Duskfire Glacier Can we climb this mountain?

for @Ensio
early morning, 15 F, windy and overcast

Tuulu wandered through the ice fields an hour or so before the sun would rise. He already felt protective of this place, and he wanted to pull his weight now more than ever. So he had started patrolling to make sure he could help keep everyone safe.

The morning was quiet aside from the strong gusts of wind, and it filled him with a peace he had not felt since leaving home. He liked moments of solitude like these, they helped him collect his thoughts and process things. He often needed a bit of time to really understand how he felt about things.

He stopped to inspect a spot on the frozen ground, moving on when he decided he was happy with the scent marking that was already there.

He was done sitting back and letting his emotions eat him alive. One of the surviving children of Wintersbane, the rightful heirs to Duskfire, had watched as Issorartuyok's kin grew in number, making themselves at home at the Glacier. His home. His birthplace. And what had the false Alpha done all this time? Not a damn thing! He never tried to reach out to him or Arius. Never tried to console them. Either they were both invisible or the man was a coward.

Or he was single minded, focused solely on Veteran. He had even blatantly ignored Ensio back when he and his half brother had discovered sickness in the herds. Not a word of acknowledgement. Clenching his jaw, he decided he was done playing nice. The boy was in no way like his tainted sister. He was not wicked. Not un-hinged or out of control. But he did plan on making a statement. He set off, intent on tracking the dark man down himself, to confront him directly. After hours of skimming the borders, he had no luck. That is, until he came upon a recently marked spot. In a defiant move meant to send a message, he lifted his leg and marked over it. He smirked, proud.

He was alone for a while before he picked up the scent of another. Tuulu tracked it through the field, noting that it mixed with his brothers own scent. He thought maybe they were together, but as he tracked the boy farther, he realized the alpha's scent was older and he put the pieces together. Lane had told him of the child's anger, of the other son of Wintersbane and how he planned to take over when he was old enough. The northerner wondered if that was also Ensio's plan. 

When he caught up to boy, he slowed and greeted him with a chuff. Tuulu had no intention of bringing up the fact that Ensio had marked over Isso's scent. It was not a battle worth having, and as long as the borders got marked, he thought it didn't matter much who was doing the marking.

Once he was done dousing the spot with his own scent, he took it one step further. He kicked and shuffled his paws, scraping the earth below in long, sweeping strides. In the world of a wolf, a raised leg like he displayed, followed by a good scrape was a sign of confidence. Especially if you were marking over someone else's scent. A clear challenge in dominance. He could care less who saw him.

And someone had. Hearing the chuff, the dark faced boy whipped his head around, hackles lifting. Initially he thought it might be the Northerner himself, but it wasn't. The wolf who called to him was a far cry from Issor's dark coloration. But they still shared the common scent. Icy eyes narrowed in harsh consideration. He wasn't exactly gonna be an easy one to warm up to. "You are one of his kin." He defiantly refused to name the man they both knew he was speaking of. "Whadaa ya want?" He grumped.

You are one of his kin. The boy practically radiated anger. Tuulu thought he felt the fire of it against his face. 

To see if you would like to patrol with me, he answered, giving a slight shrug of his pale shoulder. He was unsure how exactly to connect with the child; he had never really had to before. He knew he had to be careful about how he reacted to Ensio's outbursts, and mostly he decided he would just treat him as he would any other packmate: with respect.

If you're interested, he added. If not, then maybe he would try something else. Or maybe he would let him go and try again later.

Cold eyes narrowed in both suspicion and contemplation. The northern man extended the offer to patrol with him. Come to think of it, Ensio really wouldn't mind. More importantly, here in this moment, he spied an opportunity. His packmate was a brother to Issorartuyok. He could learn more about the man who now filled his sires spot, through this one here.

"Sure, why not." He decided with a firm flick of his tail. He edged closer, to line himself up side by side with the larger adult. "But only if you don't mind telling me about your brother, while we're at it." He added, with no sliver of humor in his voice. Ensio was serious about getting to the bottom of what kind of man truly led the Glacier now.

The boy considered his invitation, albeit with suspicion. Tuulu didn't blame him for the wariness—the kid didn't know him really at all. 

Eventually he did accept, and the Tatkret dipped his head and began to walk once Ensio was beside him. 

He apparently wanted to know about his brother, a topic the northerner had no issues with. Of course, he told the child. I'll tell you whatever you want to know. Maybe it would help him accept his brother's leadership if he knew more about him. Tuulu figured it must be difficult to see someone in his deceased father's place, especially since the loss was so fresh.

OOC: Fading with this post.

Side by side, he would walk with the agouti Tatkret. The one who, unknown to him, Lane had asked to personally mentor the boy. Though still very much bitter, by opening up in the form of seeking information about Issorartuyok and the rest of his family, Ensio wasn't closed off to them completely. As the pair drifted through the Glacier on patrol, he kept both his ears and his mind, open.