after roaming the north part of the maplewood for a few hours, aditya had meandered even farther upward, coming to a halt at the river that cradled the small mountains ahead. the crag was daunting, the glacier even more so, and perhaps if he was in a more adventurous mood, he'd seek to climb, to explore. for now, adi was contemplative, and he sat on the banks of the river, looking across the water quietly.
his conversation with grayday still rang in his ears. he wondered whether he was being too demanding of his young mate. was he tethering her to reality too soon? was he crushing her spirit? he thought he had done an adequate job of letting her be who she was so far, but her father's words had cast the shadow of doubt upon his mind.
and then there was the other shadow--coelacanth. aditya heaved a long sigh as the woman's face danced before him. he'd heard through the grapevine that she was attached to someone as well--hell, he'd seen her cozy up to the burly male at the hunter's moon, but had thought nothing of it then. perhaps he didn't want to admit any evidence that they would not be together, at least not in this life. still, he pined for her, and if dawn were to flee--
his thoughts broke off abruptly as a figure appeared in the near distance, looking winded, almost panicked. twitching his ears in concern, adi rose, peering at the dusty shape. the scent carried over the wind identified the stranger as alarian, the boy he'd met to the south. a friendly smile playing over his muzzle, he trotted toward him, canting his head in inquiry.
"fancy seeing you again," he greeted warmly, pulling to a halt a few paces away from alarian. "have you settled up here, as well?"
something was clearly bothering the slight boy; the pain in his eyes dulled the spark he'd seen there before, and it seemed to take him a while to speak. when he did, it was quite businesslike, honeyed words layered over. . .well, something. and what of his companions? korei, lennon? were they here now, too?
"i haven't been quite that far north, yet," adi responded amiably, golden orbs following alarian's gesture. his face broke into an easy grin as the young man mentioned dawn's name. "dawn is my mate, the daughter of our first leader, grayday. i'm happy she got the chance to visit your group."
still, for all the pleasure he felt that his mate had managed to connect with the wolves now living in the bracken woods, the feeling that something was wrong still gnawed at his conscience. softening his gaze, he blinked at alarian and asked, "are you all right?" nothing more, nothing less. he wouldn't force an answer out of the boy, but he hoped he'd find some answers to the turmoil that hung over him like a storm cloud.
perhaps alarian expected him to turn tail and head home, in the wake of this tirade, but having spewed many rants himself, aditya stood patiently, waiting until the young man had exhausted his words. he gave his acquaintance a sympathetic look, shaking his head at the question lobbed his way.
"only if you want," adi murmured, one side of his mouth lifting in a gentle smile. "i'm sorry for what has happened to you, alarian. i know the kind of pain you feel right now."
did he? he'd been through a lot in his life, losing lovers here and there, but alarian had lost two in such a short time. he thought of losing coelacanth--the dream, the vision of what could be--and then dawn, the truth, his life. . .in a one-two punch, it would be devastating. so no, perhaps he didn't know.
but it was an emotion he could grasp, at least.
"do you have anyone to help you lead the pack?" adi asked, thinking of the support pema and dawn gave to grayday, especially as the man's sight began to fade for good. alarian was in good condition, physically, but mentally, the boy was shattered--he could use the assistance. "someone you could trust, to take care of everyone with you?"
aditya nodded. "reasonable is good," he said gently. "talk to her about it. see how she feels. or anyone else you can trust. morningside has three leaders for a reason," he pointed out, grinning. "it's a lot for just one wolf to handle. even grayday had his paws full."
if grayday was buckling under the stress, he showed no signs of it. but this young man barely had his head above water; aditya pondered for a moment whether he should talk to grayday, see if they could form an alliance with this fledgling pack. they could offer assistance in times of need, advice on how to function. . .
he kept that idea tucked away in the back of his mind, giving alarian a kind smile. "is there anything else you want to get off your chest?" adi asked, cocking his head to one side in inquiry. "i'm a pretty good listener, for all the talking i do. and i don't want you to go home still feeling bad."
aditya watched, with interest, the emotions flicker over alarian's features one by one. as soon as he could, he wanted to visit this pack. his friendship with alarian had begun near the cliffs, many moons ago, and now he wanted to see to it that morningside's friendship with alarian's pack began as well.
he nodded, smiling. "i'm glad it helped. let's go for a hunt." with a swish of his banner tail, he set off at a slow trot, motioning for alarian to follow. the scent of hare was heavy in the air, and like a bloodhound, he was keen to follow it.