Ouroboros Spine moons

Aureli is accompanied by @Delos

After Delos swore his first oath there by the lake, the pair had begun making plans. Before heading toward the next pack, the boy had been given a crash course on etiquette and beside manners. He was to be quiet and respectful during initial meetings, his focus on learning how best to approach strange wolves and not only make his own intentions known, but to suss out the intentions of others.

He'd asked Leto not to accompany them to the borders at all.

Moke, of course, could not be asked to do much of anything. Nevertheless, the cat had elected to follow Leto for a while.

"Remember," Aureli said to his apprentice as they came to the outskirts of the claim. "If I tell you to run, you must run right away. And if I tell you to fetch white grass for me, you are to calmly excuse yourself and run as soon as you are out of sight. I will find you when it is safe."

But he smiled, and gave a subtle wag of his tail. There was no reason to suspect that they would find trouble here.

"And, failing those possibilities, just try to be polite," he said as a final aside. They'd come as close as he meant to without invitation. Now, Aureli tipped back his head and howled for an audience.

The etiquette Aureli taught came to him naturally for the most part. He knew when to shut up, and that was a good starting point.

When they approached the borders, Delos was go over his mental notes. White grass meant run, keep quiet and listen, and stay concious of his expression to avoid any rude glares. His mother was more than likely nearby, hunting in unclaimed lands for a meal she could offer to the healers when they returned.

He kept a step or two behind Aureli, pushing away his nerves.

I'm always polite. He responded with a soft smile, but turned his attention into the borders after Aureli began his howl.

A call rang out at the foothills of the low mountains which encircled the vale within. Waterman made way, slipping through one of many passes inbetween as he drew nearer. 

A pair. One a man elder to himself, colored sandy and red clay. Another, young and pale like a ghost. So light, he could see the pink of his flesh at the points of his body, with eyes pale ice. 

Arrluk's greeting is one of friendliness, with a woofing towards them and sway of his tail at his hocks. A green gaze slips between each as he makes his way and stops before them when appropriate. 

To you both, welcome to the village Moonglow. I am Arrluk, Tóangun of our people.

A kindly-eyed man came to greet them, and Aureli felt something in his chest unclench. He was relatively certain, then, that Delos would be safe in this place.

Gratitude made him more polite and deferential than he might otherwise have been.

"My thanks," the physician replied, his tail whisking. He shot Delos a warm look, checking in to be sure that he felt just as safe. "I am Aureli, a physician of the Healer's Guild, and this is my apprentice, Delos."

He gave their names merely because he felt that Arrluk had taken pains to meet them as individuals, and to introduce himself immediately with his own name. He found himself quite endeared to the man right off the bat, though one likely wouldn't notice unless they'd seen how aloof he usually was at these initial meetings.

"Tóangun," he repeated, testing the word. "I don't know this word. Are you the healer in this place?"

A man comes, and he speaks enough that cannot be understood from lip reading that Delos has to feel somewhat frustrated. However he knows better, and keeps quiet next to Aureli. The most he does for now is dip his head in greeting.

But despite his frustrations, he does like the Moonglow man so far. Arrluk? Is that what he said his name was? He seems pleasant enough.

Nose twitching, he hopes Aureli won't tell him off for inspecting the stranger's scent. He's curious! Arrluk smells of many others, young and old. He swears that some mixed in there are his age, and he hasn't seen someone his age since he was with his siblings.

A warm smile was passed to the young wolf at his side. It soothed Arrluk with the knowing that Arrluk's presence was pleasing to them. The young alpha had no intention of sullying the reputation which his parents had given Moonglow. 

Ears perked, revealing an interest as the man spoke of being a part of a Healer's Guild. It made Arrluk's heart flutter in his chest. Bittersweet. His mother would have sang to know of such things and surely would have been more then willing to take part in this fold. 

It is good to meet the faces of the Healer's Guild. He shakes his head then. I am not. It has the meaning, Waterman. A title of standing among all the villages of our people, or what was... A frown tugs, but only for a moment. Here, I am leader along the side of my mate, Ajei. She is Sǫ'agnak - Starwoman. Arrluk was more then willing to share their culture, if they had intention to stay. Yet currently Arrluk felt perhaps they were traveling medics, looking to spread their name and their works. 

My mother was Moonwoman to our people for many years. A medicine woman of great knowing. It is sad to say, that many skills were lost with her passing. If you come here to teach, Moonglow would eagerly accept.

Though he showed no outward sign of it, Aureli was surprised to meet with a leader so young. One of his ears twisted toward Delos as if the boy might say something — but, as Delos had pointed out, the boy was always polite.

"I am sorry to hear of your loss," Aureli replied, disappointed in his own right to have missed the opportunity to share in the late moonwoman's knowledge. He inferred that Arrluk must have taken up the mantle with the passing of more elderly leaders. Or, perhaps, the same plague that took all the others had struck them down here. he would ask about it more thoroughly another time.

"I do come to offer my skills," he replied with a dip of his head. "In teaching or in practice. If you have a designated healer, they may join in on lessons with my apprentice."

He looked down at the boy, and the back up at Arrluk.

"You have children here," he noted, watching the other man carefully. "Perhaps, during his free time, you might allow young Delos to seek them out? He's not had much chance to meet with others near his age."

Between Arrluk and Aureli as they speak, it seems there's teaching to be done here. It is a bit exciting, given Delos had half expected they would be turned away. He holds back from jumping out of his skin when Aureli seems to read his mind, however.

Eagerly, he waits to see what Arrluk's response will be. While he would insist that he was much too old to play with others his age, he did want to meet them. They could have.. intelligent conversations.

Besides that, Verapaz was the only pack setting he had really spent time in. He had been apart of Redhawk Caldera obviously, but that was brief and mostly spent recovering. It would be interesting to see if pack life here was much different from in the lowlands.

Thank you. Arrluk lowers his head to the man's words and listens as Arrluk's thoughts are confirmed. 

We do not. A frown as he lifts his head. However I would be interested in sitting in some of your teachings. Perhaps my wife, as well. They did not have a healer. Ajei knew a few things from his mother's teachings, but not alot. Arrluk had never taken up interest, but given that they had not held a good healer since his mother's passing he felt perhaps it would be best if he learned a number of things. For the safety of his pack, at least. 

He thought of @Raindrop and wondered if she would hold any interest. Then there was even his little girl, Chinook, whose fascination with plants had not been missed as she aged. Speaking of children... 

Ah, yes we do! He says then with a grin, flashing his smile to the quiet boy's direction. My daughters, @Ahna and Chinook. There is also Raindrop's children, who have the name Ludovic and Ponderosa. Angel Oak had gone, yet the girl was finding adventure in herself. 

Come, I will show you to the healing dens to settle.

Aureli dipped his head in assent, speaking a firm, "All are welcome." That they did not have a designated healer, even an untrained one, was something he hoped he might be able to rectify. "I can return to offer more lessons, if any of you find yourself called to the vocation," he went on. "This is part of the Guild's mission. Every pack should have at least one dedicated healer."

That was his opinion, anyway.

Arrluk called them beyond the borders, deeper into the territory. Aureli gave his apprentice an encouraging look once the leader's back was turned. "What do you think?" he asked the boy. "Shall we turn you loose after tomorrow morning's lesson?"

He'd not yet consulted the boy, and was not sure if he actually wanted to meet the other children.

The dens they came to were not filled with the scent of herbs, nor filled with ailing wolves. Aureli regarded them with a quiet pang in his heart; he assumed they had been abandoned when this pack's moonwoman was lost to them.

He turned to Arrluk.

"My apprentice and I will gather some herbs this evening — things that can be dried and stored for later use," he informed the young leader. "With your blessing, I'd like to hold the first lesson here, at dawnlight tomorrow."

Now that the offer to actually meet others was laid out in front of him, he couldn't help feeling coy. What if they didn't like him?

Maybe, if there's nothing else to do. He decides. That seemed like the right answer, though he could have worded it better.

He does lighten up at the mention gathering of herbs, however. That's something he knows he can do.

It is settled then. Arrluk spoke with a dip of white chin. I will inform the others of your arrival and let you get settled in. Arrluk paused, awaiting only to see if there was anything further before making his way. There was no use hovering, especially if they planned to rest, drink and eat awhile before going to work. Arrluk too would need to allow the rest of the pack to know of their guests and their lessons to come.

Aureli bowed his head, motioning discreetly for Delos to do so as well. 

"My thanks, Tóangun," he murmured. The young male took his leave, then, and Aureli turned back to his apprentice.

"I believe you will be quite safe here," he assured his apprentice. "Let's take stock of what we have here. Then we can have a little rest before we look for what the rest of the territory has to offer."

Delos bowed, waiting until Arrluk was gone before returning his attention to Aureli.

How long will we stay? He wasn't entirely against the idea, but he didn't like that his mother would be left alone.

He felt sure that they wouldn't need to do much in the way of collecting today. But, it would be nice to see what this new territory had to offer them.