Dragoncrest Cliffs and i will grow like you

despite the upheaval of nomi's departure and her sudden promotion, the young commander has not somehow exploded into dust. any remaining vestiges of momentary wanderlust vanish in the hazy aftermath. (but still -- she wishes she could find furi again just to tell her about it -- she could use a friend right now.) 

nomi had said @Helix and dio would help her -- but she doesn't know helix at all. that should probably change. with a determined set of her shoulders the redheaded guardian makes her way through drageda, looking for the black furred woman (yeah, she could probably just call for her, but she doesn't think of that, so. there.)

She had a few days to process the information, a few days with Heda to learn more about Drageda and the way things are run here. It is similar to Seageda and the others, but more relaxed. Oher than a few conflicts, the teekons are far more mild than the lands of the north. She doesn’t know if that’s a good or bad thing.
 
And then Lava hasn’t been seen in a few days, which is unlike him, so she spends her time on the borders and nearby areas, hoping for a sign. Now that Heda and the kru she’s taken back are gone, she isn’t sure what to make of her son’s disappearance. He hadn’t been at the farewell but had he caught up with them, and gone? Or gone home entirely? A sigh escapes her lips, finding herself lonely amongst a pack that should be like blood.
 
Drageda is too far to be considered home.
 
Helix turns her head at the sound of another, ears curved forward at the approach. The new acting commander approaches and she bows her head respectfully and lowers her tail a bit more.
 
“Ha yun,” she comments with a slight twitch of her tail, waiting to see what the young woman has for her.

for a beat she is confused by helix's display of deference, the full reality of her promotion yet to sink in. she's doing a job for nomi but she still is young, and even though she has proven herself as a capable defender for drageda the idea that those older than her are now serving her is. well, strange. it's not a power trip, not for blixen (and maybe that makes her perfect for the role.)

"hei," she replies, nodding a touch awkwardly. still in trig, she says, "how are you settling in?" -- if nothing else her experiences with furi and rose have taught her not to take for granted that drageda is equally comfortable to all, even if helix is of their culture.

Helix watches the way the girl holds herself. A little unsure, confused, but Helix doesn’t put it past her. She’s young but so had Thuringwethil and she remembers that day easily. Something similar between them, proving the fiery girl, though not by blood, is still Heda’s daughter. She’d seen the uncertainty in the girl’s face on Ascension Day despite her training since birth. Blixen will do just fine.
 
“Well enough,” she tells her with a hint of a smile. “I have been a warrior for a long time, and have helped our generals and led my own wolves, but I admit I have not done much with the rest of leadership. I know our ways inside and out and I feel confident enough to help you—as Heda wants me to do, so do not be afraid to come to me.” The youth in Blixen’s face is not enough to worry her but she does not want to be unapproachable because of who she is. She wants to see Drageda flourish in Thuringwethil’s absence just as anyone else and though she cannot fight beside her wolves in Trigeda, she certainly can here.

helix assures her in more ways than one -- actually, come to think of it, she's similar to nomi in a way blix finds comforting. she hasn't had the opportunity to mourn nomi's departure, even if it is temporary, and somehow she finds herself feeling something close to home-sickness. (because home, after all, is more than geography). nodding, she forces herself to let go of the feeling. "thank you," the -- the commander mumbles, aware once more of her own youth. but she has grown so much in her short time and if nomi and helix believe in her and will help her, maybe she has a shot at this. 

"i've only really acted as a gona, too," she admits, "we don't often encounter other packs here, but still, diplomacy makes me --" well, bored " -- nervous." it doesn't seem like helix has a great deal of experience in that arena either but she will take what she can get, frankly. "is there anything i should be --- that i should be doing, now?"

As Blixen speaks of her experience, a warrior acting under Dio and formerly Eske, Helix nods her head once. The fact there are not many packs around them gives them a bit of safety (albeit lack of excitement, but who can complain about prospering?), but she speaks of concerns that do not surprise her. Drageda seems to, for the most part, run on its own all things considering. The wolves contribute, do what they’re supposed to, they train the young, all in the same vein they do in Trigeda with minor differences that come down to style.
 
“You just have to make the decisions when the times come. Not having neighbors can be a good thing. Are there any close at all?” she asks, glancing off for a moment as something catches her eye but she pulls back to the young woman. “If they know of Drageda already, they would know Heda’s rule. Perhaps we can make a trip to them, if you’d like. Heda did take a number of wolves with her, especially warriors and… while we are typically against strangers, Drageda has a number of outsiders that have proven their worth. I would not say it is a bad idea to perhaps recruit, should we find someone worthy of our cause.”.
 
Trigeda has always been large, their packs north holding a populous. The shock of Drageda’s size is new to her and now even less with those that departed. Even if they do not neighbors and have their safety, they still need to be able to defend themselves. Wolves are not the only threat.

"morningside," blixen answers thoughtfully, trying to remember where that man and his daughter had said they were located. close enough to visit, not so close as to be threatening. aside from them -- the sound is long since cleared and ironsea -- ironsea is either too far to be worth mentioning or blix knows that they've disbanded (either way, she declines to bring it up.) 

while we are against strangers, drageda has a number of outsiders that have proven their worth. yeah. she thinks about furi -- if they actively go recruiting as helix suggestions (as strange as that would feel) -- maybe they could find furi and her friends, and actually convince them this time. "we should," the young commander agrees, glancing vaguely in the direction where she'd seen furi last. who could they send -- scout-types. there's étoille, who may or may not be gone at this point idk timelines. there's... hell, yeah, they are low. artaax. artaax! she can make artaax go off. he's... sociable. sort of. or -- hm, branwen... "we definitely should," blixen says again, more firmly, running through the (significantly shorter) roster of her kru in her head. "at least to see if anyone else is close..."

Helix commits the name to member—Morningside—and wonders what they are like. Perhaps if they visit, she can find out first hand, and so she nods again. “I will be happy to go with you to visit them, if you’d like,” she tells the girl. It will do her some good, too, to familiarize herself.
 
As Blixen agrees to recruitment (something that still surprises Helix to say), she nods and wonders what goes through her mind. If Blixen does not speak to her about it, she cannot help, but she does not push for information. She cannot make the girl do anything as commander, for her place is only to help. “Who are the scouts here? I will also venture out, too, and see who I can find,” she offers though she does not know the area too well. She’s visited the sound a few times now, and the plains, but it doesn’t hurt to get out a little now and then and Helix is certain her judge of character for Drageda’s sake will benefit them in the long run.

 helix's offer to go with her puts blix more at ease, even if her next question makes her shuffle awkwardly. "we don't have... many," she says. "maybe our steltrona," she adds, unaware that étoille'd departed to trail after heda with his wife-to-be. rose is needed here, but, "i can ask one of our kru, branwen," she offers, "or my brother artaax." they can't really spare many bodies at the moment but artaax she trusts not to get eaten or killed venturing beyond drageda (jeez they have not been so lucky with scouts, huh). if furi were here.... well, that's beside the point. awkwardly she adds, feeling nervous again, "if you venture too, that would be helpful." helix is new to drageda and is still kru, technically, but is clearly experienced -- more experienced than blixen. in fact, "thank you for your help in this," she says, "i'm grateful to have dio -- but with eske and n-- and heda gone, it's -- strange."

She is reminded of the Steltrona—an impressive brute—and she nods her head. He is easy to get along with and she can see his use in the pack. Whether or not she knows his story, however, is to be seen from another thread. In the meantime, she listens as she lists the few wolves they have left. She has not met the ones mentioned but she is curious about her brother, the name familiar from someone in their past—at least with Thuringwethil—and it does not surprise her.
 
“Of course. Like I said, I am here to help you. Not just the transition to leader, but whatever you need.” Perhaps it is too much to mention that she would die for her leader, regardless of who holds the title. She does not want to overwhelm the girl any more than she is. “Upheaval is never fun. When Seageda fell apart, before Heda came here… it was chaos and difficult to understand. Only a few wolves knew and they no longer exist,” explains Helix, still feeling a tender spot in her chest for her birthplace but perhaps being near the sea will help ease those long buried tensions.

there are bits and pieces of her culture's history that she's gleaned in conversation with ajatar (and less frequently, with nomi, although her questions for nomi have largely revolved around drageda's history in the teekons). she does not know what seageda is -- was -- like, or what nomi went through before coming to the teekons to lead drageda. but blixen is not desperate for a history lesson. instead she sucks in a breath and lets it out, her sigh turning into a soft "sha." for a moment she is quiet, oddly reflective, but when she looks at helix again the determined fire she normally carries has returned to her eyes. "if you're going to be helping me," she says, "you should be our fleimkepa." she has not been here long but it does not make sense for blixen as-commander to be advised by a kru -- they might as well make this counselorship official as far as the young commander is concerned.

Not knowing what Blixen knows, she does not push her into an unwanted history lesson. Another time, should she ask, but there will be plenty of time for the girl to learn. Through experience will be the best, as they do their children with fighting and hunting. The more they do it, the better they will learn, but as Blixen goes into her next set Helix blinks, blankly at first, and stares at her for a few seconds to let the information set in.
 
Thuringwethil had not given her a title, beyond helping her through this, but is that what she meant? Blixen has the power, she supposes, but she has not been around long—she does not know even half the pack—but perhaps it is for the best. It is, essentially, what she will be doing even if she does not have the practical experience. “If that is what you think is best, I will stand by you as fleimkepa.”

oh, yeah, she guesses she does sort of have the power in this situation. nevertheless she grins, pleased helix does not rebuff her -- even if she doesn't know everyone yet, she's got the experience to make up for it, and especially if she's been through -- periods of upheaval, like she said. "i do," blixen confirms, her tail wagging slowly as she talks. "thank you, helix," she adds, "and we can decide when to visit morningside, too." that seems like the logical next step, a bit of practical diplomacy experience and all of that. either way she feels much more at ease than she did before talking to helix -- and she's glad that nomi made the dark woman stay to advise her.

Helix bows her head a little deeper this time, accepting the offer when Blixen confirms that is what she wants. Perhaps the pack will find upset, perhaps that won’t, but in the meantime it does not matter. Blixen has made her decision and they can handle it together. The wolves here from their homeland (what few there are) may have no problem but she wonders about the others. If they are true to Drageda, she hopes that accept Blixen’s judgment, especially when she is the one to bring it up.
 
“Whenever you would like to go,” says Helix, reminding her she has the power of decision now.

"right," she says, suddenly overwhelmed by the weight of responsibility. is she really ready to do this? everyone around her seems to think so -- so she has no choice but to trust them. still. "soon," blix says, nodding with more confidence than she feels, "thank you, helix." soon is vague but it's what she can muster, and as she excuses herself she beelines for @Wildfire, desperate for some motherly comfort (and, probably, a nice long discussion about ambassadory and all it entails.)