Stone Circle i'm dreaming

@Dawn

blondine spent most of the night making a mental log of the things she would need to relearn. tracking, 'cause i can't see, she whispered, hunting, 'cause i can't see. a moment of silent thought. fishing, 'cause i for-damn sure can't see that. the huntress laughed at her own admission, finding it much easier on the spirit than mulling over what'd happened.

come morning, she rose from her den and continued with her mental mapping of the territory. there were several scents on the wind, most of which went unrecognized. blondine wanted to avoid the -archs for the time being, but hoped that someone would come along.

that morning's hunt had ended fairly pitifully, and so the woman sought out the newly blinded woman instead. she wondered at the woman's role within the pack; surely valette wouldn't simply throw her out. but with greyback's recent exile, she was certain a large portion of the pack was walking on eggshells, the woman included. 

it does not take her too long to find blondine. she chuffs as soon as she's within earshot, approaching heavy-pawed as not to alarm her. falling into step beside her, she offers a small smile she knows won't be seen. "hi, blondine. how are you?" 

blondine assumed that it was dawn approaching. before the chuff came the girl's scent, a welcome sign of good company. the words of the greyscale huntress were just drawn-out enough to figure out her general location. i'm in a workin' mood, blonnie replied, just as happy as happy can be, darlin'. behind her, a friendly wag beat against the winter wind. 

how're you this.. — is it morning? i'd assume so, but... — ..lovely day? it was difficult to keep track of time without the light to say one way or another. blondine was working off of guesses and praying that her confidence was enough to play it off.

her answer is upbeat, but not exactly surprising. the huntress had already surmised that the woman handled tragedy with a remarkable grace, which was certainly more than she could say for herself. she is unable to muster up quite the same kind of positivity, however; Minnow has been absent, and she's gotten nowhere with Sunny. he doesn't even feel like her brother, really. 

but the newly-blind woman doesn't need to hear about it. nevertheless, a tiny sigh escapes her before she can answer. "I'm alright. working to fill the caches, though the prey seems pretty set on staying far away from me." a beat, and then, "are your wounds healing alright?" 

blondine heard the sigh and frowned. they don't hurt, she said, flexing her brows up and down, and i can't see 'em, so i'll pretend they look alright. she'd never been a vain woman, anyway. a scar was nothing more than a little run on the skin, nothing to get all worked up about.

you got sumn' on yer mind? blondine asked, i still got ears. i can hear it in you. she started walking forward, turning a few steps in to avoid colliding with dawn. she didn't want guidance, but to prove that even without eyes, her legs still worked. we don't gotta talk if you don't wanna.

she nods, grin on her muzzle. "they look to be scabbing over. from what I know, that's good." she offers, small chuckle escaping her as the woman flexes her brows. she seems to be getting alone well without her eyes, to her mild surprise — though she supposes her other sense must do a good job of compensating. 

that's proven fairly quickly, and she's silent a beat, considering. "it's my brother," she offered, wondering then if Blondine might know something of what ailed him. "I lost track of him during the quakes, and only just found him again. but he was sick, or something—he can't remember anything. his daughter isn't taking it well. you're a healer - have you heard of anything like this before?"

blondine settled into a seat, her brow furrowing as dawn spoke. she didn't know about the quakes, but assumed that sunny's supposed loss of memory meant that he'd taken a fall. it wouldn't have been unreasonable to run with this diagnosis, but she wanted to actually examine him beforehand.

examining, 'cause i can't see.

i can take a look at him, she assured her with a confident nod, did he have any cuts or scrapes? it'd be easier to try and form a mental picture before going in (literally) blind. there wasn't much to be done either way; lost memories were lost. either they came back, or they didn't.

"really? thank you, blondine." she'd be reassured if the woman would; Arlette came to mind, too, but she'd said herself she'd only recently started training. she shook her head, considering. "he had a wound, infected, and seemed to be coming down from a fever. valette's been helping to take care of the wound." 

she sighed, admitting then, "I should know more, I know. the truth is, it's hard to be around him. he's one of the most important wolves to me, but I'm a stranger to him, suddenly." she didn't know how, or even if, he could be fixed.

@Dawn :)

the wolves on abernathy hill would have taken blondine back in a heartbeat. it didn't matter if she had four eyes or none; to them, she meant more than her skills, her occupation. they knew her as a daughter, a sister, likely even an aunt! this thought process begged the question: who was sunny to easthollow? 

she considered dawn's predicament for a long moment before moving to speak. i don't know what you believe, and it really ain't any o' my business, blondine laughed, but i'll tell you what my momma told me.

when god gives us to one another, he makes us to promise that to love unconditionally. and sometimes, as with all things, doing that can be one of the most trying things we've ever done. she drew in a deep breath to gather her thoughts and allow dawn the chance to respond. 

my brother, he was sick in the head for a long time. long, long time. i took care of him 'til he passed, and let me tell you, seeing him like that made me say things to god i thought i'd never say. she thought about her brother, the way he once was compared the way he ended up. blondine shuddered, her brow creasing with disgust.

looking back to dawn, she said, sunny doesn't know who you are, but you know who he is. he may think of you as a stranger, but it's your responsibility to be the kindest stranger that boy's ever met. and i know it'll be hard, but try to take this opportunity to build a new relationship, maybe change some things that y'all might've messed up in the past.

she feels terrible about her distance, even more so when she utters it aloud. until now it could have been ignored, but admitted, uttered out loud, it's suddenly unavoidable. she full expects Blondine to brush past it, or offer some conventional advice. 

she silent, considerate, when Blondine next speaks. the woman offers her own tale, then, and with it, an entirely different perspective on the situation. the huntress is silent a while longer, remembering past wrongs, and then, those very early days they'd share her so long ago. "I love my brother, I just can't tell if he's the same wolf anymore. our memories, I think, shape us—without them, are we the same?"

"you're right," she answers finally, feeling the oddest sense of deja vu. she remembers meeting like this one, long ago, the careful and honest advice her father would give. there's a pang at the thought, but also an immidiate sense of warmth toward the woman. "I couldn't forgive myself if I stayed away, if he left." resolve straightens, grow stronger. she may not know what to do, but she knows where to start.

you made those memories once, you can make 'em again. blondine smiled, an effort to alleviate the heavy air between them. the conversation had taken an unexpected turn, but she was happy that it had; everyone needed a shoulder to cry on every now and again.

dawn made a good point that hadn't even crossed the elder's mind. potentially overwhelming him with talk of the past was another good reason for her to take things slowly. why don't you just start with a proper introduction? might feel weird, but just saying, howdy, m'name's dawn. another laugh, this one deeper, more guttural. 

i'll do what i can for his head, she sighed, then moving to stand, and you can come talk to me, if you need to. nodding to dawn, blondine started to count her toward the border.

Blondine makes a good point, and the woman finds herself with a good deal to think about, combined with the new perspective Blondine's offered her. she appreciates the woman's lightheartedness despite the heaviness between them (her fault, truly) and a small smile curves her muzzle. 

"thank you, blondine. really." the woman's offer is received with a nod of her head, one the huntress realizes once more she won't be able to see. she offers a chuff of farewell, moving in the opposite direction to check on the herds, and hopefully find her brother.