Silver Moraine before whom I stand

First travel thread. Open to anyone, but if nobody responds swiftly I'll probably make it RO.

she was a proper seer, now. a queen settled upon a throne, not that she had any desires for such power; what she had desired was a following, a flock, and that was what hosannah intended to curate. she would lead these lost souls back to the greatness of raas — but first, she had to return to the rose wolves. to think that this had fallen in to her lap! that the lord would grace her with such purpose! it was difficult at first for hosannah to linger within the grotto, but she adapted, and swiftly. yet there was the nagging desire to return to aaron. she was loyal to him, thankful, and he deserved more than the abandonment of one of his devoted. 

with a brief word to reek she passed back the way she had come, traversing the irreguarily of the stone plateau as she headed south. she had told him a small lie to satiate him, explaining that raas had many things intended for her, for them, but she had to prepare. the land which was her kingdom could not provide all that she needed, and so she would venture far — with that explained, and refusing all help, she departed. i have raas, she had said. he is my guide, my protector, i need no one else.

she had not eaten since arriving in the grotto, though. the treck back to the dark forest would be tedious, and she was weak in body. it would take all of her strength to reach them if the demons of the wilds did not strike her down first.

There was no doubt about it--his alpha female rubbed him the wrong way. It was clear she treated him with disdain, treated him as a lesser animal, all because of his stupid sickled tail and his stupid dog blood. Make no mention of his strength or size, no. . .all Sen could see in him was the husky.

Yet he had promised to serve and protect the black-furred girl and her babes, and so he set off one day in search of prey, hoping to find some morsel to placate those furballs and their mothers. On his way to the Bracken Woods, where he had had some luck before, he stumbled upon the grave of an ancient glacier, and there he saw the small tan female.

She walked with a purpose, carrying herself regally. Nevertheless, Denali noticed that hunger had left its mark on her as it had all others here in Teekon. There was something about this woman, though. . .she stood out. It was almost as if she had some sort of magnetism, pulling him closer and closer until he was just a few feet away and had no choice but to speak.

"Hello," Denali greeted solemnly. "What brings you out here?" Demanding her name seemed presumptuous; he would wait for her to give it freely.

there were many miles to go, and she had only so much energy. but it had to be done. she desired to see aaron again, to visit with liri, and make things seem right again. her intentions had never been to leave them - especially for a pack of miscreants so far from her faith - and hosannah had once believed her work had been cut out for her within the rosings pack; yet here she was, at the helm of some foreign family, a covenant ready to be built.

with a pause to her step she lulled, stopped, and looked around. thinking of these things would do her good; hosannah could multitask like nobody's business, and without someone to talk to on this long hike she would have plenty of time to think, plot, scheme, and commune with her lord.

except she was suddenly not alone. 

the stranger emerged in her periphery and she, stunned, turned to watch them while her short fur prickled in surprise. the wanderer came out of nowhere; but hosannah had been distracted. as-salāmu ʿalaykum, she murmured, breathing in the scent of the stranger as she passed close by to him, but then she paused again and looked out upon the world. her voice carried around her: i am heading south. from where do you come?

Her first words were strange to him, in some language he did not know, yet they felt calm and soothing spoken in her dulcet tones. Then she switched back to his own language, and he relaxed further, able to answer her now. "I live with a group by the sea," said Denali. "I'm out looking for prey for my leader and her pups."

Denali gazed at her, slightly entranced. Her eyes were large and gold, and seemed to stare right through him. He shuddered at the thought. "Are you alone, or with a pack?" He thought he could smell other wolves on her, but she might have just been spending time with strangers she had met on the road.

by the sea? she is reminded briefly of a history lesson with the high priest; her mind ticks through the different creatures of the oceanside, the different sects and tribes, but this stranger does not resemble a siren, nor does he look the part of a warrior-bred roman. this place hosannah lives - these wilds - seem like a melting pot of many types. she wonders what he is, but then decides it is not worth the effort. she does not have time to consider converting this soul, not when she has places to be.

still, company is welcome. his question comes as no surprise, although her answer is vague: i come from many places, and am a part of many things. today i travel on my own, but not entirely. whether she was referring to the boy or to her god, she did not specify. i am a messenger, she finally concludes. this is not a lie. it is not the whole truth, but she weaves a tale easily enough, and keeps her cover intact.

God, she was an enigma. A messenger, she had said. For who or what, he did not know. He found himself captivated by each honey-toned word that dripped from her lips, staring into her golden eyes. She had the look of a fox, or coywolf, yet he did not inquire into her heritage. He knew he would bristle upon anyone doing so to his own muddied bloodline.

He tilted his head to look at her in inquiry, blue eyes into gold. "Do you mind if I walk with you for a while?" She was absolutely free to tell him to get the hell out of here, but he hoped she didn't. He wanted to get to know this strange woman better.

i do mind, she murmured in response to the question; her tone was limited in its range of emotion, being more level than defensive. he seemed interested - a rarity among the wolves in this place - so she was reluctant to depart outright, to refuse him, but she had places to be. she had to get out of this situation even if she was tempted. we must separate now, but perhaps... perhaps fate will bring you to me again. she looked to him, looked over him, studied his features so that she may remember later, and began to pace away from him.

A mixture of intrigue and bafflement overcame him as the reddish female gave her reply, and Denali shook his head bemusedly, taking in her words. What a strange creature. Still, he lowered his head in farewell as she departed, watching her bushy, almost fox-like tail retreat behind her.

For a brief instant, the burly wolf-dog thought to follow her, drawn to her as he was. Eventually, he decided against it. He had no idea where she was headed, or why. He did not want to disturb her travels. And this. . .spell. . .she had somehow cast upon him was probably nothing more than the lust of a young male. It would do no good to follow.

With a snort, Denali turned on his heel and stalked away, her image still etched in his mind. Perhaps fate will bring you to me again, her parting words had been. "Perhaps," Denali murmured as he trotted off, closing his eyes against her recent memory.