Greatwater Lake there are theives who rob us blind

he didn’t know what would come of the new alliance with @Shiori. would it end like him and sage, short lived and meaningless, or would it become something greater? he couldn’t have a repeat of last time. they could join a pack, but he knew he’d inevitably leave. that left him with two other options: work as a duo or expand their numbers. create a group of some sorts. but was he ready to lead something like that? he wasn’t ready to take on leadership in moonlit hills. but that was then and this is now. things change.

the two approached a lake and issun strayed towards it, informing his traveling companion that he’d be back. he tentatively approached the water’s edge and leaned down for a drink.

it was quiet other than the backdrop of crickets. her delicate paws made no sound as she traveled stealthily across the grasses, nighttime dew soaking her underside. in the distance the sky reflected off the mirrorlike surface of a lake, still on top but teeming with life below the surface.

she stalked towards it on crouched limbs, and she scarcely noticed her own brother along the lip of the lake as she took a single paw and disturbed the placid surface.

there was a disturbance on the water’s surface. calm ripples splashed onto his nose. issun lifted his head and scanned the lake. and there she was, a life figure crouching on the edge. she didn’t seem to acknowledge his presence, so he let out a chuff and strode towards her.

something about her looked eerily familiar and he didn’t know why. that dark fur, that distinct stripe, those murky eyes. but the most notable feature was the flecks around those eyes. they resembled his own. he was probably in a state of deja vu, so he pushed his thoughts aside for now.

“hi,” he greeted with a smile, “what are you doing out here?” there was no pack scent on her. maybe she’d be interested in joining him

her ears swiveled inependently atop her narrow crown, mint-gray eyes shifting towards him as he stode confidently forward. it was not until he spoke that she raised her head, and her paw lingered over the surface of the water as she froze.

there was something about him that she could not place, the starkissed freckles that dotted his face, that unsettled her in a way she could not describe.

"hello," she offered, i am traveling. wanderlust was in her blood. and you?

he hid his shock when she spoke. she greeted him with his old language, just as minori had. now he was starting to believe that he knew her somehow. he had to have met her somewhere. “likewise,” he replied. “i’m traveling with someone.”

“i feel like i know you from somewhere,” he commented softly. so quietly that it was barely audible. “what’s your name?”

her expression shifted as he responded back to her in the mother tongue; and she raised her head slightly to get a better look at the broadset boy. although their likeness might be apparent to a stranger, she was merely taken with him. eshi.

she lifted her nose to sniff in his direction, but she recognized neither him nor the stranger he traveled with.

eshi. it sounded vaguely familiar. it sounded like hageshi. it meant fierce and it was his sister’s name. his eyes glinted. could this be her? no, it couldn’t be. she was back at home, with ishaku and the others. “i’m issun.” he wanted to ask more, like where she came from or who her family was, but he bit his tongue. instead he stayed silent and studied her expression. maybe his name was familiar to her.

her shrewd gaze lingered upon his freckled face as he introduced himself as issun, and her eyes widened in surprise. issun, she repeated. i had a brother named issun. she drew a breadth closer to take a closer look at his face, and somewhere she was sure that this was her kin.

now he was certain this had to be his sister. all signs pointed to it. “hageshi,” he whispered, “i can’t believe it. you’re- you’re here.” he looked over her again and chuckled softly. “god, you’ve grown so much.”

so it was him. he had left when she was just a babe, and she remembered little of him, but that didn't mean she held anything against him. she too had left poncle woods to seek out something more. she strode towards him as her tail tattooed against her hocks, and she sought to press her dainty muzzle to the broad underside of his chin.

you're so big! you said you weren't alone.. what're you up to?

he lifted up to wrap his forelegs around her in a warm embrace. he thought he’d never see her again, yet here she was. brother and sister, reunited at last.

“oh right!” he sat back down to meet her gaze. “i want to start a group of some sorts, maybe turn it into something more. it’s not gonna be easy but, i want to try.”

lmao the wolf's face in that image is great

she nestled into his embrace before reclining to her haunches as they parted. how many of you are there? as much as she wanted to pledge allegiance to him immediately, she needed to know a little bit first; she did, after all, hardly know him.

“there’s only one for now,” he started, “her name’s shiori, i met her in the mountains. she’s got herb experience.”

only one, but together they made three. if nothing else it was a good start. have you found a territory, yet? he smelled of all over, like they were just passing through; she had come a long way to end up finding him here but she did not mind the trek.