She hadn't left the territory in weeks.
lonliness pushed her and she found herself near the Dragon again, this time not dating to tread on the actual mount- not after her and Santiago were nearly killed. She wondered what happened to the charming rogue, half wishing he would appear.
The barren scrubland was showing signs of the changing season, albeit more slowly than the rest of the Teetons, she was sure.
Still, there was mountain sage here and Yarrow, pepper plants and fireweed.
The wind tossed her pelt and she realized how lonely it was...how lonely she was. Minnow was self sufficient, and she didn't want to hover over the poor girl. She left her small prey and piles of feathers for her den, but honestly didn't see much of her.
@Aphrodite let me know if this is too backdated for you!
There was a pack — or at least an assortment of wolves consorting with each other — along the river as it spilled from the mountains. Their scent was strong enough for Orson to know where to avoid heading towards. She followed the border around, seeing where it twisted and turned, wondering just how big the pack was. It led her up the mountains, the darkness of the stone suggesting some volcanic activity some time ago.
She was not the only wolf venturing on the summit. There was a woman clad in earth and cream sniffing at the foliage that poked out in the scrubland. You from this pack 'round here?
Orson used as her opener, keeping a safe distance from the woman. Not right to sidle in too close to a pack wolf near their home.
She looked up from her herb collection to the sound of the female approaching. At her question she gave a curt nod. As far as she knew there was only one pack here?
"Yes, I am from a pack. I'm their healer. Is there something I can help you with?"
The words came out a bit rough, Though she hadn't meant them to.
The woman was curt in her response, but Orson was used to far crueler words coming from wolves. Far crueler actions in response to the questions that she had posed. I'm just looking 'round. Surveying, exploring, you know, things like that.
she sat down, hoping that her relaxed body manner would calm the woman down a bit. What's the name?
she asked.Of the pack, I mean.
She relaxed her posture, giving a friendly wag. "Exploring is good for the soul. Expand your borders, you expand yourself. Plus you have a chance for adventure."
The female asked further about the pack and she gestured towards the river. "Whitebark Stream. We live just over that way. A small pack, maybe ten or fifteen of us."
Orson scoffed. Spoken like someone who's been a homebody their whole life.
She rolled her eyes. How idealistic of her. Expand her soul? Orson didn't feel any more or less enlightened by her travels. No disrespect meant.
she added quickly. Been around long then?
she hadn't heard of Whitebark Stream the last time she came around here, but then again, she barely interacted with the people who lived in this region in the first place.
She laughed softly. "A homebody? Oh dear, not at all. In fact I'm from very far away from here. I only joined at the end of winter. I was supposed to be leaving for the coast soon, but I'm needed here more."
At the lady's second question she frowned. The pack was small, but she had no idea how these things worked or how old Whitebark Stream actually was. Perhaps Artyom would, but she didn't want to bother him with such questions. "I'm afraid I'm not sure the answer to that. I know we're happy though, a family. And that's all that matters to me."
Sure, she had traveled, but not as long as Orson. At least she'd bet it. The idealism just hadn't been beaten out of her yet. Orson kept her self-aggrandizing conclusion to herself, merely nodding at the woman's words. 's fine. Sounds like a nice group, though. Haven't heard of too many of those.
She snorted, shaking her head. Not too many, fer sure.
Orson sighed. Seemed like there was nothing else she got get from the woman. Nothing that important. You the pack healer? Or do you just like herb-pickin'?
This female has been through more than Aphrodite could possibly imagine- to have never seen a kind wolf? "I believe there's a chance for good in everyone... Everyone deserves love and a family." at the second question she giggled softly. The fae was pretty, if a bit rough. She wondered if she was inclined towards females. "I'm the healer. Just making sure I have enough of certain herbs before they go out of season."
There were some wolves she didn't think deserved any form of love and devotion from anyone. As much as she'd love to bandy about debating morality, the woman didn't seem to be that oriented towards it.
Out of season, huh?
She had been around in her life, seen many things and interacted with many people, but never paid much attention to herbalism in any form. She decided to prod the woman's mind, wondering what she might learn. So these won't last in the summer?