Qeya River What’s meant to be will always find a way.

@Shivali ! :)

It had been a while since he had left the Sanctuary and had his talk with Lily, his mind had other thoughts now. He was beginning to find himself finally and be comfortable with who he was. Yeah, on the outside he was a big brute of a male but on the inside it was soft and sweet like Laffy Taffy. This time by himself had let him become who he knew he was but didn’t act like because he was surrounded by others who he felt like wanted him to be strong and push his feelings away.

Steele had been wondering through the night making his way through different types of lands. As the sun peaked its head over the horizon he saw a river in his sight. His mouth became dry at the sight of the water, how convenient of a time. Slowly he made his way to the base of the water hole. The rocks seemed a bit slippery as he neared the place, they were shiny and smooth. Carefully he placed a paw over one and confirmed his thought about them. His thirst was bigger than his fear right now and so carefully he made his way to the water.

I am SO SORRY this took so long, I'll be much better now!

Shivali enjoys the first few days of rest. Once, she’d been curious of the world, but she’s moved too much in such a short span of time, she doesn’t care to see what’s out there. The glacier offers plenty and she can stay with her family and her children and adjust to the new way of things, completely different than how she thought everything would turn out. But the days tick on and she explores their new home and eventually, since there are others she trusts to watch her children, she can explore the immediate surroundings. She’d explored a bit around the Woods, previously, but it hadn’t been great desire. She didn’t see herself there for long, either, regardless of her connection with the leader, but something keeps calling the glacier home long before she’s accustomed to the new land.
 
She steps foot outside the territory for the first time, leaving the children in the care of @Tahani and @Mirabelle, with the excuse she needs to stretch her legs and no real destination is offered. With no desire to go too far, she finds water. The temperatures are a little warmer further from the ice but she shakes it out, having sorted through the heat of the summer in the woods and during their journey. A little while won’t hurt too much.
 
Dark eyes set upon another and she lifts her head a bit, taking a step closer to the lake and traveling the rocky, icy bank. She makes no effort to close the distance, or approach, content to see what he does along the exiting river.

As he bent his head down to take a sip of the cool liquid, there was some rustling happening but it didn't phase him his thirst was bigger than his fear that something was there. After he lapped up a few mouthfuls he then looked up only to see a beautiful white wolf, his eyes analyzed her. It seemed as though she didn't mind him being there and so he thought that would be perfect for him to try and talk to her. "Hello, I'm Steele." he said softly trying not to be alarming to her.

He took a few steps away from the water and then shook his pelt. "Please be careful on the rocks, they are super slippery." he said worrysome that she might slip and then he'd have to dive in after her. The brute took a few steps closer to her so that if something were to happen he'd be closer and could save her faster. The look on his face was of worry.

There’re a few wolves within her new home that do not have the same tongue and she’s reminded the glacier isn’t fully like home. It never will be and she’s accepted that as well as she can. So when she hears the common tongue of the other wolf she sighs, then smiles a little, and nods again. The rest of what he says is mostly foreign to her and she glances over her shoulder, hoping one of her brothers had followed along to help but there’s no sight or smell to them, so she refocuses on Steele.
 
“I’m Shivali,” she says on a thick tongue, but nothing else. She doesn’t move any closer, letting him close the distance between them, but watches him carefully.

Steele wondered where she was from, it obviously wasn't from around here but he wasn't biased against anyone or any place. He was pretty open and would like to know why she had an accent. The brute stopped a few leaps from her and then sat down on her rump. "You have an accent?" it was a bit of a question just in case he was wrong. His glowing amber eyes watched her carefully making sure she wasn't going to fall or be in danger. 

His face had lightened up toward her. The brute was calm and collected, he had only met a couple of wolves since he left and this would be another. It made him excited to get to know another soul, but his mind wondered to when he interacted with Nym and how it didn't go so well. This time he would only go closer if asked and be more polite than ever.

Her head tilts slightly to the question, nodding slowly. The last few months have been back in her native tongue that anything she’d learned in Blackfeather Woods was mostly lost. “Y-yes?” she answers, uncertain that’s the proper answer. She really needs to work on it, especially with pack mates that do not share the same language and leaving a barrier in her new family. “I not great with, um,” she starts, licks her lips. Her heart beats heavy in her chest and she hopes for the best. She doesn’t have to hide herself, though, as she had with other wolves but she still worries about their safety.
 
“Home,” she informs, turning her head behind her to the twin peaks, separated by a glacier, overlooking them now. “You?” she asks, curiously.

Steele was in fact correct she did have an accent one that he seemed to not have heard before. “Oh okay, I don’t have a home. I’m a loner.” He said looking behind him, the whole world could be his home if he so chose it to be. Shivali had a home though, he didn’t smell any wolves so far so they must be a ways off from them. “Do they speak the same as you?” He asked softly hoping she would understand since she said she wasn’t good with the language or that’s what he thought. 

Steele’s eyes settled upon hers. This was going better than he had originally hoped. He didn’t want to bombard her with questions or sentences just yet, so he would ask her about her home after she answers him. He was trying to be as polite as possible so that he didn’t scare her off.

He doesn’t belong to a pack, she can deduce that much, and when he poses a question she slowly nods. “Most,” she states. Mirabelle is about the only wolf she’s spent time around that does not share the same tongue. The others have kept their distance and she hasn’t gone out of her way, either.
 
Shivali looks down at her feet and then the water, before deciding it is best to get out of danger. “This way?” she suggests, moving further from the lakeside to where the ground feels more secure beneath her feet.

It was foreign to him, most of a pack sharing the same language or the same anything but food. His brows furrowed as he thought about everyone sharing her same accent. It seemed odd to him but he wasn’t about to say anything. He nodded as she told asked him, this way, and then he waited for her to go first.

The brute only followed behind to just to make sure she didn’t slip or fall in. When she was safe he went away from the rocks also and took another seat still keeping his distance from her. “What kind of pack are you with?” He asked curious to know about her family. If she could do it in small words to help her that would suit him fine.

The man is considerate, and nice, and in a way he reminds her of Kove. He’d always been polite to her, prior to her heat, and made her feel as comfortable as possible. Until he’d gotten what he wanted, she supposes, and even then she’d taken them out from under him. Her children grow each day without a father but she prefers the alternative, with other men in their life as better role models and a family that loves them.
 
Steele’s curiosity continues, asking questions about her pack. She glances back, trying to determine if he has motive or if he’s truly invested. Her brows knit together and she forces to look away, to pay attention where she is going. “My family,” she tells him, slowly coming to a stop when the ground turns from rocky to hardened soil.

Steele would be careful not to pry if she becomes a bit pestered by his questions. My family, she said and he nodded. The brute understood that it was her family, he felt like she was being a bit protective of her home. That would be the way he would be if he had a family, protective, so he gave her respect for being that way. 

He dipped his head so she would know that he respected her and her family. “I see... can I know more about you?” He nodded at first and then asked about herself instead of her pack. If this went well maybe he would find a friend in her and be able to come back to visit her in the future. Steele wasn’t trying to think to much ahead so he pushed the thought as he waited for her response.

Shivali comes to a stop and turns to face her company, so insistent to stay with her. It doesn’t necessarily annoy her; she’s used to little gremlins following her around and asking her questions. But they could understand more of her language than this man can, and certainly more than she can understand of him. So she awkwardly smiles as he speaks again, further uncertain through conversation. “Me?” she asks with a slight tilt of her head, searching his respectable features for an answer. Even knowing their barrier, he tries and she finds more frustration in it than he likely finds information.

Steele looked at her and nodded briefly almost like a yes you type of nod. He was interested to know about her and why she was out here alone if she had a place to call home. He sees that she might be a little frustrated in his talk. “Anything” he said hoping that she would understand he meant anything about herself that she would want him to know or would like to tell him.

We should have a new one if/when he's accepted? :)

Brows knit together as she stares at him. Anything. Anything what? Shivali takes a deep breath, her heart beating heavily in her chest. “I am sorry,” she tells him, frowns, “I not know.” Clunky words hopefully get the message across. She’d separated from her familial pack to experience the rest of the world but since the return of her family, she’d been sucked into comfort, but she hadn’t expected any of it to actually happen. Shivali releases the breath, turning away. “I should go,” she says, words heavy on her tongue; there’s so much more she’d prefer to say but she’s too embarrassed by the struggle.

yes! That would be perfect

Steele hung his head a little as she apologized because he knew it wasn’t her fault, it was his own for not knowing any other languages but his own. “It’s not your fault. It’s mine.” He said softly almost at a whisper. As soon as he said that she wanted to leave him. He figured it was because she wasn’t good with words. He gave her a soft look and then smiled, “youre okay if you’d like to stay, but I won’t keep you if you need to leave. I’m very patient if you need time. “ he said nodding saying it slowly so she could understand and he wouldn’t overwhelm her.

The brute speaks and she smiles a little, confident enough to know what he’s getting across. She looks at him a bit longer and finally nods, taking a step back. Her kids are old enough they don’t need her but she misses them already, having only stretched her legs a little in her time away. “Goodbye,” she says and lingers a few seconds before turning back and taking the long way back to the glacier.