Justice stood on the shores of the large lake she and Kadezj used as their base these last few days, her nose lifted toward the dark early morning sky. She rarely slept these days, not in these strange lands. Just didn't trust Kadezj let alone the multitude of strange wolves she didn't know that surrounded them. Lids obscured her bright golden eyes from view, though her ears were strained for any signs of others nearby.
It was very early in the morning and the moon still shed his light on the world, though he was beginning to sink into the western horizon to make way for his brother, the sun, to light the world. Justice had learned many things from the Khalas in her time with them, though trust was not one of them: Kadezj had used her naïveté against her and there was no way she would allow anyone to do that again. The only thing Justice had in this world was her own counsel and even then it was questionable, given what she had allowed Kadezj to talk her into.
With a sigh, Justice dropped her haunches to the sandy shore and hung her head, opening her eyes to inspect the dark waters of the lake before her. What would happen now that they were two outcasts? Would any pack take them in, knowing they were on the run from another? It was true that they had been running for many weeks and were far from the Khalas now, but she knew that if she led a pack, she would not allow them into her pack.
Sumayl had been following the sounds of the nearby lake, letting it be his guide towards it, figuring that while he abandoned the idea of potentially hunting this far away from The Sunspire that he might as well pause to get a drink and rest up a bit before he headed back. He'd woken early, still into the grasp of night eager to get a head start. The sun would be rising soon, if the descent of the moon was of any indication, and for a second the Ostrega paused in his steps, having finally reached the banks of the lake he'd been seeking, his attention too focused on the sky to notice that he wasn't alone. It was only when golden gaze lowered did he see her silhouette across the way from him. Whether she had yet to notice him or not he stayed silent and still, black, leathery nostrils flaring to test the air, determining that she was a lone wolf.
Sumayl's gaze shifted from her to the right and then to the left, seeking out the scent of the male that her coat carried heavily, before assuming (whether he was right or wrong) that perhaps her companion had gone hunting. A low chuff of greeting left the golden outlaw then, breaking his previous silence.
Soon a dusty-colored male approached her, leaving room between them but offering a bark of greeting. Justice's golden eyes swung toward him, familiar thought decidedly new, and watched him carefully. He did nothing to disturb her other than bark, and did not come close enough to be a threat. Justice watched him as he scented the air and looked around, not doubt searching for Kadezj. It was good to have him around, at least in moments like this.
The sandy female watched the other closely for a moment longer, then finally spoke, "Good morning, stranger." Her voice was gentle and melodic, almost as if she were singing her words. She had never noticed it before, but after living with the Khalas for so long, she had picked up on some of their habits, even when she spoke in the common tongue. "What brings you out so early?"
Even if he wouldn't have scented the male upon the woman, it wasn't like Sumayl intended to do anything. Granted, he was a far cry from a gentleman on most days he wasn't a heathen. Mostly, scenting the air for her companion was mostly for his own sake then it was anything else. After all, he didn't want some hulking male to come charging out of the brush at him for talking to his girl, or something. And, Sumayl wasn't keen on surprises when they involved an unknown party. He'd rather know every potential creature that was going to appear (at least that was applicable) before hand. The woman broke the silence that had been created as Sumayl ceased in his steps, leaving a good distance between them, whilst also being sure they could hold a comfortable conversation with one another without having to shout, despite that wolves had exceedingly great hearing.
“Good morning,” Sumayl returned her greeting, not managing to sound as half as melodic and pleasing as her own voice had come across to him as. Then again, she was a woman and he was a man and his deeper baritone was bound to be rougher. “Learning the lay of the land before I head back to my pack.” Sumayl spoke honestly because, frankly, he had nothing to hide. He wasn't doing anything wrong. He just figured that it was beneficial for him to learn the layout of as many free territories as possible. It would make tracking herds much easier when he had at the very least an inkling of where he was going.
Justice watched him as he watched her, and she wondered what he was thinking. He seemed a decently intelligent man, though if he used it was beyond her reckoning, she she knew nothing of him. When he replied, his voice was deep and rough, a sound she had missed. Kadezj had a deep voice too, but it was smooth and soft as glass, and could cut you just as quickly. "Is your pack far?" she asked, her eyes roaming over him. He was strong, and handsome, and at least smart enough to map the land. She wondered what he could offer.
But she didn't say anything about it. Kadezj was the one who would recruit and deem wolves worthy of their khalas. What she was in charge of, well, he hadn't told her about it yet. Perhaps he would deign to inform her, since she was his bloodfang, as little as she wanted to admit it. She had some right to want to know what his plans were. "I'm Justice," she said softly, giving him a small smile. It was only polite to introduce oneself when with strangers.
There was a lot of assessment of one another happening between the two of them, but that wasn't entirely uncommon. After all, they were strangers, and there was information to be gleaned from one another simply by observing and smelling. Sumayl supposed some curiosity regarding The Sunspire was bound to arise considering that he'd vaguely mentioned it. Even if he hadn't the scent of the Sunspire wolves, and likely Vienna in particular, clung to the tendrils of his fur. “A couple days travel, maybe a week,” It all depended on the world making the trek, he supposed. Admittedly, he was much closer to The Sunspire now than he had been with Vienna during their adventuring on Wheeling Gull Isle.
An introduction soon followed as to which she gave him her name. Justice. He didn't mention that he wasn't the greatest with names, despite that hers was easy enough to remember. It wasn't really a fact he deemed important to share with total strangers. “Sumayl,” The Ostrega responded, wondering why it was that he never saw fit to give his last name. Sire names were important, surely, a further way to identify himself with, but Sumayl supposed that the name 'Ostrega' wasn't very well known, if known at all in the Wilds (yet) and that it made no difference.
"Nice to meet you, Sumayl," she replied, the name tasting familiar on her tongue. She wondered if she knew him, but the idea was struck from her mind almost immediately. Though he carried the coat and eyes of gold that belied the Ostrega lineage (though she didn't connect the dots), there was nothing here to indicate that they were related. At least not yet. Justice studied him briefly again before letting her gaze fall away to the lake before them, pondering the journey that would take him from here, likely in a few hour's time.
Though she wasn't content to be Kadezj's bloodfang, she had sworn herself to him before she understood what it truly meant. He had fed lies into her naive head those many months ago and she had bought what he had sold, hook line and sinker. Justice was now forever bound to him, unless she wanted to be an oathbreaker. But Justice Dubois was far from that, and she was determined to keep her word, even if it meant her own unhappiness.
"Have you ever done something out of obligation, even if it makes you unhappy?" she asked him, turning her golden gaze back toward the male. It was a heavy question, and the darkness seemed to bring that out in her. As if realizing what kind of question that was, she shook her head and laughed, though it was not a merry sound. "Sorry, sometimes I forget myself. You don't need to answer that if you don't want to."
Had he ever forsaken his own happiness for another? Because he felt obligated too? He didn't think that he ever had. Sumayl had always played by his own rules, even if it meant challenging authority along the way — something that currently had him in trouble within the ranks of The Sunspire; but Sumayl had decided long ago that he would not just be another sheep in the flock, content with being obedient. He was the Sheppard that led the sheep. As the golden male contemplated it he was quiet but then responded after a few more moments following with, “No, I can't say that I have, but I play by my own rules,” He confessed to her with a soft laugh. “Which is why I'm always in trouble.” But the trouble Sumayl could deal with. It was forsaking what mattered the most to him that he couldn't and refused to deal with.