Witch's Marsh starflower

interested in swiftcurrent joiners but AW <3

windblown messages brought news of a large encampment near to where saatsine had made their own. this did not disturb sun eater, for he and his clan would move on when the caribou had eaten their fill among the forests. each day more hundreds of them flowed over the mountainside and down into the gentler areas.

he would not seek them out, but sun eater kept his remaining eye attuned for strangers, his stance long and proud as he cut a dark figure against the cold marshland.

Morwenna’s senses were sharp, her eyes scanning the wide, open space of the marshland. The wind carried with it a multitude of scents, but one stood out—a familiar, yet elusive scent. A pack, but not one she could place.

Her stride slowed as she observed the figure before her—a tall, raven-colored male, imposing and muscular. The absence of an eye did not escape her notice, nor did the proud, unyielding stance he held as if claiming the land beneath his paws. Her heart quickened, though she maintained her calm. This was no ordinary wolf.

She drew closer, carefully gauging the distance between them. The tension between them seemed palpable, but Morwenna’s movements were deliberate, slow, and controlled. She wasn’t sure what to make of him just yet, but she knew to be cautious. There was no immediate threat, but that didn’t mean there wouldn’t be one.

With a soft bark, she called out to him, her voice carrying on the crisp air, respectful and probing. I do not recognize your scent. May I ask your name?

Her tail remained neutral, not threatening, but not entirely unguarded either. She was a matriarch once, and the sight of a lone male in such an unfamiliar place piqued her curiosity, but she wouldn’t approach recklessly.

another dance.

steps paused, head lifting; stilled, sun eater allowed the woman to approach. unmoving he took her scent when its wisping was tasted on the wind; water. many wolves. strength. her words he understood but the caribou man let the quiet between them grow for no more reason than effect.

"sun eater. chieftain of the saatsine," he at last told her in his heavy accent. a gradient of charcoal and stormblack, he found himself curious about the starlit forehead she carried but did not ask. 

in this world, she might well bear a threat if her kith wished to clash with his hunters, and for this he maintained himself in upright tautness, the single slate-blue eye unyielding with watchfulness.

Morwenna lowered her head in a deep bow, the gravity of the moment settling in the air between them. The Chieftain of Saatsine, a figure of strength and wisdom, stood before her, his presence commanding. She could feel the weight of his gaze, his sharp eye reading the very air around them. Her heart beat steady, though her words were laden with humility.

I had no idea, she said softly, her voice respectful, her posture unwavering. I apologize for any misstep, Chieftain.

She allowed a long, respectful silence to pass, her thoughts measured, before she finally lifted her head, her silvered eyes finding his. I am Morwenna, Kappa of Swiftcurrent Creek, she introduced herself, her tone steady yet warm, a soft flicker of her matriarchal pride present beneath the sorrow in her gaze. What brings you to these lands, Chieftain? Your scent speaks of many wolves... Are you here for peace, or is there something else that calls you to this place?

Her words hung in the air like the wind itself, waiting for his reply.

for a long moment he only observed her, trying to find a lie in the posture of this morwenna. but on offer was more information than he had gathered on the nearby pack, which at last relented the stiff hold of his shoulders into something more rounded and shook his head to indicate she owed no apology.

this woman too; she had a bearing similar to his own, yet he did not see a throng of followers heeding the careful notes in her voice. "caribou bring caribou hunters," sun eater told her with some bare amusement threading through his own scar-eyed gaze. "saatsine, we travel. follow them. for now we here. then we go."

had she been sent? prudent was the pack sending emissaries to the teeth of killing hunters, but sun eater was innately wary of friendliness from others. such overtures had their undertones.

but now sun eater looked fully at morwenna, taking in the fineness of her coat, the poise with which she chose her words.

Morwenna stood tall, her presence calm and deliberate as Sun Eater spoke. She listened closely, her silver eyes reflecting a quiet respect for the nomadic ways he described. The notion of following the caribou, drifting with the winds, resonated with her deeply. A moving pack, constantly in search of the pulse of the land—there was something raw and honorable about that. She nodded slightly, acknowledging the strength behind such a lifestyle.

To follow the caribou... there is wisdom in that, she said softly, her voice steady, though a flicker of admiration passed through her gaze. The land does not remain the same. Neither should the hunt.

She studied him for a moment longer, considering his words. I can see the strength in such a pack. It must require much to keep such harmony while moving with the wind.

Her words were simple, but the respect in her tone was palpable, a quiet recognition of the life Sun Eater and his pack led.

I would be honored to summon my Alpha, if it pleases you, Chieftain.

"not need." sun eater stood very little for diplomacy or even alliances. his duty was to the saatsine: to fill their bellies and keep them from death, and in this has the caribou man succeeded thus far.

it was the nearness of a woman which reminded sun eater he was a man entire; he remembered the flashing white teeth of the red-painted-woman and the last eye left to him softened, exchanging caution for introspective glint.

did she flatter? he let himself take it, a quirk smoothing upward the edge of his mouth before he released the rarity of a smile. "if creek come closer, hunt with saatsine." 

insular as the lanzadoii man tended to be, he was not adverse to open-air hunting with another clan. there was simply no reason to hold oneself beholden to another at such time, not without exchange of gifts or marriage. there was no other caribou hunter band. saatsine set its terms. "if you come closer, maybe you trade for hides " flirtation? he did not know this as an ability.

Morwenna listened intently, feeling a quiet warmth at Sun Eater’s choice to speak to her alone. His openness, reserved just for her, felt like a rare offering—one she received with gratitude. She sensed respect in his gaze, and it kindled a confidence she hadn’t felt in a long time. She’d been chosen to hear his words, to carry his trust. When he mentioned the possibility of a hunt together, her ears perked with interest.

She imagined the bounty the Saatsine could provide in the winter, the skilled hands of caribou hunters bringing down prey large enough to sustain the pups. Buckthorn, Lenore, Violet, Caliste—they would grow strong, sleek, well-fed. The thought brought a smile to her face, and she dipped her head in appreciation, offering Sun Eater a quiet, sincere thanks. A stranger's generosity was rare and vital, and she wouldn’t soon forget it.

When he spoke of coming closer and trading hides, she tilted her head in curiosity. Was this an invitation? An open door she hadn’t had before?

If it’s welcomed, she murmured, then I would be honored to hunt alongside you. And perhaps… perhaps this trade would be to our mutual benefit. Her gaze lingered on him a moment, thoughtful, before she added, I’d consider it a privilege. I've never had my own hide before.

mutual benefit. sun eater's gaze rested with a deeper look on the creek woman. thoughts of his own did not move upon alliance pattern, and so he took her soft suggestion to mean that her intrigue was destined for a more personal place.

he was flattered then, and truly. morwenna's interest in their hunting was a clear thing and sun eater found himself in urge to show her now the skills he had gathered as a hunter of caribou.

yet these things he must keep for clan, for lanzadoii. perhaps the silverswept eyes were meant to move sun eater off guard; he clung to this notion even as he stood taller beneath her soft gaze.

"your chieftain. tell me." who led morwenna? but after the death he had torn at the borders of the qeya, the prospect of other rulers had ceased to press upon the caribou hunter.

tag for reference

Morwenna inclined her head, casting a brief, warm look across the sharp angles of Sun Eater's face. She sensed the depth in his gaze, a scrutiny that seemed to press beneath her words to find meaning woven from threads he alone could see. There was strength in him, tightly bound, and she was careful with her own response, letting the words rise as smoothly as the mist over a still pond.

@Akavir is our alpha, she murmured, voice carrying the quiet weight of reverence. A steadfast leader, one who finds balance between justice and mercy. Swiftcurrent's path is his, and he leads us with wisdom, and— her eyes softened, lingering on his face—great purpose.

She paused, the corners of her mouth hinting at a smile. It’s a rare thing to find one who embodies such devotion, as I see you do for your clan. She lifted her head slightly, measuring the distance between them. Akavir’s purpose is not only to defend but to grow. Perhaps, in some way, that aligns with your own.

Her gaze remained fixed upon him, respectful, but with the quiet conviction of a wolf who understood both strength and humility.

morwenna continued to be unguarded, speaking the name of her leader. akavir. it would be a word improved by sun eater's lanzadoii accent, he felt, but he did not speak, wondering at the way her eyes had become at the sound of this name.

he had seen it in gheli; he found himself amused, wondering if it might be worthwhile to meet this man who created flickering light in morwenna's moonspell eyes.

"you say, allies?" sun eater had learned the word during his short stay within moontide. the notion had never interested him; in fact he had felt rather averse to the idea. why should one chieftain have say at all over another's band?

"saatsine travel. far. we are our own people," he said with care, choosing from the gently expanding lexicon of common he had slowly amassed. "we grow when children show they are strong. we are — dzaex. like stone."

akavir and he may have had aims that overlapped, but sun eater remembered how good it was to be free and alone with only other lanzadoii for miles roundabout. it was what he desired, despite his genuine intrigue at their shared words.

Morwenna’s gaze lingered on Sun Eater, drawn to the strength in his words, the independence that shaped him. There was a quiet intensity in the way he spoke of his people, his pride woven into every syllable, as unyielding as stone itself. It spoke to something deep within her, something unspoken, perhaps a longing she hadn’t even realized. Allies, if it appeases you.

She tilted her head slightly, letting the silence stretch between them as her eyes took in his form, the way he seemed both steadfast and unbound. It was rare, she thought, to meet someone so deeply rooted in his beliefs, yet carrying himself with such ease, like a mountain that had learned to walk.

When she finally spoke, her voice was softer, almost teasing, a spark of warmth in her words. Strong as stone, are you? Her smile was faint but inviting, an invitation to share a little more, to linger in the quiet space they had found. She hadn’t felt this sort of interest in another’s company for some time, and it was… refreshing. I believe you.

Her gaze softened, drifting over him, her curiosity growing. Sun Eater’s presence reminded her of wild landscapes, of winds that moved through ancient trees. She found herself leaning slightly closer, as if he were a story she wished to learn.

You seem to have much to offer me—us she'd correct. Will I be able to find you here, again, Chieftain?

"you want see me again," sun eater observed, a flown shaft from atlatl lodging beneath her second rib. he was none for sidestepping nor formality; his teeth sank true to the heart of the beast, including when its mouth was delicate and its eyes lit by silvering wonder.

morwenna reminded sun eater that he was no rote automaton, no reduction of gear and cog. by her own words the loyalty she held was for another, a different man for whom her admiration was clear.

why should he seek the same?

bound by ancient rites, sun eater knew his role was alongside a saatsine woman, a caribou wife. it was what he desired. but his own hungers had only ever been found by red leaf, the darker things which moved sun eater to a final end.

this creek woman, she did not know him. she did not know who he had been; she had never heard the names of yikaas and of cen.

red-painted-woman came warmly to his mind, again, unbidden. "you find me here as long as caribou eat leaves in forest. they go back," pointing with his dark muzzle toward the taiga. "we go back." the bulls would spar and fill their cows with calves. the herds would retreat to the brackenwood for the long darkness of icy nights and days of bitter freeze. 

it was where the saatsine belonged.

Morwenna’s gaze lingered on Sun Eater, the quiet fire of his words striking a chord within her. He was as unyielding as the earth itself, a presence both rooted and untamed. Her loyalty lay with Swiftcurrent Creek, yet in this brief encounter, a thread had woven itself between them, a strange bond of wild understanding. His life belonged to the Saatsine and the caribou; he was bound to the ways of the taiga, and yet here he was, standing before her with the weight of an ancient strength she could almost feel.

She nodded, a silent acknowledgment of his invitation to meet him, the nomadic one who lived close to the wild heart of the land. I would like that, she murmured softly, her voice scarcely louder than the breeze that moved through the forest. She took a step back, offering a farewell with a soft smile and a glint of something warmer in her eyes—a flicker of intrigue, perhaps, or an unspoken respect.

The thought startled her, sudden and almost unwelcome—a strange, fleeting desire to press her fur to his, to feel the warmth and solidity of him against her own. She banished it as quickly as it had come, yet the ghost of it lingered, leaving a faint flush of warmth in her chest.

Farewell, Sun Eater, she whispered, a promise hidden within the softness of her tone. As long as the caribou remain, I will seek you out again. With a final nod, she turned, leaving the scent of Swiftcurrent Creek as she slipped into the shadows, already feeling the tug of the taiga and the mysteries it held.

exit mo!

thanks for the thread! <3

there were no words to follow her graceful departure, only his single eye watching the storm-coal of her coloration disappear into the terrain.

sun eater would muse over this in the time to come. often the traveling lanzadoii were hardly welcomed by established packs, though the potential of conflict suited sun eater. he would not shy away if teeth were offered; it was a foolish battle for another chieftain to choose.

blood stained the origins of his saatsine. it was another reason to choose from within, though masculine interest bid his own in seeing morwenna again.

turning, he too moved into the landscape, seeking the cool shadows of the fire-forest and the familiar faces within.