She lurked the foot of the mountain with a scowl firmly etched onto her features. It was warm out, customary for summer, with humidity that seemed to be climbing as the afternoon hours passed. Amekaze wondered if it may rain again by the evening. It had been rainy lately, but that, she did not mind.

The last few days had been spent not doing her ideal -- exploring, mediating upon the upper slopes, so on, and not because of the rain showers... Instead, over and over, she trekked the lands the Creek wolves had touched and worked diligently to overlay their scents with their own. Even if their visit had been brief and without blood being spilled, the assault to her senses their pawprints left behind was infuriating. Even with the rain helping, the faintest of traces continued to remain. Either that or she was feeling hyper-aware towards it and easily peeved by the slightest of offenses, especially with the reminders it carried.

Yet every time she recalled their words, and their "show" that they had brought almost inspired laughter. She found it off-putting, though, and stole pause to pee on a patch of tall grass that she believed still faintly harbored their stench.

The dark female scratched the earth with her hind paws and continued on, having realized that she had exhausted her resource of urine for now so would have to occupy her time otherwise. She jogged towards a small creek, took a long drink, then continued on along their mountain's base at a fluid, easy trot -- senses keened, wondering if she may encounter any others looking to investigate their still-new claim. Or worse, Creek wolves. But she was in no mood for them.

Even if she found border duty to be tedious and oftentimes repetitive (plus, her bladder never seemed big enough to mark as much as she wanted...), for the cause of this mountain she stuck to it and worked diligently. The Sunspire had become important to her and her fondness of the land underfoot only seemed to grow with the days. The fact that the Creek remained insistent on shooing them away from what was theirs only served to harden her stubbornness, for she would not go down without swinging first.

She stole pause now and then to scrape her paws or rub her shoulders against particular spots that looked like they needed some more attention, but mostly, she was busy putting miles underfoot. Covering ground, especially mountainside ground, kept this interesting after all.

Her curiosity was sparked by the subtle scent of wolf. Unknown wolf, at that, not just the commonplace smell of Ferdie and Jace. With their borders present, she felt suddenly protective, and wove a path that should bring her to the other in just a few beats.

When she saw a glimpse of red-shaded fur that was even over an underbelly of pale hues, her mind instantly jumped to Fox then shortly after, a flicker of anger -- even if it was not Fox's, or Swiftcurrent's, scent that had alerted her to this at all. Fur rose up on her shoulders and her gait gained more speed, but it was her nose that reminded her otherwise and soon her eyes confirmed this, albeit with a quizzical squint; this was not Fox, but a very similar-looking creature.

She decided this was better than that despite how entertaining finding Fox here may have been. Ame strode closer purposefully and wondered why the fox-colored was here. Lose something? she queried simply.

If the Creek and their disagreements with the Sunspire had not been so glaringly fresh in the forefront of her mind, she may not have thought too much about the similarities between the two wolves. She was wondering, briefly, if perhaps they were related.. although a more up sampling of her smell seemed to lean towards most likely not.

Ame was pleased to not be reminded much of the Creek, beyond the appearances, which she was coming to see the differences now that she looked closely. They were subtle enough.

So, with that much gathered, she was prepared to regard this loner with vague interest -- the fact she lurked so close to the Sunspire warranted the natural protectiveness of home, hence the upward tilt of her tail, while her expression was not overly serious or aggressive as it would have been with a Creek resident. However this all changed, suddenly, when she heard the greeting.

Ame's ears pricked, then quivered curiously at the sound of something so rare yet alarmingly familiar she almost believed she had misheard at first. She was reminded of many things suddenly. It was just a hello.. yet much else as well.

Her stoicism had stumbled here, leaving her confused, surprised and then tenfold more interested. The use of "us", too, spurred a great many questions. そうか... she breathed with a narrowing squint down at the wolf, having loomed another step or two closer by now. She spoke more delicately this way as she was horrifically out of practice, and sure to trip if she was not careful. There were no others to speak this way with here. At best bits and pieces of her mother's tongue slipped, usually when she was exited, but no one ever spoke back. The last time she had enjoyed that luxury was nearly a year ago. 方法をご存知ですか？ she then asked suspiciously, sniffing at the fox-wolf more obviously now with an outstretched nose.

Amekaze had certainly not been prepared for this. Months had gone since she had found another with this particular skill and to find that this wolf didn't have a solid answer as to how she knew was curious. Ame could barely decide where to begin.

A strange story unraveled there, to which her ears splayed. This wolf dreamed in the past and the distant look in her eyes made Ame wonder -- was she seeing that past truly? While she may never know, it was a notion to consider. I have heard tellings of those that believe a current life is one of many -- a culmination, of sorts. Ame breathed, having stepped back and relaxed her posture only some. Even without knowing more, she could afford this small wolf that much, based on what little she did have so far.. it was something not many brought to her, after all. Yet a circumstance as yours is.. unique. This, I have never heard of.. to which she offered a small chuff of amusement. The satisfaction of new knowledge glimmered briefly.

はい、やや, she did admit freely, although with a glance that lingered elsewhere for a second. Ame hesitated so not to say too much. It was my honored mother's language. None have spoken it to me since I left her side, she nodded subtly, knowing it had been nearly a year since. ごめんなさい, I am rather out of practice..

It was certainly something the dark wolf had never anticipated finding beyond her home. Even there, not so many spoke it that well, or often at all. She then wondered if this small wolf would become a facet of the region, or like many others, wander on to lands unknown. Amekaze had come to settle the idea that she, unlike many others, was staying -- at least for this stretch of her existence -- so having another around familiar with such a tongue could certainly not be bad.

She regarded the words with a quiet nod, for she felt it spoke her sentiments best of all. Language was just one of many things her mother had been sure to impart her with. For this, she was very thankful.

Then, her answer did not come immediately. She glanced the way of the mountain -- their packlands. Home, now..

The simplest answer was that this was just where circumstance had brought her evidently. While she did like to think that perhaps, the pull of nature's energies to best suit her had helped.. if only a little bit. I was charmed by the landscapes and stayed a while for them. I found decent company too, and returned to pack life.. now here on the Sunspire. Her bonds came from there and thus, here she remained despite her intentions to return home that had become distant in recent weeks. Do you seek something? Or passing through? Or both, Ame asked. Smelling of no allegiance, there was no telling.

Fun, to which, Ame's ears moved subtly. A beautifully simple goal, noble yet innocent. She bobbed her muzzle with a small nod; an acceptable enough reason, but just not one she could personally resonate with very well.

Ame was then quiet, thoughtful even as she was thanked, then bowed to from the little wolf. She nodded again but this time a bit more vigorously and could not seem to get the words to go further than the tip of her tongue. Eventually, she breathed a Perhaps.. for she was.. strangely hopeful? Of seeing her again, that was.

The parting words about Big, Black Wolf had her head tilting and she had no time, or particular drive, to question this further right here and now -- which was best, for the little wolf was already well on her way. Jace came to mind first and Ame decided to make mention of it to him next time.

Nevertheless, she shook her fur and assumed a trot across the borders.