Since that enigmatic encounter had disturbed her on the ice of Greatwater Lake, Tuwawi had been stuck in rut of dismal and existential thoughts. Nothing cured her, and every day passed grayer than the next. The sadness was overwhelming, and depression clung like dew onto grass. She needed a catalyst... a jump start... anything to flush the mediocrity from her soul and let the fire blaze anew. The departure of Charka was just that - and the capricious wolf knew exactly where she would go next.
Tuwawi started at Greatwater, and followed trace amounts of tracks - moving mostly on a hunch. Like a brushfire, she covered vast distances each day as she headed Eastwards with unbridled determination. Ravenously, she ate up the ground, stopping only to drink, but was determined in her hunt. She grew lean, but felt reborn as her senses became heightened, her visage nothing short of a hungry predator.
His grizzled fur sported more silver now, leeched of color, especially pale with the collected snow he now ploughed through. The man's head was held high; arrogance maybe, as he was a Gamma, a respected individual and one of the breadwinners. He had worked hard, and he deserved this break --
Njal's thoughts cut off when he saw a flash of familiar color at the edge of the lake. Fox? He thought, with a soft rumble in his chest, ready to burst forth once he fully identified the individual - but no, they were taller. They were bigger. There was less red in their pelt, and more of a mixture - golds, some greys. The stranger moved with a predatory stride, lean and low. Njal's sound became silence, and with his attention caught, he pursued.
His heart felt heavy in his chest, but he couldn't identify why.
Hunger dug into her sides - but it wasn't a craving for nourishment... no... it was an insatiable hunger for the silver man she saw on Greatwater. As the thought burned anew, the red woman broke into a run, dipping into the treeline as her course changed due North. No amount of snow or ice slowed her pace, the thrum of her paws on the frozen ground barely inhibited by the weather. She flew without resistance, eyes barely blinking as her jaw clenched tight. It was if she were about to pounce on prey, muscles coiling as she left the picturesque shore in her dust, unaware that there was a wolf downwind ready to intercept.
The fire flickered and he chased it. No longer would Njal sit back and watch her, afraid of any interaction. This is what he thought while his steps, quick and quiet, powered him closer to her. She was quick as well - quicker than himself - and her nimble body streaked through the snow. What are you doing here? He thought. You are in the Seahawk. But he knew that wasn't true. He knew, somehow, that the wolf he had witnessed was her. It was guilt that rose within his throat, rolling at the base of his tongue and spoiling the taste. Guilt, for leaving her there in the cold.
The moth continued to flit after the flame. He tracked her with the same predatory stride that she boasted, although the strength he had previously carried had begun to melt away. The pride within Njal's figure dripped with each step, leading to a lowered posture, a snaking and stout body. He did not wish to be found, not yet. At the same time, he kept an eye upon her.
Her uneven lips peeled back as she threw her head up to scent the air. Swiftriver was on the horizon, and soon she would be at the borders. Her body curled and uncurled in double suspension, lithe, yet cobby, body unchained by a free heart. She felt strong... her shoulders rolling as the tempo gained, her fiery crown raised to face whoever would receive her, a wild look upon her face.
But suddenly, Swiftriver's perfume became strong, and Tuwawi knew she had reached the borders. The breaks released, and she skidded to a halt as her back half whipped around. Hot air rushed from her nose, deep breathes expelling the poisoned air from her lungs and taking in the cool winter. Her expression calmed, and returned control to its driver, who took a moment to slow her pounding heart. For a bit, she traced the border, and trotted along its well worn path... Tuwawi was about to howl when a certain musk caused the hair to spike along the entirety of her back. Her ears swiveled as her narrow face turned in every direction; searching, looking for someone familiar.
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continued here.