolves Gyda knows to be strangers to her. She knows of some of their names and vaguely of their faces but not all. Whether they had come to the Dragon while she was indisposed with her almost full grown children or more recently she cannot say. At one time she knew almost every wolf that resided within her borders but that felt like a lifetime ago now and it was no longer her duty to know them. She was no longer a Queen and that duty fell to the three leaders of Drageda now. In the rush of the moment Gyda had not noticed that Gavriel had been injured and the guilt roils in her stomach, worry fluttering within her chest as she sees him limp towards her. Before she can ask him what she desires Hush draws her attention and the shield-maiden watches with a soft smile as the near silent half-breed approaches her with a rodent dripping in what she assumes to be berry juice. “Thank you, Hush,” Gyda speaks softly to him when he lays the gift at her paws and she watches him deposit the others he has brought for the group.

Gyda misses her chance to ask her husband if he is alright as he approaches the elk and the shield-maiden ghosts him. Her eyes divert from the prize as chaos swarms it to her two daughters stand defiantly away. Gyda is not sure what has transpired between Freyja and Thyri — truthfully she'd spent more time worrying about Freyja and Eske the latter of which had made her rivalry with her eldest sister known and wonders if she has been worrying about the wrong sibling the entire time. Gavriel very nearly rolling out of the chaos re-catches the shield-maiden's attention. She approaches the elk herself where she can find room and tears off a chunk before she retreats sitting it beside the gift of Hush which she sniffs at once, savoring the sweet scent. In some ways, this reminded her of the Winter Solstice celebrations that Ragnar had held and she had carried on in Odinn's Cove; and though the differences are many it brings a fond smile to Gyda's face.

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Eske hadn't joined the pack hunt, instead favoring a solo hunt of her own. She'd caught the scent of a fox, familiar to her as it was, and had tracked it down and brought it to a swift end. It wasn't the fox that had antagonized Freyja but Eske hoped that her silver sister would appreciate the irony of her gift to the pack nevertheless. It wasn't much but it was what she could manage to scrounge up without missing the celebration entirely. As it was, she was fashionably late to the party. A quick glimpse around had her gaze touch Heda and the other leaders of Drageda, then to her parents before her gaze touched upon Freyja, who sat back from the kill the others seemed intent to devour. Whether Freyja saw it or not Eske offered her a toothy grin around the limp fox that hung betwixt her jaws before she laid the body down near the elk before she retreated. For a moment her gaze sought her other siblings, noting Hvitserk's absence. Her gaze found Thyri who radiated defiance as she stared at Freyja and Eske felt her hackles bristle. Freyja was her rival thankyouverymuch. As Eske was having none of that, she boldly moved towards Freyja, and if the silver girl allowed her, sought to offer her a rare, albeit affectionate bump of her muzzle against the eldest's chin. “hei sis,” Eske grinned, offering a flash of her teeth at Thyri. “gyon au choj op.” Eske encouraged Freyja. It didn't seem right that she had yet to take her spoils from what was her prize, too.

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Never had the boy taken to hunting, finding the task to be uninteresting despite how necessary it was. He’d not partaken in the hunt, nor had he really paid much mind to it. His focus had remained elsewhere, gaze trailing out over the land beyond the pack’s claim. He was curious about what could be found out there, and had been ever since his short trip with Twix—speaking of her, when was the last time she’d been spotted? He couldn’t recall, but also hadn’t spent too much time thinking about it. The thoughts were easily replaced by whatever images his imagination could come up with, various sorts of land formations rising up along the earth as he looked it over. Hvitserk wasn’t at all interested in becoming a scout, but he was still curious about the region and everything beyond it. He’d thought to venture out into the unknown, and had nearly done so, having only stopped thanks to a silent reminder of his lessons. It had been with a shake of his head, and some reluctance, that he’d abandoned the idea of a journey and turned to seek out the others.

As Hvit arrived, he’d quickly noticed just how many had come before him. With his ears pulled back, he’d attempted to creep up alongside Freyja, totally attempting to play it off as if he’d been there all along. As for the elk, he’d ignored it, wanting to hang back until his favourite sister moved forward to eat.

Sorry for the delay. Life kinda... got away from me, unfortunately. I am going to set the next round until next Friday, November 16. You can reply multiple times in a round so hopefully we can get a flow going? :) @Dio @Wildfire @Freyja @Gyda @Hush @Portia @Rosalyn (I don't know if you want to keep up with this?) @Tanja @Chessur @Thyri @Hvitserk @Eske.

The flow comes in staggers. No one gets in to another’s face too much and some wait for a while for a space. Once her own stomach is full, she packs up and cleans off her face before returning to the crowd. She doesn’t see the gift Hush has brought just yet but she does look around, absorbing each one for a few seconds, but as Portia appears and drops off a bundle of flowers, she feels a slight heat burn her cheeks. She nods her thanks, watching as she settles near Chessur and Tanja, followed by Dio, and a smile wraps itself around her muzzle. When she turns to Wildfire, she bumps her nose with a few wags of her tail and immerses herself into the group. Those that did not go right away for a meal, she hopes to see them take their fill. Thuringwethil feels rather weighed down by the large meal but in the company of her own wolves, she feels comfortable enough to let her guard down.

She turns to see the group of puppies—at least, most of them—as they had yet to take to dinner just yet, but her eyes travel off toward Thyri in the distance. Her grey eyes narrow, stiffening her form but she coaxes the tension out of herself and put it aside.

Heda moves from Wildfire’s side with a departing affection—and invitation to follow, if she pleases—and approaches Portia, Dio, Chessur, and Tanja. “Hei,” she greets with a wave of her arched tail. “When everyone has eaten, we will separate the head to signify Drageda’s first Wintam Dina,” she tells them. Her voice is loud enough that everyone could hear nearby but she liked the idea of a souvenir. They’ve made it this far and there’s no turning back now.

Gyda thanks him for his gift, and the mute's smile widens. He was still fond of the former Viking Queen, and made that fondness clear in any way he could. But he didn't crowd her presence, especially when there were others to greet. He strides over to the pups, recognizing two: Hvitserk and Freyja. He prods them both with his nose in a greeting gesture, pairing it with a chuff. Hush weaves through the spacious crowd, nodding to the others before finally taking a piece of the fox Eske brought, falling upon it as if it had been the famine all over again.

While the rest of the pack feasted on the elk's carcass, Wildfire turned her attention back to the dead rodent. She gently lowered herself to the ground, keeping her weight on her right hip. She then tossed a foreleg over the dead pika and began to gnaw on it. As she slowly ate, her eyes followed the others' movements, particularly her mate's. She would have liked to accompany Thuringwethil as she socialized, yet the Bandrona knew it would be wiser to take it easy.

Her chestnut eyes continuously drifted back and forth over the group, gaze finally coming to rest on the pups. Three of them were gathered close together, with Thyri hanging out in the background. Wildfire paused in her consumption, licking her chops and watching them. She wished she wasn't such an invalid, as she would have liked to go over to them. She was incredibly close to Freyja but felt like she barely knew the others. She wanted to remedy that.

But her injuries really restricted her. She sighed quietly, pushing aside the rest of the small carcass and resigning herself to a bystander role. Wildfire was just glad that she was able to sit and observe, if not be more involved. At least she wasn't den-bound or worse. Despite her current limitations, a small smile settled on her lips.

When Chessur had seated herself, it hadn't taken the others long to come beside her. She was joined by Tanja, who she was glad to have with her, and then Portia and a male she didn't know. Tanja nudged her shoulder in a friendly manner, and Suri returned the gesture but with more force than he. She wasn't completely stoical all the time, and today of all days was good enough to show her warm side. She gave him a slight grin, then turned back to face Portia and the other male. Portia greeted her with a smile, and Suri responded with a nod. She meant no harm by it, but it was a bit of a detached greeting.

Heda came to the small group and explained what they'd do with the head. Suri liked the idea, even though she wasn't really one for sentiment. She looked back to her small group, shifting closer to Tanja to make room for Heda if she wanted to sit.

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Lurking in the background, as was typical of the storm-chaser, Thyri watched as Eske approached Freyja and spoke something into the slate-sister’s ear. Narrowing her brows and frowning, the child of thunder drew her tongue across her lips and muzzle with lightly bristling fur and snorted. She did not need to hear the words that were shared among her siblings, for she did not believe that she belonged with them. The only one of the young dragons that she truly agreed with was Hvitserk. Even then, his closeness with Freyja had left Thyri with a sickened feeling in the pit of her stomach. She knew that she did not belong with the rest of the Drageda pack… her actions had even warranted a sharp eye from the Heda. To this, the young girl ducked her head out of view and prowled around the outer edges of the group.
 
Pale champagne eyes flickered upward as their inky leader addressed the crowd and made mention of beheading the beast in favor of a trophy. She spoke in the tongue that they were all to understand, but the Goufa thought it strange that they would keep that portion of the kill. It was not her place to question, though, and Thyri thought it best to keep herself out of trouble’s eye. Still, she did not move forward to share in the meal that was provided; she opted to wait. In that time, she continued to prowl along the outskirts of the group, keeping her eyes fixed on Freyja.

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Soon enough Freyja found herself in the company of her brother and sister. Smiling at Eske’s arrival, Freyja drove her nose to the Goufa’s dark cheek in way of her own greeting. Her eyes sparkled as she looked to the aspiring warrior, all too happy that she seemed to be getting along better, and in that moment she was truly happy. It was in that moment that she also realized that Hvitserk had suddenly appeared at her side. Smiling widely, Freyja brought her muzzle to nudge at her brother’s cheek.

When both siblings had been greeted, Freyja brought  herself to a stand. “Sis, bro,” her eyes danced between her siblings as she regarded them. “Oso choj op ogeda.” She would not eat without them. Beckoning towards the kill, Freyja waited for them to stand and join her know that was when she would go and take her share.

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Eske felt Freyja's nose push against her cheek in a silent greeting as she joined her silver sister's side. She wasn't sure why or when, though she suspected it was when they'd truly talked to one another, but she was beginning to lose her bitter feelings associated towards Freyja. It had been all in the name of rivalry and though Eske had certainly not lost her competitive edge she felt a stronger bond with Freyja than she had before. She had learned, somewhere along the line, that she couldn't compare herself to Freyja for they were not the same; and that Freyja's successes did not mean that Eske had failed. It had taken nearly six months to come to these realizations on her own but now that she had she found that she could love her sister and want her to succeed instead of feeling envy and wanting to see her fail.

The same could not be said to Thyri who sat away from them even as Hvitserk snuck in on the other side of Freyja. Eske offered him a gentle woof of greeting though she did not deign to stretch across Freyja to nudge him. Her blue-green gaze slid back to Thyri, watching her coldly, unable to help but feel that if she hadn't spoken with Freyja, if she hadn't came to realize how toxic her jealousy was to both Freyja and herself that she could easily be in Thyri's spot. Once upon a very short time ago, she was. She wondered if she could talk to her champagne dappled sister or if it would even make a difference. Would she even listen if Eske could get her alone?

Freyja's drew Eske's attention and thoughts off of Thyri when she spoke that they — the three of them — would eat together. Eske moved towards the elk and tore a chunk of meat from the corpse, pulling it away to a more secluded spot where she laid down, grasping the meat beneath a paw and drawing it nearer so she could eat without feeling crowded lest she get aggressive with any wolf who was unfortunate enough to venture a little too close to Eske's personal eating space for her liking.

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Chessur's response was less than friendly, but Portia didn't really expect one-- so this was plenty. it was Dio's arrival that brought a wide smile to her jaws, and she nuzzled his cheek sweetly. "have you met Chessur, Dio?" she asked the man, motioning towards the chestnut-colored female. "she is a healer as well," she added, tail waving, her eyes glinting.

soon, Thuringwethil joined them, and Portia greeted her again with a humble dip of her head and a wag of her tail. "can't wait!" she purred happily, nudging Dio with a shoulder. 

It was the young before him that caught Tanja's eye the most. Eske and Freyja were easily recognizable, but the other two he did not know. He figured they were Gavriel's, Thyri and Hvitserk if he recalled their names correctly. Each distinct personality stood out while the adolescents mingled and the gray male wondered why the tawny female chose not to stand with her siblings. There seemed to be tension lurking in the air, but the man assumed it was only some childish sibling rivalry. 

His focus remained on each of the young until Heda decided to approach the group that had joined around him. He hadn't noticed the patchwork female or the ivory wocha until now but he made sure to shoot them a smile if they should look his way. After all this was a celebration and it was only right to put on a smile, even if forced. Though a grin found its way on to his face with ease when Heda said they would separate the head from the body. And Tanja curious thought of how the skull could make the perfect crown.

He'd settled in contentedly next to Portia and basked happily in her merry glow. Now and then he watched the rest of the pack interact, mingle, and the pups seem to ritual something out between them -- something surely sibling related. "Not quite so officially as this," he chuffed, and nodded a better greeting to Chessur since the Skayona had already exchanged their names for him. Of course as one of their guard most formally, he was happy to have another healer among them and let the idle chat go where necessary from there on out. His tail gave a few more happy beats and overall, he was in good spirits as they approached the rest of Wintam Dina's events.