Despite a vicious, deep-seated unease, she descended the mountain with purpose once again. Between all things, from missing faces to those preparing to go, she was not unaware of the happenings to this direction. But, the fine details were lacking... and maybe in knowing more, she might find answers.
What she had realized over a smattering of weeks was a new presence, and while this was not unexpected, to see them remain was perhaps an unseen twist. It was something to discuss with her remaining outriders soon. Since the flatlands were vast and not nearly as important to her as the Vale and other neighboring territories, it was still worth looking into.. especially with the hazy hope that she might find out more about Tytonidae's absence as well.
Amekaze finally felt inspired enough to investigate a little closer for herself. The wolves of the flatlands had yet to come to her, which was good, but her curiosity was a welcome distraction to play with on this balmy afternoon.
She bathed in a small creek on the backside of the Spire, then set out for a trek across the Ridge. This path required a bit of finesse, but she adapted readily and eventually fell into stride through the jagged landscape. The afternoon sun climbed high overhead and heavy clouds just beginning to gather to the west hinted at the possibility of rain later, so she knew to keep moving if she wished to cover any ground (and to keep an eye on the skies for further developments). For now, she listened, and worked on a path that slowly brought her closer to the flatlands.
The plains wolves had settled. The dare-devil of a female who'd taunted the Spine several times too many implied as much. They'd been looking for plains and they'd found them. He'd picked up her scent and Zhavvi's near the borders of the large field as he'd skirted their pack lands and tried his best to remain undetected during his investigations. He still found it strange for them to set up in so barren a place. He could not imagine protecting a flat land would be so easy, but to each their own. He didn't have to live there.
Kerosene passed by. He started at the south end and traced their scent markers north. Their territory was vast and it was of some good fortune he'd passed by undetected. He thought to finish his circle, completing his external survey of their lands, until he happened upon the base of the mountains dividing the southern lands from the north. The last time he'd passed through there he'd found a treasure trove of life between the ridges. A slight detour might do him well. He could collect a few more scents on his way and further mask the Spine with his travels.
Paws climbed the rocky ridge, seeking a pass that would lead him more safely through the mountains. Instead, he was met with jarring slopes and other paths that seemed not so sound. He paused for a moment, wondering if his journey was a foolish mission as the clouds rolled over head. The breeze was warm. The air was thickening with the promise of a later storm. Perhaps now was not the best time to be risking such terrain.
He turn his path, picking new switchbacks as he turned south once more. This time, his route left his path to cross with a female who roamed. Feeling sociable, he approached her and tagged along for a second or two before he elected to speak. "Storm clouds do not look so friendly do they?" he greeted, keeping the start of his conversation light and neutral. "Think we'll be able to clear out before the rain hits?"
Parts of the path did necessitate a delicate step. She had passed through here a handful of times before, but not enough to memorize every stretch of the landscape. Even she, as experienced on a mountainside as she was, had to mind her paws just a little extra now and then.
However, even with jagged edging cutting a fierce silhouette, some lengths of travel were not half bad. She was content with her pace and the travels they brought her, which, evidently, were now in the company of another. She breathed deep his unfamiliarity and felt him pull in close, his path now mirroring her own almost as if it was the intention all along -- just an ordinary happening. Amekaze cast him a glance and turned an ear his way, she listened to the rhythm of his footfalls first then his words second. She stilled the upward turn of a few hackles at the new company and considered this.
"I think so. They are slow to gather, at least, and winds are low.." she remarked, knowing this could always change so she confirmed it with a quick look skyward. "The mountain should have shelter, if this changes," she smirked and swayed her tail confidently. She wasn't concerned unless it turned gusty and full of lightning, but those clouds did not look that angry yet.
"But a little rain will not hurt.. and I would almost rather have it, than just so much.. humidity." she added with a wrinkled muzzle, although it seemed almost wordy for her to provide anything extra. These were two subjects she was rather good at, after all -- weather and mountains. "Where are you heading?" she asked, turning then to get a long look at him.
He waltzed along with her for a while, minding his step as she soothed the hackles upon her nape and instead contemplated his words. They were always awkward; introductions and greetings. Particularly when traveling. He often found himself lost within his own headspace to the point where the presence of another was a particularly jarring experience. As if to rip him out of his own thought was a terrible and cruel possibility, albeit a necessary crime. She quick to let him settle along side of her as he mirrored her pace, but her words were thoughtful.
She knew the skies. That much was evident in her quick assessment. There was something about her words that suggested she'd been watching them for a while and keeping tabs on their progress as she'd pursued whatever destination she was seeking. A quick glance skyward and he confirmed what she spoke of to be true. The storm would come, but it was far off yet. There was time to spare.
"I'm more concerned about mudslides," he admitted, "Particularly in these parts. This ridge is far too steep to risk mud." Finding footing as the ground currently was, was difficult enough. He wasn't going to risk it if the rain did chose to fall sooner than he expected. It was for that reason, in addition to happening upon this female, that he'd turned back, abandoning his efforts to slip into the mountain vale only to double back and resume his stalking of the plains wolf borders.
He'd get there. Eventually. For now, he was content to let his lips fall into a grin as she spoke of humidity. "It always does seem to spike before a rain, doesn't it?" he agreed with her, not caring for the dampness upon the air as it often messed with his nose. All the same, he was up to something, just as he suspected she too might have had reason for venturing these precarious slopes.
"New pack in the flatlands," he admitted. "I was stalking their perimeter before I decided to deviate and try the mountains. Weather cancelled those plans." He shrugged. "Yourself?"
Even with all her experience watching the skies, and now as the months passed into years, studying how it went here in the Teekon, she knew her guesses were not always guaranteed. At a moment's notice, that storm may get here in practically a blink, or dissipate completely into clear skies. Sometimes, there was no telling. But even still. All the signs were pointing towards a rain.. at some point, and with rain would come the mud.
"Ah. Rightfully so," she agreed with an easy breath regarding his caution about mudslides. The leeward side of the Spire was prone to small ones now and again. She could not speak on their frequency here, exactly, but a quick glance around certainly confirmed -- there lurked the possibility. She nodded. "It does. And this summer is taking care to make that clear," she chuffed softly. It was perhaps the most humid one she had weathered. Last summer had been cool, almost.. This one was proving to be rainy and accordingly humid.
And then she canted her head once she found a touch of surprise in his similar intentions. "Similarly, I was planning to eventually head down to scope them out more myself." But her path was not direct, or overly focused. The impending weather only gave her more distraction. "They do not seem to come too close to the mountains, so I have seen very little of them since they have arrived.." A frown, then. While it was good they seemed repelled by the ridges and slopes, she still hated their proximity at all. Once she understood them better, she would know more how to proceed.
Mm. Talking about the weather was easy. Examining it. Speaking of what effects it may have upon this valley or these slopes. She seemed content to do much the same and was far more educated on its effects. They way she spoke of things? It as almost as if she held a certain fondness for the subject, which, in its own way was quite remarkable. It wasn't everyday he encounter another wolf who was so observant of the skies as to contemplate how they might effect day to day life.
His ears lifted, turning as she spoke of venturing down to seek them further. "Not sure I would try that. They're foreign wolves. Speak a different tongue. Have different standards. Unless you're an expert in pantomime or charades, I'm not sure you'd get too far with them if they spotted you." Her black pelt upon these mountains was a little more concealed by the darkness of the ground? Down there near the golden plains? She'd be spotted easy.
She was astute in her thinking that they were not of the mountainous type. From what he knew thus far? "They seem to like flatter lands, but are not afraid to venture out." He'd been slowly collecting information too. Slowly, with a little bit of insight if only because he'd encountered a couple of their women. While they gravitated towards the mountains to explore, they always returned to flatter lands. He had no idea why. Living in such a vulnerable and exposed place was strange to him.
Her ears were eagerly towards him as she listened. The red-furred wolf ended up saying far more than she had originally anticipated. Information was useful to her, though, so she let him give as much as he would allow. "You have interacted with them up close for yourself, then?" She only knew them by scent, and hardly more than rumor, not anything more than that. It seemed he had more than that. Had the pack caused trouble elsewhere..? Or at the very least, made their presence more known? She was not well-versed in the news beyond the mountain range itself at all.
She was eager to glean information on their numbers, and if she could be so lucky, their ranks and otherwise. He suggested in his words they may not allow this easily, and this was noted. Still, she wondered what had inspired them, foreign wolves which had come out of essentially nowhere, to settle here of all places. The flatlands were not that appealing on the grand scheme of it (to her), although obviously something worked enough to make them stay.
He wasn't an expert on the Plains wolves by any means. He would not dare claim to be. But, he had interacted with a couple of them a number of times, so he had a decent understanding of their females. Sort of. One of them spoke the common tongue and was fairly easy to goad into providing information. The other did not speak a language he knew so it was a bit more difficult to converse with her. Still. If there was one thing he knew it was that their females were raised to be headstrong and often trained to be warriors. He could only assume what that meant for their males.
"A couple of them," he confirmed. "They are trained in fighting and poisons. I watched one of them try to sneak a laced rabbit into the heart of another pack." He did not mention that pack was the one he was a part of. He'd erased all scent of the Spine when he'd traveled this way and was now playing the role of a loner. He'd promised Tonravik a long time ago that none would learn of their home when he ventured out and the same was just as true now.
"I would be careful with them." He trusted she would take the information he supplied and apply it accordingly. If she was daring enough to introduce herself, he hoped she would do so with caution. If she chose to withdraw and continue to observe, perhaps she would learn more for herself. Either way, that was a pack he wished to learn more about while not getting on their bad side. The balance there would be tricky.
A couple of them was far more than she knew, and she tilted her head. Poisons? Unexpected, and perhaps it showed as she made note of this with a curious look. Warriors were nothing new but together with poison laced rabbits being a piece of their arsenal, it painted them in a new, more devious light. Naturally, she caught herself wondering if these were poisons crafted from plants in the flatlands that she had overlooked somehow -- not that she knew much about intentionally using plants for harm, though. Then again, it was probably tactics brought from their.. homelands, wherever those may be. "Good to know," she murmured, thoughtful. This was valuable information and she had little to give on the topic in exchange except for her gratitude.
"I will keep that in mind," she said, squinting towards the horizon after he offered his warning of sorts. She could formulate a better idea of them now, and all without getting all too close thanks to him.
He spoke much, perhaps too much. All the same, he revealed what he knew of the pack on the plains below and she had little to no information to return in exchange. No matter. He offered the information freely. Poisons and other foul play was not something to be taken lightly. Should they dabble with any other home, he wished for all to be prepared to counter such a slight.
Kero wasn't sure what else there was to say. He was saved from filling the silence when a light rain began to fall upon the earth. It sprinkled over him and a distant rumble in the skies promised that more would soon come. On these slopes? They'd already talked of the dangers of being caught in a storm. "It was nice meeting you," he murmured lightly. "I think I'm going to head out before the rain really falls."
With that, he excused himself and ventured back down the slopes. There would be plenty of other days to investigate; days with better visibility and other opportunities.
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