While Menta hadn't ever been keen on hard climbs and steep cliffs for recreation alone the way the rest of her family seemed to be, the Colorado wolf was experienced in them enough to know how to handle this one. Difficult, yes, but she knew the reward would be worth it.
The cream sat now to relish in the reward that she had worked hard to reap, her eyes scouting downwards and out. If it was one thing she wanted to gain - if it couldn't be great amounts of food, for now - it was knowledge of the lands. Yellow eyes searched out, out, memorizing the lay of the land as they scanned. Menta had every intention of being here for a while, and let out a sigh of contentment as she took it all in.
The black Alpha left his pack lands in search of food once more. He was glad to see the lands looked more like they used to before everything was eaten by the locusts, and had every hope prey would return soon, too. But, for now, it was still mostly small prey. Though he occasionally seen larger food, they were healthy, and nothing he could take down on his own. He desperately wanted to try, but knew it would be a waste of energy.
He strolled around Blacktail Deer Plateau, and up the bordering mountain. It was a little bit more of a hike than his own mountain, but his body was accustomed to it, and so it barely winded him. He glanced up, seeing the figure of another wolf, and paused, debating on whether or not to approach. Deciding to, he made sure his body was neutral, his tail not high but wagging in friendliness. He stopped a few yards away. Hello, he said simply at first, gauging her reaction to his presence.
Emberflame Ridge, the wolf fixed in her head. Hushed Willows, where the pack Marauder's Keep resides. Menta played this game for a couple of uninterrupted hours, filling in the information Asterr had given her with the physical locations, long after she felt comfortable that she had gotten them all down. Again, she quizzed herself, again. It had taken her a while to get to this particular ledge and the cream wanted to make sure it was worth the day she had dedicated to this venture.
A noise behind her halted this game, the game that had long been for sport rather than necessity. And so it was with cautious amusement that Menta discovered that there was a black wolf behind her as she craned her neck around - black or white, she told herself, as those had seemingly been the only two options for pack wolves around here so far - and offered a small smile. He was wagging his tail, and so quickly she did as well. Friendly approach was met with friendly regard.
Hello, she replied, deciding that it was rude to stay seated as he stood. Menta slowly got up onto all fours and shifted her body to face more towards him, shaking the back left leg that had fallen asleep while her brain was distracted. Perhaps she had been sitting there a touch too long. The smells coming from him did not register as Ryūjin at all, although they spoke plainly of a pack. From what pack do you come from? she inquired, ever after more information to store away.
The white female craned her neck around to look him and he smiled, showing his friendliness. Big or not, Steady wasn't one to start fights over nothing, but he would certainly end them. She returned his friendly greeting, and it seemed a mutual acquaintanceship was started. She stood and turned her body around to face him, and he closed the distance a little, though was careful to try and not intrude on her personal space.
I'm Steady, Alpha of Silvertip Mountain, he said, answering her question and adding his name. Ear perked, he cocked his head a little to the side. What about you? Her scent smelled of a pack, though not one he had yet to come upon. Then again, it wasn't often the Steady left home anyways, and when he did, it wasn't for social reasons. He usually found his food and went back to the packlands without ever having seen another wolf, let alone socialized with one.
Alpha, Menta registered and fought the immediate obedience so well bred within her that her head and tail only moved down a slight bit more in respect. He is not your alpha, she reminded herself, but the uneasy guilt still bubbled in her gut. Wolf packs back home kept their territories - and their alphas - far away from each other, and so she had never been exposed to a stranger-Alpha and wasn't sure just what proper courtesy was expected.
Menta Spezia, she replied, of pack Ryūjin. Her tongue, so used to Italian and English, had been surprised by this utterly different sounding pack name when Asterr informed her and even now she felt she spoke it a touch too slowly in an effort to get it right. Asterr is my alpha, the female informed him, pleased that at least that name was easier.
Which mountain is Silvertip Mountain? the cream asked curiously, hopeful that it was perhaps one of the unnamed distant mountains she had seen from her perch.
He smiled when she introduced herself. Nice to meet you, Menta, he replied. He saw the way she had lowered her head and tail, though only a fraction. His own were held in neutral positions, his tail wagging in friendliness. He wasn't usually one to assert his dominance outside of the pack lands, since really no one held a position above any other in a neutral territory anyways, and attempting to do so would only start trouble. I haven't heard of Ryujin before. Where is that? he asked. Steady knew he really needed to get out more. He made a mental note to remember the name of her Alpha, Asterr, in case he ever needed it.
She asked the same about his own pack, and Steady turned his head in the direction of his mountain, motioning to it with his muzzle. That tall mountain, there, just Southwest of us, he said, before turning back to the female. His home wasn't very far and easily seen from this viewpoint.
Down a bit, Menta responded, a grin spreading across her face at her own joke as she relaxed slightly in the black wolf's presence. There was no prideful demand of submission, no cocky smack for not reacting appropriately or groveling. The female turned her yellow eyes away from him to look back over the long view she had been inspecting before. There, she said with a pointed nose, Sunbeam Lair. A happy wag of the tail was given as she spoke her new home's name.
And so her eyes and muzzle followed the direction of his as Steady designated the location of Silvertip Mountain. Not very far at all, Menta noted, although she knew that being so high up could make for deceiving gauges of distance. I'm new to these lands, the cream wolf confessed now. It was a good excuse in why she didn't know all of these things already, although perhaps she cared more than he - the female loathed being ignorant for too long. I was up here trying to get a good handle of just where everything was.
Not that she knew the names of much beyond Sunspire Mountains, but at least this gave a good view. Menta turned her muzzle and grin back towards the black wolf - alpha undoubtedly meant more knowledgeable, and perhaps he was in a teaching mood today. Are you from here originally? she asked hopefully, testing out the waters. Perhaps the answer would be the very same mountain - as her own family passed down the same rough outline of land from alpha to alpha - but from what she had learned so far, wolves around here liked to travel. The foreign idea of it filled her with both nerves and excitement, giving her even more reason to have a good working knowledge of these lands.
He grinned at her joke, thankful she was relaxed enough to make one. Steady knew he wasn't the smallest of wolves, and he could intimidate others without meaning to. His tail wagged as she motioned towards her own home. No wonder I' haven't heard of you- I haven't been out that way, he confessed. Steady was more of a homebody, especially during the famine, and hadn't seen the need to waste energy going out and about. But, he was glad he had today.
She confessed she was new and trying to get a view of the area as much as she could. Steady's gaze looked out over the lands. You picked a pretty good spot for it, he said, commending her on her choice. It was a high spot, above the trees, and they could see for quite a ways.
His gaze went back to her when she asked if he was originally from here. He shook his head side to side. No, I grew up in a pack west of here. My brother started this pack, and I came out about nine months ago, he replied. He had settled in easily with Fitz as the Alpha, looking up to him and learning from him. He never imagined he'd be without him. Where are you from? he asked.
Menta nodded her head at his approval; The Wall had turned out to be an even better vantage point than she had been anticipating. While Asterr had told her about the existence of The Wall - and its ominous name - it was easy to see it looming over in invitation of a climb. The Colorado wolf had utilized ledges just like this one and in this manner many times in her past, but she was pleased that a wolf who lived on an actual mountain could also appreciate this view and the effort put into getting to it.
Nine months is quick time to go from newcomer to alpha of a stable pack, she said, Congratulations. It didn't dawn on Menta's ignorant brain that the road to leadership was not always a happy one -- at home, ranks were gained by tussles and gradual undertaking of more responsibility, and they were always a cause for great pride. While death was an inevitable natural part of life, she had been gifted and perhaps unnaturally lucky to not have to experience it with any wolves too terribly close to her.
Where would her family's home be to him? Menta almost spoke of her family's pack name, or even her mothers, but had to bite it back - that certainly wouldn't make any sense to him. Southeast, some, but not very far, she finally settled on, not entirely satisfied with her weak answer despite it being the best she could immediately come up with.
Do you like it better here? she inquired in earnest. That was the question, wasn't it? Menta was certainly hopeful when it came to herself, and she had been picking what she considered to be the best lands to explore first in her want to fall in love with them - that sense of home she was after, the sense that she had yet to fully understand.
She commented on how quickly he gone from being a newcomer to these lands to the Alpha of a pack, and he couldn't help but frown. Steady knew his rise to the top was purely circumstantial, and done out of necessity, not because he had wanted it. Thank you, but it wasn't planned. Things happened, the pack needed someone to step up, and I was the logical choice, he admitted. He couldn't picture his life any other way now, unless, of course, he could have his family back. He'd be more than willing to give up his leadership position if it meant having them back.
She claimed her former home was Southeast from their current position, and he nodded in response. Do you ever visit there? He felt his families home was too far for a quick visit, and he didn't want to leave the pack without a leader for too long. But, if hers was closer, maybe she got that luxury.
He didn't have to think of his response before answering her next question, nodding. I do like it here, he said. There's a different kind of land for everyone, whether it's mountain, valley, or water, and I've made some great friends, who I consider family, too. He had family back at his former pack, too, but it just seemed a bit different when you picked the ones you called family instead of being born into it. The bonds didn't seem to be taken advantage of nearly as easily. Do you like it here? he asked, returning her question.
Menta was surprised by the responding frown -- her congratulations had been mostly mindless, and it still didn't quite occur to her that perhaps not all leadership positions were attained through triumph. Some were not fit for leadership - herself probably among them - or seek them, but she had never before found a wolf where being an alpha was thrust upon them. That being said, she hadn't met many alphas at all.
He seemed to accept it graciously, in any case. The cream wolf blinked a few times and caught up with him as he carried on the conversation, not wanting to inquire further in what might be a sensitive subject for whatever reason. It's only been a few months since I left, she murmured, shaking her head. Menta felt like quite the inexperienced pup around here sometimes in the area and hadn't quite carved out a sense of home or even deep relationships, but she wasn't sure she would have a party waiting for her if she cared to visit her birth pack either.
There is a lot of varying land here, she agreed easily. Menta was used to the predictable back home, and found herself cautiously excited about the change. I don't know many wolves here yet, she said casually, a statement without emotional charge one way or the other, but I do very much enjoy exploring the lands. Hopefully not to the extent that it irritated others - her nose was always on guard for scent marks - but it seemed like all the wolves around here felt fairly free to travel.
He was glad that she didn't respond more about his leadership and the way he had gotten there. It wasn't exactly something he wanted to drudge up, even though he often did in his head. It was always harder to say aloud, and yet it was hard to push out of his mind, too.
She said she had only been here a few months, and he figured she had come right about the same time that the famine had. You got here just in time for the famine, then, he said aloud. He still wondered how far the locusts had gone inland, but he never wasted the energy to find out. It wasn't pertinent information, and he had his pack to look after here.
She confessed she didn't know many wolves here. Steady smiled. Well, now you know one more, he said, speaking of himself. If you like to explore, you'd make a good Scout, he commented. Just like Niita, he thought. He missed her when she was gone, but he figured it would simply make his heart grow fonder of her, if that was possible.
The famine. He spoke of it like an event, a title given over to the lack of nourishment in the area. So that was what was going on. Menta exhaled a small breath of relief - so this was not simply the way things were here. It seemed too desolute to keep so many packs comfortable, and now she knew that it wasn't to be expected - and so hopefully, times would change soon again.
That relaxed thought and relief in mind, the cream wolf returned his smile. She was glad to have his implied friendship offered, and her tail gave a few wags of physical manifestation of such appreciation. The smile turned into a proud half-grin when he remarked that Scout would be a good role for her to undertake. I was thinking that Scout would fit me, she admitted.
The idea of designated roles is new to me, but it seems all the packs here have them, so it must work out well. Back home, there were wolves with more skills than others in certain areas - but it was simply known, not necessarily a title that they affixed. Do you particular specialties on top of being alpha? she asked curiously.
She spoke of designated roles being new to her, and he nodded. They seem to give the wolves something to focus on, something specific they contribute to the pack, he explained, giving his own opinion. Scout, for example, can be important to find out where herds might be going, or if new packs are claiming territories nearby. Oh, that reminded him, he had yet to visit Neverwinter Forest.
I hold the Guardian specialty, and I'm working towards Counselor, he replied. He felt they fit him. He had always been protective of the pack, and no one had ever told him he gave bad advice. He liked being able to help his pack mates in more ways than one.
Wasn't sure where else to take this -- fade out and new thread sometime soon? <3
Guardian. That certainly seemed like a commendable role, although it was a fool of a wolf in Menta's mind who wasn't vigilant for intruders in their own pack. Although, she realized with a grin, it left plenty of space for wolves who wished to roam away from the home base to explore - not so very unlike what she was doing currently.
The idea of a counselor wolf was new to her, although she supposed there were of course wolves back home that she had always known to be wiser and more level headed than others - perhaps it would have been smart to designate them with such a title. Menta had immediately found the black wolf in front of her likeable and realized he had been quite easy to talk to this whole time, so he must have known this about himself to go for such a role. Her own pride and occasional hotheadedness undoubtedly would not allow for such a thing.
That sounds very nice, she said earnestly and with a smile after getting a little mentally lost thinking all of this over. And then, shifting gears, Would you be willing to walk back down with me? Menta greatly enjoyed his company but was getting restless up on the top of The Wall now that she felt her personal mission was accompished - if he was willing to accept her proposition, she could keep the conversation but let her itching legs move again.
It had taken some time for Steady to come to the conclusion that he would be a good counselor. Similar to Guardian, it had come naturally to him, but for some reason, the thought simply hadn't occurred to him to gain the trade. He dd not regret it, however, and simply found that he went out of his way a little more to help out others, even if they hadn't sought out for it.
Their conversation seemed to come to a natural end, and he nodded in agreement when she asked if he would walk down with her. It would be my pleasure, he replied with a smile. He stood, moving aside so that she could go first, and quickly caught up to her so they could walk together.
He would remember her, and hoped to see her again soon, on a friendly basis. Feel free to call if you're in the area, he offered, wanting to make sure she knew she was welcome. Then, the black male made his way back home.