Duck Lake ábyrgur

she wanted to do more, contribute more.

she ventured beyond the claim of kvarsheim. no clear goal was in mind. she figured that perhaps she might find a herd passing through the growing valley. if there was no herd, then perhaps she might meet a new face.

which in and of itself was a horribly daunting thought. so many shared a tongue that she did not.

so she hoped and prayed for prey. that she might bring back a collection of meat for their stores or bones for her brothers and sister.

yet so far the lake remained eerily silent in the haze.

Ilizabeth was padding through a new terrain. She had mainly stayed in the same area since finding these lands but she decided to venture on. She knew this could be dangerous but sooner or later she'd have to learn her way around, learn the others who live here, learn the packs, learn who could be a friend and who couldn't.

She caught the scent of a girl. A young one too, younger than herself. That didn't seem threatening. So Ilizabeth strayed towards her, until she caught her sight. She nearly chuckled when she saw her. The girl just looked like a giant ball of fluff. Her fur texture was quite like her own. But she was still merely a pup and her fur was longer and thicker than Ilizabeth could ever imagine fur being.

"Hi." Ilizabeth said shyly as she came into ears reach of the girl.

Ilizabeth speaks pretty good Icelandic. It is her dads native language, and she learned it from him though it was a while ago. But when she hears Bjarna speak it she will change her tongue to it.

a voice.

blue eyes drifted to catch sight of her. the smallness of the woman put stunted bjarna at ease. so tentatively she let her hanging tail wave behind her.

hallo,

now she wondered, waiting.

meeting new faces had never been easy and bjarna expected that trend to continue here.

"I like your fur." Ilizabeth said. "It is longer than my own but mine is also kind of long and unique." She said, not being aware yet of the language barrier. "And oh, my names Ilizabeth."

those who talked so much scared her most.

for she felt that they often times expected the most. which meant that they might even be more disappointed when she did not converse with them like normal. normal — such an ugly word, she had come to learn.

ég skil ekki... her features grew soft and sheepish. perhaps that would give way that she had not a clue what the jabbering girl had just spoken!

"ó! þú talar íslensku! Ég geri það líka! Pabbi minn kenndi mér það áður en hann dó." Ilizabeth said."það sem ég sagði áður var mér líkar við feldinn þinn. Þá sagði ég að hún væri lengri en mín eigin en mín er líka soldið löng og einstök." Ilizabeth translated. 

"Ég kynni mig síðan og segi: 'Og, ég heiti Ilísabet.'" Ilizabeth told the girl. "hvað heitir þú?" She then asked. Her usual shyness was forgotten when speaking to this younger girl in her old language.

switching to just italics for her Icelandic since they both understand one another :)

to say she was shocked was an understatement.

outside of her family (not even all of kvarsheim!) she had met none who shared their language. some knew words at best. but even that had been horribly rare.

which meant she needed a moment to get her head back on straight before she quickly fumbled out —

bjarna. meek and timid with this wash of surprise. are you — do you — oh she had a million things to ask all at once and she struggled! only my family speaks like this!

cool, i will too

"Bjarna is a very pretty name, to match your very pretty fur." Ilizabeth said. "And the same for me! I've never met anyone else who speaks this language, other than you and my family. I don't come from around here. I was born far away. So I think the language may have come from there and just traveled with some generations, like me, and your family, to wherever we are now." Ilizabeth added. Her tail wagged with that statement. She too was happy to find someone who spoke her native tongue. It reminded her of the good times with her dad.

"Perhaps our families come from the same lands." Ilizabeth suggested, though she was not sure in her statement. She just couldn't find other reasoning for a way they spoke the same tongue that Bjarna said was not really spoken around here.

maybe but —

well, mother bear was from far, but bjarna had been here. now her siblings were here. she could not say where exactly sanja had come from. nor did she find many similarities between the women besides a shared language.

regardless she felt relieved.

my family lives...over there. her head turned so that she may look over her shoulder. although only the glade between here and the stones could be sighted. beyond the trees. she tacked on shyly.

do you have family with you?

Ilizabeth nodded as Bjarna shared where her family lived. Then the question of her own. Her eyes got dark with sadness. "no. I have no more family. they are all gone. I lived with my mom, dad, and sister, until i was 4 months old. Then my dad died. My mom was too sad and scared without him that she left me and my sister on our own. I lived with her until very recently. A bad man pretended to love her and then killed her. And tried to kill me next. I had to run away. far from those lands. And I ended up here. But I am alone." Ilizabeth said sadly, hoping her words didn't scare the girl. She was aware that Bjarna was not much more than a pup still.

it was a nightmare.

bjarna had known what it was like to be alone, but death had not been part of that. she had not lost those she loved one by one. she had simply never known. protected by sanja. so it did leave a mark upon her, to hear such a tragedy.

it is not nice. to be alone. she offered softly, tentatively creeping closer for a moment. do you want to be alone?

Ilizabeth shook her head, struggling back tears. "No." She choked. "I dont want to be alone. I miss my sister badly. And my dad. I liked being loved. Having family." She said, full on crying now, though she was trying to stop.

oh.

oh no. the girl was so horribly sad suddenly and bjarna felt guilt and concern in equal turns.

bjarna be sister here? she offered softly, as she aimed to lean her tiny frame against the small woman. maybe you come to my home, rest there...

Ilizabeth smiled through her sobs as Bjarna pressed her small body against Ilizabeth, who was also quite small but not as young as the girl. She lowered her head into Bjarna's fur. "thank you, sister Bjarna." Ilizabeth said, accepting the girls offer to be a sister to her.

When she offered to bring her to her home, Ilizabeth was a bit surprised. "Your family will be ok with that?" She asked

if we hunt together, mama will be okay with it.

things seemed to work that way. those who provided food would always be welcomed. especially with the cold settling in among them and the hungry mouths of her younger siblings to feed.

i show you home now?

this offered with a tentative smile.

Ilizabeth nodded. "Ok, yes, that makes sense." Food was a necesity in these colder times so it would be a good offering for being able to stay in their home.

"yes, you can show me to your home now." she answered the girl.

"do they all only speak icelandic there?" Ilizabeth asked as they started to walk.

i can set something new up at Kvarsheim? :)

no. mama, gunnar, siblings — they speak it. some know...few words. most speak other tongue, like you did.

she informed her newfound sister as they would begin their journey back home.

she did hope that sadness would not follow. that the other girl may make a proper home out of kvarsheim, perhaps find a purpose within their ranks.

Ilizabeth nodded. "That is good then. You can all help eachother learn. I can also help teach both languages as I know both fluently." She offered. That was if Bjarna and her family let her stay long enough. She was hoping for a permanent home but she wasn't sure if that was what was being offered.

yeah that'd be good!

fading out! <3

you would be good teacher.

she assured the woman warmly. there were plenty who could stand to learn. it might also be good to have more wolves who could communicate between members and visitors.

yes, she felt very good about this.