Moonspear i already drank that cup.

She trembled as her paws touched land she never dreamed they would ever step upon again. Never had she dared to imagine what it would be like to be here again. There was hardly any of it left; the eruption had devastated so much of the mountain, wiping the scene of so many of her childhood memories from the earth. They would never be again. Yet still, Yami Ostrega felt the haunting of reverie, the ghosts of her family, and most of all, the crushing weight of regret.

It was gone. All of it. The land that had once sustained their empire. The family that had held dominion here. Their legacy stretched far beyond the wilds, and so the news of their end had reached her in her travels. She had reeled over the news for days until finally deciding she needed to see for herself. Now that she was, she wished she hadn’t come. So much was lost, not the least of which was her chance to make any amends with those she’d abandoned.

Yami eventually dropped to her haunches and imagined she was sitting at her family’s old rendezvous site where she and her siblings used to play. She had no real way of knowing—the landscape was bleak and littered with rubble as it never had when the land had been populated. The memories didn’t need validation, though. They swarmed her, drowned her, regardless.

if he had known what this place meant, why it looked this way, he would not have been here. especially where a woman mourned. it was not the ideal situation for gennesis.

but he knew none of those things. he was a man clueless of the history of these wilds, of the reach of these wolves. he merely saw the land for what it was.

inhabitable crumbles of a mountain.

and here was a woman, plopped down comfortably about to have her moment ruined by a clueless man.

he was uncertain what he wanted from her, other than to see her. as such was his socialization skills. so he stood in front of her, a few yards away. orange eyes fixed on her, not bothering to hide himself among the rubble.

She didn’t realize he was there, not right away. She was too lost in her thoughts. She was in a different time, stargazing with Charon while he taught her the names of the constellations. She was with Amekaze, learning to hunt. She was trying to chase Lyra and Alya across the cliffs, and trying to wrestle Hydra to the ground. She was snuggling with Arcturus, Revui and Yama at night. So many memories, happy ones, the ones she had denied for such a long time because they reminded her that it hadn’t all been bad. And if that were true, then maybe it hadn’t all been their fault either.

Yami shut her eyes tight for a moment, catching herself before she fell too far. It was when she opened them that she spotted the stranger, staring silently at her. She froze, for a moment thinking she truly was seeing a ghost. In her eyes, it was one of the Cerberus, come to drive her off from their grave. But the eyes were wrong—orange, not blue. She settled, but only just. Her fear turned to annoyance, but the volume stayed high.

”Do you need something?” Yami asked, the attitude she wore all over her athletic frame dripping all over her tone.

did he need something?

he supposed he needed lots of things. nothing she could give him, most likely. tall ears cupped forward though, the only sign that he had truly heard her.

if he was a mind reader, he might have rolled in delight at her thinking him almost a ghost.

alas.

he traveled in a wide arch around her, not yet leaving, but instead intended to assess her from different views.

did he need something?

do you claim here?

Yami tensed as the stranger began to circle her, like a cat circling its prey. There was nothing threatening in the way he looked at her, but his actions made her wary. She kept an eye on him, though she did not stand or turn to remain facing him. She wasn’t about to show any sign of weakness, as little as any opinion he formed of her really mattered. She was an Ostrega, as she had not been in years. She would not flinch upon her ancestral home.

His question made her roll her eyes. Much as the idea of one day ruling over Moonspear might’ve thrilled her in her youth, she was not so foolish now. The Spear was not what it used to be, and never would be again. She wouldn’t pretend otherwise. ”Obviously,” she drawled, not bothering to hide her sarcasm, ”You know how in demand barren wastelands are these days.”

her snark would be met with a nasal snort, starting deep in his chest before it rolled out of his angular face.

it is a good place for loners as any.

she did not carry any scent but her own, not that he could detect. not to mention the stark lack of borders here. it truly was a barren wasteland as she had said, but when had that ever stopped somebody from pissing somewhere and calling it home?

why are you here then?

Yami frowned at his comment, but didn’t bother correcting him. This was a terrible place for loners. It was a terrible place for anyone. There was hardly any grass for prey animals, meaning there was hardly any prey for carnivores. Perhaps birds could find insects to feast on and could do so without fear of being eaten themselves, but otherwise this was a land now fit for none but rats and vultures.

The thought made her heart hurt, so she buried it.

”The view,” Yami answered shortly, looking away from the man. Perhaps he would go away if she stopped looking at him. Being unpleasant certainly wasn’t working.

he stared out into the lands.

the barren wasteland. perhaps there was a view if you looked beyond it, but why look from here? why not from another peak? why not from the mountains in the distance?

are you hungry?

he was a bottomless pit, always in need of the meals for his constant wandering.

He didn’t leave, but he did change the subject to one that intrigued her in spite of herself. She was hungry. It was far more likely she’d be able to catch a meal if she had help, even if the present company was unwelcome. Or any company at all, for that matter.

She pondered the offer in silence for a minute, then sighed. ”There’s hardly any game around here,” she said, ”Unless you’ve seen something I haven’t.” Which she doubted, but she that could’ve just been her negativity talking.

he frowned, not that such a look was very out of place on his peculiar features. she was a difficult one.

higher might be goat, he gestured with a swing of his head. really couldn't go much higher than here but that wasn't the point, was it? lower will be nesting birds. the crags of rocks were safe spaces for mountain birds to make their nests for the coming spring.

so he looked towards her, waiting her judgement once more.

Yami stared at him, considering his suggestions. Her frown deepened once he'd finished. Did he really think she was going to go bird hunting? Was he trying to patronize her? She sucked in a deep breath and looked around once again, debating whether or not to just up an leave. But with a dramatic sigh, she finally stood and walked past him towards a trail that would lead them higher into the Spear's wrecked peak.

"Just don't slow me down," she said to him as she passed.

wouldn't dream of it, he snorted lowly.

he would take after her with long strides, legs eating up the crumbled land beneath them. nose worked overtime to find them the freshest trail.

Yami dropped her nose to the ground as they went, searching for some sort of trail. She didn't really think they would find anything. She couldn't imagine what would be living in this place these days. Probably nothing worthwhile. She thought back to her youth when the mountain was teeming with life. There had been trails all over the place back then. Or at least, that was how she remembered it. That was a long time ago, back when she had been a child. When she'd seen Moonspear through the eyes of a child.

Her heart was beginning to ache from the memories. She needed a distraction, so she threw herself fully into the hunt, barely even noticing when the stranger disappeared without a word into the rubble of Moonspear.