Sleepy Fox Hollow Why don't you just meet me in the middle?

@Negiliq forward dated to 6/24

Taki had been traveling for the last three and half days in search of her brother. The last two days had been spent trekking the unforgiving terrain of the mountain range she had decided to cross. That was probably why she currently felt like she could cry looking upon the meadow she now found herself in. 

She hadn't given herself much time to rest over the last three days. She had tracked her brother all the way to the mountains and then through them. His trail was faint, but Sia had done a damn good job teaching her how to track, so she was able to follow his trail as muddled as it may be at this point. 

The meadow was a welcome sight to this road-weary traveler. She was tired and hungry and so thirsty, but she couldn't decide which need was more pressing. She came upon a small stream at the opening of the meadow and the dilemma was solved for her as she gratefully gulped down mouth-fulls of water. It had been almost an entire 24 hours since she had last found a water source, so she greedily drank her fill before sitting back on her haunches to sleepily take in her surroundings and decide what her next course of action would be.

@Shivali @Siarut @Tahani @Tomkin for reference

The biggest oddity Negiliq had found in the southern lands were most definitely the coyotes. Not that she had never seen a coyote before, they were actually abundant around Kuak AkKutik, but for some reason southern coyotes seemed far friendlier here... In fact the elder Inuit had spent the better part of the last year living with a small family of them after losing track of Chulyin. They fed her, cared for her and listened to her advise, and despite having this wicked image of their species all her life, Negiliq found a home with that particular bunch.

But they were hard to keep up with and with every passing day Negiliq's step was slower. She was old, she had to cope with that, and an important thing to do if she didn't want to die of fatigue was, naturally, resting.

A stream of cold water was an opportunity she simply could not let pass, so with a weak and difficult bark she notified her friendly hosts that she would take a few. If they heard her she honestly did not know, but there was little else she could do aside from walking down to a stretch of the creek that was conveniently shaded by a beautiful maple tree to loudly slurp a few good sips of sweet, cold water. Then she sat back in the shade, tongue-out panting to regain some energy before she tried reaching the coyotes again. But before she did, though, she found herself staring a white wolf a few yards away from her. How didn't she see her before!? Chulyin! she barked gleefully, confusing the wolf, which was no one she really knew, with her young relative, who was probably the only reason Negiliq was this far south at all.

Taki had watched the older wolf walk to the water, drink, and then sit back much like she had done. As she was considering whether or not offer a greeting, the unknown wolf excitedly called out to her. She didn't recognize the word she used. She searched her vocabulary in both languages and came up blank.

"Um...What?" Taki said in her accented English as she rose to her feet and began making her way towards the similarly colored wolf. The wolf's words seemed excited, not aggressive, so Taki had no reservations about approaching her. The other wolf also looked similar to her family members, which caused a pang of longing in her chest. She missed them and was eager to find their missing brother and bring him home.

With great effort Negilig got her boney ass up to take a closer look. But to her surprise it was not Chulyin who she'd found, but a complete stranger that she'd managed to make more confused than herself. Seeing no harm in introducing herself to a kind soul Negiliq sat down again at a closer distance, close enough for her old eyes to make her out and said Oh, I'm very sorry my dear, with a heavy Inuit accent, I must have confused you with my niece, I haven't seen her in so long... she added and let out a chuckle that soon became a bad, raspy coughing. Damnit she cursed in Inuttut, and then looked back up at the other wolf with a wrinkled smile, Forgive me, I cannot seem to get rid of this cough for the life of me...

The elder woman did not notice the thick accent in the other's voice, but could you blame her for having bad hearing?

Th older female had confused Taki with a family member. "It's okay," Taki replied with a smile. The other wolf started coughing, then, and Taki's brows furrowed in concern. Her concern was soon forgotten, though, because the woman cursed in Taki's native language. Her orange eyes glowed with excitement as she asked, "You speak Inuttut?" She was pleasantly surprised. She hadn't expected to run into a stranger that spoke her native tongue; at least, not this far from home. "Oh, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?" she asked remembering the older women's coughing fit. She had rudely dismissed it in her excitement.

After struggling to get past the coughing Negiliq looked back at her company with teary eyes as she sat down with a tiresome sigh. Suddenly she was being spoken to in her native tongue and Negiliq's face lit up with a warm smile. But of course! she said with a raspy chuckle that came too close to becoming another cough session.

I'm fine, thanks dear. she assured, shaking her head. But she couldn't get past the excitement of having found a fellow Inuit so far south. So you're from the northern regions, I suppose? What might you be doing this far south? she asked as she laid down her chest on the ground comfortably and a smile almost covered her eyes with wrinkles completely. She was determined to have a long and detailed conversation with her new friend.

She smiled at the pale female and gave a slight wag of her tail before sitting down. "Yes I am. My name is Takiyok. I came here to be with my siblings," she replied in a friendly voice. "I miss home, though." Well she missed certain things about home like the weather and the rest of her family, excluding one in particular she didn't care to ever see again. Pushing that from her mind, she smiled at the other wolf and asked, "What about you? What brings you this far south?" 

It was strange hearing someone speak in her native tongue after so long of being among common speakers. But the sole sound of the words rolling off from her mouth were like music to Negiliq's ears. They felt warm (or cold?) and sweet as home. Well it seems we're like-minded wolves, she said with a smile. I also came to find a family member. Chulyin, she wanted to conquer these lands, she said and chuckled. She was proud of Chulyin, just as she was proud of herself for having made it this far and still be alive. We found a beautiful place — a glacier not too far north from here, perfect to start the pack she'd always dreamed of. But she was restless and my ass too slow to keep up with her. she explained. Was she talking too much? Well, she always talked too much.

Taki's ears perked at the mention of the glacier. Was there actually a place like that near here? She longed for the cold weather of home. She looked to the other female with excitement on her face. "A glacier? Can you tell me more about it?" Maybe she could check it out while she was out searching for Tomkin. The thought reminded her, "Also, I'm sorry about your family member. It's hard to not know where a loved one is." She worried constantly about her littermate and whether she would be able to find him. He had definitely come this way. She could still pick up his faint scent in the area, and he was just as able as she was to survive the mountains.

---

The mention of the Glacier had obviously been of interest for the young girl which Negiliq hadn't anticipated. But before she could expand on the description the girl herself cut her off to make a polite mention about family, which in turn awakened Negiliq's own interest and maternal sense. That comment had obviously been personal for her, which worried the old woman a bit. The glacier is a beautiful place... she said smiling after a moment of thoughtful silence followed by a detailed and lengthy description of what she had seen of the glacier and its surrounding territories in the short time she'd been there. ... It would have been so perfect for Chulyin's pups, she added at the end, thinking about how now she would probably never see the next generation of Apaatas rolling down the lupine-flower meadow or tell them stories about the northern lands with the titanic glacier on the background. What a shame.

---

Taki listened quietly as Negiliq talked about the glacier and how she wanted to raise pups there with her family. That pretty much made up her mind. Whether she found Tomkin or not, she was going to travel to this glacier and scout out the place.

The pale female's last comment made Taki crease her brow in concern. "When is the last time you saw her?" she asked thoughtfully. Maybe she could keep an eye out for her while she was out looking for her littermate and scouting the glacier.

---

At the Glacier, of course, was the answer to the girl's question. but don't worry about that, I'm sure she's better off without me, she added, knowing that youthful Chulyin would hardly find any use in an old sack of bones like herself. She was a burden and that was perhaps the reason why she had abandoned her at the glacier. She didn't blame her, she had still much to live and she had no space or time to deal with dead weight.

Once again Negiliq finds herself coughing. She knew she hadn't much time left. With a sad, yet warm gaze she looks at Takiyok to smile. You'll have to excuse me, my dear. I should find my companions, they're probably looking for me already, she lied. She knew she wouldn't see the coyote band ever again, nor would she have the chance to find her way back to the glacier. After excusing herself Negiliq would get up and wander away to a place where no one could find her. There she would settle to see her last sunset and sleep to never wake again.

Tonight she would reunite with the spirits to finally shine her light upon the land.

---

sobs
thanks for the thread. Omg T.T

:'(

Taki nodded at the woman's departing statement. "I'm glad I met you. Thank you for telling me about the glacier," Taki replied smiling. She now had a another reason to be on this mission. She was going to scout out the glacier whether she found Tomkin or not. If everything worked out as she hoped, she would return home with her brother and with news of a new place that was like their old home. 


Giving the older wolf a departing nod, Taki turned and headed in her intended direction, glancing back to smile at the nice female before finally disappearing in the distance.