Blackfoot Forest the blind man and his horse

@Seabreeze

Things seemed to be settling within the Valley, something that Blondine was thankful for. Everyone else had finished or near finished their cycles, as far as she knew; it was only a matter of time before she did the same. Back at home, no one had ever taught her about these things, so all that she knew was what she'd learned from loose women who wandered through every now and then.

The herb cache that she'd started with @Poet was growing steadily, but Blondine knew that come spring, their bounty would be immeasurable. Oh, she was so pleased with the idea of frolicking through the newgrowth of the Valley with an assortment of herbs and plants at her disposal. Of course, she'd have to learn what they were and how exactly to use them, but the thought was nice.

For now, Blondine's train of thought was heading toward @Indra and her wellbeing. Since the incident, Blondine had been keeping a closer eye on the flame to make sure that she stayed safe. The supplies within the territory were slimming down, so she'd resigned to the growth of neighboring territories, finding herself quite pleased with the arrangement of a nearby forest.

she traveled on past the forest she would soon call home, driven by a wanderlust.  she had seen very few territories in her lifetime and it was such a shame — the teekon wilds were a beautiful thing, and she would like to see them before she settled down again.

she'd met very few strangers along the way and though she enjoyed her solitude, she missed the company and driven forth by the scent of another she followed it to its source.

hey, she began, you from around here?

Blondine's ears perked, her hackles following soon after, but after taking sight of the stranger and figuring that there was no threat, her guard was temporarily dropped. Her recent experiences with strangers hadn't been the best; she didn't mean to come off as rude, but she wouldn't apologize if she had. I'm Blondine, she called back, taking a few steps forward to properly catch the other's scent. 

Yeah, not far from here. Yourself?

 

forward-dated to present with permission.

yeah, she said, over on the sunspire.  those mountains back there, she offered with a gentle arc of her paw.

this could be good for them.  perhaps an alliance would be formed, and she could win some brownie points.  she had always been so glossed over in tindome, even when she held mato's gaze — but that was behind her now.

we're new.  i'm one of their medics.

Another medic? The healers around these parts were numerous to make a reliable groupchat grouphowl were they could set up harvesting dates. Maybe if they were lucky, everyone would be consistent with the plans. That valley back there, Blondine said with a nod of her head, that's us. They were a dramatic lot that never seemed too short on gossip, but they were a family. Kinda. They were getting there.

Hopefully.

I'm a medic, too. Maybe a hunter, but I don't know about allat. Blondine laughed a sweet sound then, looking down at her paws as she remembered the episode with Indra and the doe. Boy, of all the things that could have come to mind, it had to be that? I don't recall hearing your name.

her seaglass gaze travels to the valley in which she points to, encompassed by formidable rocky walls.  at least the girl seemed nice enough, but seabreeze would not have wanted to make her home there.

her flews purked upwards at the knowledge that this girl was a medic, and also at her laughter.  i'm seabreeze, she begins, and i'm a counselor and midwife.  we have two other midwives in our pack, i think, and those girls are good with herbs too.

now how to broach the topic of a tentative alliance?  maybe we should all get together some time.

It was fun to imagine Blondine having a group of friends in the Wilds like she'd had back at home, but it didn't take a psychic to tell her that it would never happen. The wolves in these parts were just different, and there was nothing wrong with that, but Blondine knew better than to stick herself where she didn't belong. Nonetheless, she nodded her head along with Seabreeze's invitation.

After clearing her throat, Blondine laughed, Sure. I like to sneak away every now and then. Although she was a pack wolf by design, the crowded territory life could get a bit overwhelming. Besides, trying to traverse the outside on her own was good practice to adapting to the whole I've-only-got-one-eye thing. Surely you can relate, what, with a name like Seabreeze. I'd imagine you closer out to the water.

she was quite pleased when blondine agreed to meet again some time with the other medics.  she lost herself for a moment in her imagination, the fantasy of collecting herbs together with a bunch of girls taking over.

at blondine's second statement, seabreeze offers a good natured laugh.  the sea swallowed me once, she says, it's how i wound up here in the teekons.  but yes, i do miss it.  are you from somewhere else, too?  you have quite the nifty accent.  hopefully, that would be taken in the innocuous manner it was meant.

Folks were normally too shy to bring attention to Blondine's accent, as though mentioning it would make her aware of something deathly horrifying. It was refreshing to finally find someone who was unafraid to talk about it, as it was something that Blondine happened to be quite proud of.

I am, actually, she conceded with a swell of her chest, From somewhere much warmer and sweeter than this cold terrain. It's called Abernathy Hill. You ever go south of this land and happen to meet my people, tell 'em Blondine sent you. It was one surefire way of Seabreeze earning a meal and a place to sleep, if all else failed.

well, that is so sweet!  i wish i had somewhere nice to send you.   it always hurt a little bit when people brought up their families, but she reminded herself that she had one now.

speaking of which.  if you're ever crossing over the mountains and you need a place to rest at night, howl at sunspire's borders and tell them it was me who sent you.  well, it was the best thing she could offer in turn.

and let me know whenever you wanna have that get-together.

It was clear that their meeting was coming to a close, which Blondine didn't mind. With Seabreeze's address locked into her mind, she knew that it would only be a matter of time before they met again. It'd be my pleasure, she cooed with a dip of her head, then taking a step back with a friendly wag of her tail. Until then.

 

did you still want to somehow breach the subject we wanted them to, or arrange their next thread?

her mind was a-buzz with all of the possibilities this brought for sunspire.  perhaps she could have arranged the pack's second alliance!  if there was anything seabreeze thrived on it was brownie points that meant absolutely nothing.

until next time, she echoed, and then the seasprite headed back to sunspire.