After time in the Emberwoods, then a trail even further north than that, she found her hours bleeding together into a tired, repetitious haze of endless pawsteps. She had left the Sunspire for what felt like a long time now, but not without ensuring that all would be covered in her absence. Ame had left them in good hands -- instructing that their borders be minded and that they be excessively suspicious of cougar activity judging by the Vale's tracks Summer and Jace reported. However she was still eager to get back to them so she rested less to travel more.

But if only she could find answers. They seemed elusive, and painfully so. While she was at a growing ease at the top of the Sunspire's ranks, it did not feel wholly right with Ferdie just... gone. Yet, if she did find him, she was beginning to dread what would await..

The wetlands were just a little ways south -- probably not too far. With the winds in her favor, she could smell them subtly on the breeze. Yet, this area was crisscrossed with wolf scents and many of which were unfamiliar. She pressed onward still, curious but disappointed to not find Ferdie among them, even a faded, old scent..

Soon, her nose would aim back towards the Sunspire, but determinedly and despite the weight of fatigue, she willed herself to keep going. A little further. A few more hours (until dusk, at the very least). Anything. She had to make sure she was thorough, and traveled with her muzzle low, ears pricked, and gait a sweeping trot across the valley's expanse.

While these treks had not yet found her what she wanted, there was still some sort of value in these. Or, maybe she was thinking too deeply about justifying this. All too often, this searching felt pointless without a set trail to follow or even any true hint to go on. What little they had found already led straight to a dead end.

But she was fairly preoccupied by the scents at hand. They were a curious mixture of many unknowns but when something more distinct and familiar touched her senses, she was quick into focus. The Creek was difficult to miss. She snorted softly at this realization, and not too long after, she spied the variegated wolf a short distance away. She too slowed to a stop and stared outright. The Creek wolves were not a lot she could trust, and the feeling was mutual.

Ame tilted her head and questioned him silently. Swiftcurrent had not become one of her concerns since rising to the lead of the Sunspire, and she had since been disconnected from them. Their strength, and how they fared beneath Bazi's leadership, was an unknown variable. She was just glad they had stayed off her mountain finally. Yours is an unexpected face to find, she chuffed in a vague way of greeting to the teal-eyed male. Is it purpose that draws you from the creekside? she asked. Ame was guardedly neutral company until proven otherwise. She remembered well that those were the teeth that had caused Jace such agony and seeing the scars left on him by the dark Beta only reinforced this.

With history between them at a distance at best, much of how she regarded him was based on the shaky grounds between their packs. Truthfully, for him personally, all she knew was that he was formidable enough to nearly cripple Jace and that his loyalty evidently ran deep enough to keep him at the Creek longer than many. He'd seemed a serious, but effective, sort to her.

I see, she replied with a thoughtful exhale. As expected, with purpose. A solid one at that, one that came with the pack's interest and survival in mind. She would rather see the Creek hunt here in the winter than closer to the mountain, or worse, in the Vale at their base. Much the same. Winter may come harshly. Best to prepare, was her answer which came without a pause. While it was searching for Ferdie that brought her abroad in the first place, she was not only looking for him. That would only leave her even more empty-handed and this time less effectively spent.

She did not yet know if the Creek knew of Ferdie's disappearance and carefully watching him, she looked for any hints. And looking for..someone, as well. But even resources are easier to find still, the dark female added with an idle switch of her tail -- her subtle indication of her frustration in this fruitless search.

She was not quick to reveal much to a wolf of the Creek, so she was keeping it trivial at best. Even mentioning her search had pressed the invisible boundary, but when he mentioned the shaky truce, her ears straightened. Hm, perhaps. Many Sunspire wolves already seem to adhere to this. To her knowledge anyway and a pointed look wondered if the Creek did the same. Her being here right now may have been an exception, but she did not intend to make a habit out of trekking to this area. However it was north of the wetlands by a stone's throw; she couldn't say that she had anticipated a Creek wolf here at all.

They rarely traipsed beyond Mount Apikuni and even voyages into the wetlands were particularly scarce. At their base they had the Vale, which to her was plenty valuable, and then of course the foothills towards the west and southwest. Then of course, the Creek had its eastern stretches of lands -- a meadow, a lakeside, so on, with wetlands north of their namesake. Where do you draw the line? Fox's boundaries may have been deemed unreasonable, but she knew that times had changed among them. She could not say if Scimitar subscribed to the same outlandish beliefs that the Creek needed many, many miles on all sides to be content. I cannot say I often see Creek wolves, so do not know all where you plan to hunt.

Dealings with Fox in the past had led her to expect something worse. But, Scimitar answered rather concisely to her satisfaction. He was not trying to keep them away from everything between here and there, as Fox surely would have. Instead, he offered specific places and none were ones that were particularly close to the mountain anyway. She preferred Northstar Vale and the dipping valley just southeast of the Sunspire, then after that, terrain more towards Kintla Flatlands instead of in the direction of the Creek. Noting them both, she nodded; these were clear terms she could respect and would relay to her wolves.

What of the wetlands? I know they are not the most favorable of hunting grounds but do have their benefit -- and they seemed to attract decent Creek traffic moons ago, she asked. Usually when she was there, it was Creek wolves she encountered. And, as she had mentioned, hunting there was not easy nor exactly practical but they had a wealth of curious plant life that she did not wish to be entirely barred from. She had always been careful there, and rarely did she visit them at all, largely because of its close proximity to the Creek's territory.

She nodded slowly. There was a sharp reluctance to say too much about why she was interested in the wetlands, and it was not necessarily to have her pack hunt there for prey. She mainly wanted access to the plants and herbs there, so took his answer as needed. It would be a place visited only when necessary, and done with discretion.

When he turned the question back onto her, she shifted her weight but wasted little time supplying an answer despite her reservations. Northstar Vale, and then into the flatlands towards Greatwater Lake's shores, she said. The Vale was most important to her and the piece of neutral territory she felt the vaguest roil of possessiveness towards, even if it was not the most rightful feelings. She had never acted on them, although the fondness for Xi'nuata's former claim was difficult to deny. And to a lesser extent, the areas between the Spire and Mount Apikuni, was the addition that came with a nod. There.

But of course, this was not the extent of it. With the next nearest pack in the foothills being a good distance away, she preferred to exercise those freedoms, instead of pressure the boundaries towards the east with the Creek.

She swept her muzzle in a quick, curt nod. The word would travel back with her as well, and efforts would be in place to inform newcomers of it. As the months passed, and wolves came and went, it seemed the original conflict with the Creek grew further from focus. Even so, she still made mention of it to new wolves just for their own good.. especially since she did not know how all Creek wolves would behave when faced with one of the Spire.

As are we, she replied easily. The distance maintained worked for now. She wanted to keep their interactions as minimal as possible. Without instigators like Fox in the mix, this seemed to be much more realistic. Winter loomed, and it was no time to be starting unnecessary trouble. If prey became scarce enough in the regions, she did wonder if it would pressure this beyond the boundaries they had laid out for one another. Time would have to tell.

Nevertheless, she chuffed a quick farewell, and took to motion to leave Scimitar to his own devices. This encounter had run its course and she was finished. She would loop a path northward for a little while longer before turning back towards her peak.