Hoshor Plains Footprints on Frost

The journey to Hoshor plains had been pleasant, with stretches of silence though not uncomfortable in the company of @Phox and conversation as well. Along the way, she picked up a few small game trails to keep them sated but did not pursue any too far off their course. They made good time, the pathways through Neverwinter forest were familiar for having visited before, and though the river crossing had been cold and bracing in the winter they had arrived with the season's early frost across the plains and she could not complain breathing in the crisp cold air.

When they reached the plains Heph picked out some high ground that she remembered from her initial sweep, bringing them to one of the sparse hills of the area allowing them to survey the land around. Though the territory was vast bison tracks both old and newer littered the ground beneath the fresh snow and mentally she had already begun mapping the river and tributaries they had crossed.

Spending time with Heph was surprisingly easy. It was similar to the ease he felt when spending time with his closest family. Except Heph wasn't family, was she? At least not yet. Phox had certainly toyed with the idea, and he had a feeling Heph had, too. And of course he'd told @Towhee that things were going well with his latest fancy. He tried not to think too far ahead, make too many plans, or set any expectations. Instead, Phox focused on being in the moment and enjoying where this journey was taking him (both the metaphorical journey and their physical one).

Sure is a pretty place, he said when they reached the crest of a hill and she stopped to survey the area below. How many folks do you think will show up for the big hunt? he asked.

Heph glanced over, watching Phox's eyes track over the land. "mmm." She hummed in agreement at his assessment. Though lacking the defensibility of the plateau the wide tracts of land were inviting. She felt she could see for miles around as if the world was meant to be explored. But she did not elaborate too much, time with Phox was unlike the exuberant flash in the pan meetings, catching up with friends, or even warm familiar hellos. It was more a trip through the forest down familiar and unfamiliar pathways. Few who met her would call her quiet, and yet she was a wolf who, incongruous to her persona, spent much time in solitude, travelling between places, seeing no one and being seen by no one for days at a time, quietly traversing, with wonder and excitement but also alone. And yet the journeying with him had not felt an intrusion, far from it.

At his question she shrugged, unsure. "I don't know, the Moon villages will send hunters and healers. Five more packs said they would make it or try. Six from Moontide and one of Rodyn's old friends and his family. At least two dozen then?" She marked them off in her head, she did not know the size of most of the packs she visited, how many hunters were among them and they would spare. Moonglow and Moontide were packs with many hunters and traders. Perhaps some packs would send more and some fewer hunters in their midst.

couldn't qutie fit in "waldeinsamkeit" XD but I couldn't resist a classic movie moment

phew, thanks for waiting on this one! was trying to get their other two a bit further so as not to make assumptions. :)

He watched the now familiar movement of her shoudlers into a shrug. As always, this shrug was followed by an answer of which she was quite knowledgable about. Heph was always implying she knew a lot bit less than she let on. It was cute, and Phox grinned, enjoying picking up on these little nuances about her personality. She was somehow both quiet about herself and yet quite impressive. Phox found himself wanting to emulate that quality.

Two dozen. Wow. That's going to be quite the turnout. Hope you won't mind if I stick with you for most of it. I'm not really that great in big crowds like that, he admitted. He prefered the smaller, quieter gatherings.

of course all good! :D

She felt her bones warm outward towards her skin, though she had not had a chance to see him in large gatherings she had no reason to doubt his self-assessment. And though she found it difficult to fully understand she was glad he had shared and to be able to be a partial social buffer. "Of course, let me know if you want to tap out though." Her tone which had curved softly over the words in an even candor shifted into something more mercurial as she warned with a smile. "Otherwise I'll drag you to meet half of them." Maybe more if she were particularly prolific but the hunt would come first and she looked forward to that as well.

On most occasions, Phox found that Towhee was his buffer. Or, well, not his buffer exactly, but they were always willing to tap out together. He realized he was doing that thing where he was comparing Heph to his sister again, and he mentally chastised himself. Heph was her own person, not somebody to be put next to his sister at every moment. Just as it wouldn't be fair to compare Heph to Camilla or Niamh. They were all entirely different relationships, he reminded himself.

I mean, I am charming, he replied, grinning wide with his teeth. And who wouldn't want to meet the ~amazing three-legged wolf!~ As if he were some kind of rare side-show freak. Which, to be fair, sometimes he felt like. Not in a terrible way, but some of the looks he got were quite unnerving. Luckily for him, Heph had never once made light of his situation. That was only for him to do, he'd decided. Okay, and Towhee, because they had a history of playful insutling banter.

The flash of his teeth spread across his features and incited a matching momentary grin at the humor, though the following words prompted a ruffle in her fur as she shook her head. "Hmmm if you're planning on being that charming I can't imagine what the gossip will be like." Her voice took on a faux quality imitating someone much younger than herself. "Mum, mum. I'm telling you he had desert-sun eyes and a scar on his face and told me in six cycles of the moon the stars would change!" It had been one of the more incredible things she remembered him telling her at one point - she knew that the night sky changed but she had not realized that certain constellations could completely disappear from the horizon line.

XD sorry I struggled a bit with the dialogue on this one but I think it turned out all-right. Also I think Heph did make a missing leg joke when they first met, whoops! (foot in the mouth but she meant well)

no worries at all!

He guffawed at her comment on gossip. It had been a very long time since Phox had been the subject of gossip, and he couldn't complain about that. It was nice to live a fairly boring life for awhile. Not that his last year had been particularly boring, especially with his missing leg, but it certainly hadn't been as emotionally wrought as so many years before it.

Heph went on, dreaming up what others might say about him, and that only made Phox laugh harder. Is that what I sound like? Good stars above, I hope I'm not that pathetic. He knew she meant it all as a compliment, but he couldn't help himself. Phox was in good humor about it, of course, wondering what gossip he could drum up about Heph.

Well, I heard he likes that gal with all the pretty little white spots all over. Word has it she organized this whole dang thing!

His laughter was rich and warm in her ears, a huff of a chuckle through her lips as she leaned, a slight press of shoulders as she leaned. "Only at nighttime when you're being romantic." Admittedly she had not known what to expect first stargazing but the time had passed gently and easily, heart pounding but not uncomfortably.

A tuck of her chin at his words and her ears swiveled around her head for a moment, but a grin. "Well then I'd better hope it's a success if that's what they'll be saying." In truth even if it was not she felt it had been worth the journey to see new faces and re-establish old ties.

The Moon packs were bound, not all their members, but some by ties of family so it was not far-fetched to think that there would be some whispering. She hoped that it was all in good spirit but when wolves gathered words tended to travel faster than they could react with level heads. In the distance she saw a mass of brown fur against the plains, a herd in the distance.

Phox rolled his eyes at her comment, hoping he didn't really sound so... silly. Then again, if Heph was into it, maybe it wasn't that bad after all. There was an easygoing nature to her he couldn't help but enjoy, and he was glad to be taking his time with this rather than rushing into things. He'd done that too many times in the past, and now he could just stroll along, slow and steady. It was decidedly preferable to his old ways.

Heph's eyes locked on to something in the distance, and Phox followed her gaze to the brown blobs in the distance. No matter how many times I see them, he whispered, they always seem unreal in those numbers. They moved as a singular mass, keeping their most vulnerable members to the inside of the herd. It was a wonder any of the hunts were ever successful with a defensive strategy like that.

Heph nodded at his assessment, her attention caught firmly as she waited, a flicker of relief that the herd's path did not begin to arc towards them. "I hadn't realized they were this far west until I saw them here by chance."

Her own voice was quite to not disrupt the moment. "Moose are the closest thing I've ever seen to size but the herds..." She trailed off a slight shake of her head. Moose were large but they did not travel in such numbers and with the same strategy for warding off predators. Wolves had a chance with them, but with these the wolves who hunted here would remember for some time.

Phox pulled his gaze away from the lumbering beasts to Heph (which wasn't difficult, given the subject matter). It was nice to see her with that look on her face. Pure marvel at the way the world just was. It reminded him of simpler times in his life, but perhaps that was what lay ahead: simpler times. Phox felt like that could be something he could get used to again. A quiet home, a quiet life. He knew they could take their time getting there, just as they would take their time before bringing down these massive herd animals.

Looks like there will be plenty to feed even a big turnout, he said. And then some.

The moment stretched and slowed, but she was content to let it. The herd moved and she nodded, with the many wolves that would come she was optimistic about their chances, and though she hoped they were successful even the attempt would be enough of a story. She lingered for a few moments more, glad for the wolf at her side before setting to work.

I'm good to fade here perhaps a new thread? <3