Mount Everfall I cannot be tender with this much blood in my mouth

Open thread! Consent to PP Anuniaq given, and he may hop into the thread at any point, though at present he is just in the background. Weather—0 degrees (feels like -11F), cloudy.

Up she and her nephew, @Anuniaq, climbed. He knew the way, he informed, and though he was their guide Silaluk was the one who stood tall. There was no question if the hungry boy knew his place; he was obedient, and though he was not meek he was submissive toward her. It was not without reason. The boy had seen her at work, and he himself had likely felt her fangs once in violent reprimand. Those things, trivial moments, were long forgotten by Silaluk who held no grudge against any for finding their place.

They had reached one of the territories more smaller summits by evening. They had ranged the precarious landscape all throughout the drearily gray day and now picked their way downward. To fall spelled what looked as though it would be a certain death, though she and the stout yearling were experts in this terrain. He lurked at her hip, and one ear cocked backward in his direction as she moved, listening for sounds of distress. They had a long way to go until exhaustion; they had rested recently enough, and fed on a stray carcass felled not too long ago. The meat had not been warm, but it had been filling. This was all that mattered.

By the time night fell, the world was quiet and still but for their movements. Anuniaq lagged behind, sniffing in the backdrop but still able to be seen by any, while Silaluk ranged ahead some. The scent of many wolves that had passed through here was evident, and Silaluk's tail lashed behind her as she looked toward the sky. Silaluk glanced toward Anuniaq, an unspoken question evident in her gaze. His head lifted and he shook his head, and Silaluk turned back toward the horizon. This was not the place. The crescent moon above barely illuminated the land they roamed with the clouds overhead, but they were moving—later, she was certain, the sky would clear. Her vision was adjusted enough that the clouds, in any case, were of no consequence.

Tûgar had moved from the comfort of Arktayok Peak and its neighboring forest to this place. It was purely happenstance that caused her to find the trail of her brothers, but Tûgar was none-the-wiser to their status. She followed their trail out of laziness, though she, too, was an expert mountaineer. Still, as a lone wolf and without Tartok beside her she did not desire to take any risks. She kept well enough away to never be perceived a threat, and had yet to witness the two behemoths she followed. 

But they had paused, and now she had caught up. Tûgar was at a disadvantage, and she lowered her head and looked away disarmingly. Her ears flattened atop her skull, only not yet leaving due to the thought that they might see her as a threat if she moved too swiftly, even despite her evident disinterest.

Well accustomed to life on a mountainside, the climb up this particular mountain — as steep and treacherous as it was — was an easy feat for the two giant beasts. Large paws guided their way skilfully across the terrain, and Anuniaq felt well at ease up amongst the high slopes, even if the height here was almost dizzying. He peered every so often over the edge of their path, every so often kicking a stone over and watching as it tumbled down, seemingly forever.

Night fell upon them quickly, and Anuniaq was already hungry again; the meat from the carcass had been enough to satisfy him for the time being but now, now he wanted something fresh. However, the mountain seemed devoid of life (which was no surprise, considering the dangerous territory). With no tenderness to his movement, the boy poked and prodded at the ground with his nose, trying to find even a whiff of a trail.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw his travel companion look up and back to him. He met her glacial gaze with a rough shake of his head, understanding the wordless question. Like his mother, his aunt was a woman of few words — as were most of the Tartok wolves — but Anuniaq was able to discern the meaning behind her various grunts and glances. He was about to go back to his mindless search for food before a movement caught his eye, and he immediately turned to face the slim form of another that had appeared behind them. Although she seemed to show a display of indifference towards them, Anuniaq still let out a quiet growl to alert Silaluk, ears upright and tail rigid in warning to the stranger to keep her distance.

Silaluk had heard the others approach, her ears swiveling forward before her glacial eyes fell upon the stranger. Anuniaq, too, had noted the other and Silaluk observed the other from afar. The others body language spoke volumes, and it was this that caused Silaluk to plod toward the stranger. One ear swiveled backward, listening for Anuniaq, as she approached, her own posture commanding respect. Silaluk spoke not a word as she moved alongside the other, invading the others personal space with not one thought of their comfort. Her tail flicked rigidly behind her in invitation for the other to partake as Silaluk moved toward their hindquarters to inspect the many scents this tawny wolf carried. With a grunt she invited Anuniaq to join her in this.

Tûgar had thought the wolf approaching her to be a man, but the wind told her otherwise. The bearish she-wolf was a sight, but Tûgar had seen wolves of her stature at home. The two quiet beasts reminded her of home, and her silver eyes fell to them and lingered for a brief moment. Perhaps these were the wolves she sought? There was no such thing as 'too easy' in life, Tûgar discovered. She had been through enough trials in her two years that she knew better than to think that the cards you were given could sometimes be kind. They could be equally cruel. She knew better than to question it, had been taught and shown time and time again that she could do nothing about it. Tûgar's lips peeled backward in easy submission; traveling alone, there was no doubt that she would lose a battle against the two titans if she challenged their desire. It was a harmless one at that, and her tail rigidly remained around her leg. When offered, Tûgar reached forward to sniff the myriad of scents on Silaluk before looking toward Anuniaq, licking her chops anxiously.

Silaluk did not hesitate to engage with the other. Where Anuniaq was more tentative when approaching strangers — especially in a foreign land — he knew his aunt was a straight-forward woman and would directly confront any who crossed their path. Although the smaller wolf was not much of a threat, the boy hung back, ready to lurch into action if needed, as Silaluk approached the other.

When her yellow gaze fell to him, Anuniaq drifted forwards, pleased with her submissive posture. His own nose wiggled as he tested her scents, varied as they were. He paused for a moment before suddenly leaping to place his paws upon her scruff, attempting to force her to the ground in a show of dominance. Silaluk was the alpha of the duo, that he knew, but the boy was keen to assert his own authority among the strangers in this land.

Silaluk was appeased by the others behavior, and her bristling hackles flattened. One ear rotated again as Anuniaq approached, and she sensed his intent. He had once tried the very same move against her, though Silaluk was savage and severe in her reprimand, and he had never tried again. Silaluk wondered at his motive in this moment. This she-wolf was a stranger, and to their knowledge she was not one of them. Silaluk moved to rush him, knowing already he would be unbalanced as he reared to place his forelegs upon the stranger, her plume flying over her hindquarters. A loud snarl ripped forth from her throat: I am in charge, it said. She did not want this she-wolf to become confused with who, here, was the authority figure. He would remember, and she would learn. Her ears were perfectly erect, and Silaluk's glare sought to cut him down.

Tûgar watched the male as he approached, teeth still out in an uncomfortable but submissive grimace. She wanted no trouble from either of them. When the large male moved in a way meant to dominate, Tûgar let out a sharp, uncertain whine and snapped her teeth defensively toward him, but they were aimed to hit no mark. Her eyes flashed, and her mind whirled. It was Silaluk's behavior that brought her to the ground without touch, without even a look in her direction. The roaring snarl winded Tûgar, and she shrank to the earth. At once, Tûgar knew for certain who was in charge. Her eyes averted and her ears were scarcely able to be distinguished from the furs on her head. She yawned for good measure to display her lack of ill-will.

In one swift movement, his aunt reared to meet him as he went to land his forelegs on the stranger, causing the boy to fall roughly onto his side. He let out a whine in tandem with her as he writhed around to face Silaluk again, this time though with a much more reserved demeanour. He had indeed tried this once against her, though was quickly and harshly reminded of his place beneath her. He hadn't tried again, though with his eagerness to prove his worth, he forgot such an attempt even against a stranger while in her presence was not the best decision.

He licked his lips and bowed his head when she snarled, releasing a whine of his own as his ears fell back. I'm sorry, it won't happen again. He was still young and anxious to test his strength against others, though he mentally made a note to try it when their branch of Tartok was established. When the subordinate wolves knew exactly who was alpha. With a glance to the other wolf who lay in a more submissive posture than he, Anuniaq slowly rose to tentatively lick at Silaluk's chin with a whine, seeking forgiveness for his mistake.

It ended quickly, with Anuniaq lowering himself to the earth and Silaluk crowding him with a snarl. Her fangs moved to grab his flesh, seeking to grip him and give pinching bites to what she could roughly—but nowhere near rough enough to break skin, only enough to cause him great discomfort and some pain. It was a flurry of snarls and whimpers, but no wolf was injured in the process. In the corner of her eye was the lone wolf, who did nothing to disturb the process. When Anuniaq licked her chin she lifted her head, but was appeased. Her tail swished evenly behind her as her attention turned back to the stranger, moving to sniff her one last time, a gleam in her eye. Her warm breath brought rolling plumes from her nostrils as she now, idly, sniffed between the shoulderblades of the submissive, nervous stranger.

Tûgar, when she herself was directly approached, rolled unto her side to reveal her belly. The tension between the two dark wolves had faded as soon as the lead bitch was appeased by him, and Tûgar knew she did not want to face her displeasure. Her tail thumped weakly against the cold, stone ground as she began to pant. The two wolves before her were able-bodied and strong. Tûgar would follow them until Tartok could be found, she had already decided. Wolves to hunt with would be good. At length, Tûgar moved to lap at Silaluk's cheek, too. Oath enough, for the time.

The stranger was wise not to interrupt. Anuniaq's scolding was harsh but quick, and he was left with non-serious but still aching bite marks upon his shoulders. She accepted his apology easily enough, but when she made for the other now, the boy remained upon the ground, head between forelegs as he watched meekly as the smaller female made to give a sign of respect also. He stayed where he was until Silaluk gave him the okay to move, reminded again of the strict hierarchy that the Tartok wolves followed.

The other responded appropriately, though Silaluk stood over them for a time, her plume well above her hindquarters and her ears erect. Any moment they shifted, Silaluk hovered over them and let loose a rumbling growl. But after a time she was appeased fully, and the lick to her chin was telling that this one would join their numbers. Silaluk glanced back toward Anuniaq. In time, he would surely have his day with the tawny stranger, but now he knew to await her. Anuniaq was perceptive, and would likely not forget. Her grudges were nonexistent, and she moved to nip him roughly, a sure sign of the moment passing. Like her sister before her, Silaluk's affections were bestowed without any gentleness. She began to move ahead, grunting. It was time they moved on.

Tûgar moved as need-be to appease Silaluk, moving again to lift her head and lick the others chin. Silaluk was strict, but justifiably so. Tûgar was new and was being put into her place. The assured way in which Silaluk did this would cause Tûgar to not attempt to move against her, and led her to believe she would be supporting someone who was strong and could, in turn, support those that followed her. Tûgar did not know this being to be one of Tartok, but until she found those that she sought she would linger in the company of these wolves to ensure her own survival. When Silaluk moved ahead, Tûgar rolled back upon her belly and rose to all fours, trotting after her with a quite whine and moving to submissively lick at her chin, yet again, to display her intent to follow.