@Erzulie
Gunnar picked his way along the bluffs with trepidation. It had been so long since he had asked to join a pack. And truth be told, could he even cut it. He was old, and tired, his body no longer young. Many would see that and throw him away purely on principle.
But many did not know him. Did not know that he had cut his eyeteeth on battle. Had learned to speak a harsh language all his life, to prove that he was strong and he was brave and he was a Viking. His knowledge of herbs that his mother had passed on to him could help in a pinch, and though he was old and tired, he was not yet dead.
He still had a few years left in his soul. Perhaps, he hoped at least. With these thoughts upon his brow, he lifted his muzzle to the sky and sounded out a gentle request. His voice carrying over the coast. He had always had a boisterous voice, why not use it.
chacal was pregnant. erzulie kept somewhat close to her daughter, not wanting to smother the younger woman but providing herself as a pillar of advice if it was sought. she greatly anticipated these babes, as they would be the first blood-children born to sapphique with she and rosalyn as their grandmothers.
the summons was masculine. she bristled and went to answer it with a hunting step.
she found an old man there, and thought of his age cruelly as she did not think that of her wife. "you be findin' sapphique," she told him as her mismatched eyes climbed over his flaws. "i be erzulie."
Tveir didn't have to wait long for his call to be answered. The woman that came upon him, studied him with critical eye. Her eyes a strange color, like the sea glass that would wash along the shore. She was beautiful, but the haughty gaze she swept across him, drew him pause. He wasn't certain if he wanted to continue with this. Though, he supposed he would do what he could. She could tell him no and chase him from the borders.
He swiftly offered her the respect due her station and lowered himself to his sandy belly, the color sifting into the sand. Her voice curled around him, an accent to it's edges, a harsh truth, that she did not appreciate him here. He chuffed quietly.
I've been called many things, but Gunnar or Tveir are the most prominent. This used to be the home of the Sjavarenornir
without thinking he slipped into his native tongue, as he was nervous.
I am in search of a home. I can offer many things.
"dis pack be blessed wit many children dis year, an' more to come. are you able to hunt?" her cinnamon ears flicked toward him. the man was deferential which assuaged her somewhat, though she kept her guard high. "i do not be knowing dat name. dese cliffs have belonged to us for a long time."
was he of drageda?
her mind thought of jorunn. did she not share a similar tongue? perhaps she might translate later for erzulie. the obsidian's pulse quickened.
Gunnar dipped his head and nodded. He shifted on his paws. I can hunt, fish, heal, and outride. I was also born here on this coast. So i also know the sea.
Gunnar licked along his maw and spoke softly.
Forgive me. I called them Sea Witches. They were worshippers of the sea." Gunnar flipped his ear forward, the brown a contrast to his sandy mask.
I haven't been here since I was very young, they probably left long ago.::
Gunnar curled his tail a little tighter against his side, just because he was anxious to move from the spot that he was. Though he wouldn't imagine the femme would take kindly to it.
gunnar looked uncomfortable. for a sadistic moment erzulie took pleasure in keeping him there. and in the next she jerked her muzzle in a signal that he should straighten.
"i once knew a sea witch." she studied the earthen hues of his pelt. "but dat woman be long dead."
"i be erzulie. it is my daughter chacal an' i who lead. my wife, and her ot'er mot'er, rosalyn, shares in all of my decisions. everyone in dis pack is family; t'erefore, you will not be accepted so easily. you will have to prove yourself."
and he was a man to boot.
erzulie was cold. pragmatic. how would gunnar decide?
He stood slowly, and stretched his head and legs. He kept his tail tucked and his eyes averted. Though they roved over the sands as she spoke, he listened calmly.
Gunnar felt a gentle inkling of a cold fury, but he didn't outwardly react and it was gone in seconds. Instead he settled and let his mind rove over the conditions. He would have to earn it, well, that he was used to. His own father wouldn't give him a name until he had earned it.
He had to listen closely to what she said, her voice lilting, the words clipped, cut off. He dipped his muzzle.
I am no stranger to earning things. I didn't have a name for long time after I was born. Hence the name Tveir, it means 2. I was second born. And that was what my father saw fit to give me. I will earn whatever it is you wish of me to earn."
erzulie smiled once, not quite warmly but without the earlier edge. gunnar's maintenance of respect and his willingness to learn their ways did much for him. "come wid me to de sea," she murmured, moving aside. she would lead him through the blackpine and bluepeace meadow, to the hidden tunnel entrance.
and then erzulie would guide gunnar below the earth, to the other end of the passage which emptied into their pristine and rich whitesand beach.
foam lapped at her paws. the walls that guarded this beach were high and tested by the waves. "have you ever hunted in t'ese waters before, gunnar?"
Gunnar returned the smile, as fleeting as it was, a twinkle in his eye. As was often the case of him. Gunnar stepped into movement with her, his eyes roving over the sea and the paths he would take. It made him feel quiet in his soul for the first time in days. To belong.
Her next question drew him pause and he lifted his eyes ot her face and back again. Yes, not here exactly, but yes. You must watch out for the sharks. And the black and white things will play to hard for your body. But crabs and shrimp line the shallows and small fish. I prefer the tide pools that appear after a storm, or when the tide comes in. Easier pickings. If you don't respect her, the sea works against you, and even then sometimes too.
so he had experience with the sea. he had not been challenging nor lying when he spoke of his former time in these waters. erzulie still did not understand gunnar's origins but here he would be given a fresh start. "i be searchin' for purple starfish in t'ose pools," she said quietly, appreciating that she did not have to work from scratch with this man. "starfish an' de blueish kelp dat sometimes gets washed up after de storm. i need it for medicine. are you familiar wit its properties?"
the woman dug in the wet sand as she spoke, searching for the flat charcoal surfaces of buried clams.
Gunnar probably knew more about the sea than most wolves. His parents had raised him there, and he had always returned. Her next question caused him pause, only because his mind was working more than it had in years. His mother had taught him some of her healing ways before he had left. Could he remember that.
Seaweed for binding wounds. It has been sometime, but if memory serves Kelp can help with blood, and diseases, preventative and ending if I remember correctly. Starfish for swelling, and old bones. My mother was a healer. She taught me a bit."
Gunnar wasn't certain what she was looking for at the moment, but he added his own paws to her ministrations though he made sure not to accidentally bump her. He didn't wish to have his fur in her teeth.
"mm." erzulie dug up a clam and laid it aside. her small hard paws digging up another. "i dry de purple kelp an' use it to sprinkle on woun's before i bandage dem. an' dat seaweed dries tight when all de water be off it."
"my son, sobo, be an aspirin' healer. maybe he would have t'ings to learn from you as well."
a third clamshell clicked against the first two. she gestured down at them. "do you be knowin' how to open t'ese?"
mobile so slow going.
it does. My mother swore by it. Said sometimes the salt helped too.
His mind swung to his tiny mother and a soft wave of grief hit him. She had taught him everything he knew about healing. She had known more besides. Sometimes he wished he would have listened longer, held on tighter, but alas the time was long since past, and he refused to regret things and decisions that shaped him. He shook his head and listened.
He made a soft noise.
we used sharp sticks or broken prey bones.
He wasn't sure if she did it differently or not. You would break your teeth if you tried. He supposed you could drop it in a hot spring, but they were not entirely abundant around her.
I'd be glad to share my knowledge. It's not as extensive as my mother Thistles, but it is enough kept me alive a few times.
tag for ref! <3
thistle. that had been the name of his mother. erzulie thought back. roux. octave. those names swam up more quickly than she had expected. but she did not speak them. the talismans of that time belonged to her and her alone.
"i use stones to crush or to drive a stick between," erzulie smiled.
gunnar's age, his wisdom, and his respect settled him as a good choice for granite.
"i will tell you to see him out," she said of
@Sobo. the obsidian straightened.
"i be leavin' now. will you come wid me or do you t'ink you can find your way out de tunnel again?"
Thank you for the thread darling.
Gunnar did not have many names to share. Other than those of his family, truth be told, he couldn't even remember his younger siblings names from years ago. He supposed if he tried hard enough he could, but there was a chance, they would have changed their name. Took on a new mantle.
He dipped his muzzle.
I'll seek him out, then.
Her next words made him stop midstep and he thought on it and then he nodded.
I'll follow you this time. I will need to come back here. I would like to explore it more thoroughly find more things to be useful, and I now want some crab.
<333 and to u
erzulie rewarded the old man with a smile. "come on, den. i will tell you de names of our family as we walk."
and she would do just that, escorting gunnar back under the earth and then up with her accented voice carrying through the darkness.