Rising Sun Valley A few levels up

Set at Stone Circle

Scarlett was scouting outside of Bearclaw for today. Maybe it would be fruitful to have more knowledge of the tops surrounding their valley or meet up with some wolves and see what would come from that conversation. The light female trotted out of her territory, into the Fox's Glade. The female liked these woods. Often they housed some bigger game in bad weather. For now that was not what her focus was on. She made it through the woods, following the edge of their steep walls. It was rather refreshing to see her territory from above.

The pale female reached the end to Stone Circle which was true to his name. She wasn't sure what the circle of stones meant but it was an interesting spot. The female was tempted to venture further but she decided against it. She had her four young and didn't want to stray too far from her babies. She might even be able to hear their cries from here since the valley echoed because of the steep walls. He red eyed studied the stones before curiously entering the circle.

Saena's brain was slow to recover following her collapse on the moraine, but eventually the sense of paranoia dissipated. Having resumed her patrols of the pack territory that week, the alpha felt better and better, though still she found herself questioning things. She dreamed still of fire. She thought still of the names of her alleged relatives. Neither of these had become clearer, though lately a third question had joined the others: were the wolves that passed by Phoenix Maplewood real or false?

Never one to ponder the abstract without reason, the female excused herself from the confines of the maplewood to clear her head. She let her closest subordinates and Reek know she was heading south past Jade Fern Grove so that she was easy to find in the event of another episode. With that, she departed and spent the better part of the day skirting Jade Fern Grove's western edge and then walking directly south.

She never intended to go far, so when she ended up in an area rich with large boulders and stacks of stone, the female stopped. She twitched her ears and nose and looked around herself. She'd relinquished her outrider duties when she became a leader, though suddenly she yearned to make a job of it again. There was nothing quite like exploring, familiarizing oneself with new ground and making discoveries, and she caught herself wondering which of her trades was least necessary.

Her thoughts returned to the present when amongst the stones a spark of white drew her gaze. Her eyes clapped onto Scarlett and, like any typical wolf faced with a stranger, Saena grew rigid. Her tail lifted stiffly behind her until she held it out straight, with only the slightest wave indicating that, while wary, she was not aggressive. She flared her nostrils and sucked in a deep breath, but the wind didn't betray the white wolf's allegiance to Saena. Too bad; a Jade Fern Grover would immediately meet with relaxation, while any other wolf would find her outwardly cold, especially since her last visit to the plateau.

Scarlett was on one of the stones and curiously sniffling it. There were definitely some smaller critters around here. She followed the small trails and spotted some smaller holes under a few of the stones. Ah, a rabbit colony that could come in handy. Her ears could hear the rushing of their waterfall which was close by, maybe she would have a look at the top of the waterfall later. Scarlett moved back onto one of the stones to have a bit of a higher perspective. The female was fairly relaxed while investigating the stones. The mother looked up when she thought she heard something. Her blood red eyes scanned over the grounds before her. The female spotted another pale female, though she had lighter brown if not reddish brown patching on her ears and around her eyes.

Scarlett ears turned forward with interest. Her tail on a neutral stance, even though she was a Beta, she didn't feel like an leader. She'd rather be a mother. Scarlett hopped off the stone and trotted a bit closer. She didn't want to state herself as higher than this female by keeping herself dominantly on the stone looking down on the other. Her blood red eyes looked warmly at her. A chuff coming from her lips in greeting. "Hello," she added verbally. She hadn't seen her face before, or senses her scent around. She could tell that this female was already in a pack by the way she smelled. "Are you one of my new neighbors?," Scarlett's voice asked with a kind tone and genuine interest. Scarlett had not come to meet the two new packs in the valley, but she heard them occasionally.

The albino stepped down from her height, a fact that pleased Saena immensely—she was an alpha wolf and craved equality if not submission even beyond the boundaries of her home—and addressed her in a voice that was soft. Pleasant. Saena might've responded in kind not so long ago, but now she felt a tremor of uncertainty at the thought of being too kindly with those around her. Why she felt that way suddenly, even she couldn't say; surely it wasn't all because of Blacktail Deer Plateau? But if there was another reason, it was a mystery to her.

"That depends where you're from," she responded quietly, betraying her curiosity with the forward tilting of her ears. Phoenix Maplewood was too far removed from their present location to be considered part of the neighbourhood, but maybe Scarlett wasn't from here either. The possibility was greater than not. "You say that like you have many new neighbours," she prompted, then asked, "have a lot of wolves been moving in this area?"

Her pack may not have been in the neighbourhood exactly, but they were still close enough to feel the threat of multiple packs draining the resources and frightening the prey away. To learn of more than one other pack, assuming it was not Jade Fern Grove, would put Saena on edge, though she would hide it well for now.

Scarlett smiled kindly at the other, not seeing her as a threat but more as a friendly neighbor. Scarlett was rather naive in that aspect. Her warm blood red eyes fell onto the female. "I'm from Bearclaw Valley," she spoke. "I'm Scarlett," she added her name as a reference for the female. Bearclaw could be tough to find, since there was only one entrance into the steep valley. The boulders on the steep path didn't make it too easy, but at least they had the steep walls surrounding them to keep them safe from intruders. Scarlett was very happy with her valley.

"We were the only pack in Rising Sun for a while. Noctisardor Bypass and Swiftcurrent Creek disbanded months ago. Only this month two new packs located or re-located themselves here. North West from us there are the Hollow Wolves, they came to introduce themselves at our borders. And North from here I heard word of a new pack too, but I am not sure what they are named, but they are close to the Witch's March I believe," she spoke, giving all this information without knowing the female could make great use of it. Scarlett smiled and perked up her ears. "What about you? Are you from that pack North of here?," she asked curiously.

Scarlett actually welcomed the new wolves. She liked the idea of not being alone in the wide valley. Plus their own Bearclaw could sustain a pack with the one big herd of white tailed deer, and the bighorn sheep that would come down to graze. Scarlett as a gamekeeper could complain.

For the moment, the yearling kept her name to herself. She was more interested in the information that Scarlett was freely giving than in introductions, though she appreciated it all the same and stored the name of Bearclaw Valley away for later reference. It became evident from Scarlett's narrative that there were two packs in addition to Jade Fern Grove, one identifying as Hollow and the albino's own. She made the assumption that the north pack Scarlett referenced was Scimitar's, but knew it might not necessarily be true. That meant there were three, possibly four packs in this area, and though they were a fair bit south of Phoenix Maplewood now, it still didn't bode well for the herds that migrated through here and up into the north.

"Why do you think they have an interest in this area all of a sudden?" she wondered, pursing her own lips thoughtfully. Saena could tolerate the nearness of Jade Fern Grove even as she aged and began to become more intolerant because they were allies and had done the same for her. However, she was much less willing to tolerate the presences of two or three additional packs and assumed there had to be some reason for their proximity here. Maybe there was something she didn't know about. A herd of muskox, maybe.

"I come from north," she informed Scarlett, "not near a marsh. We claim a forest in the taiga. I'm Saena, the alpha." As if that was hard to guess from her stance. While not overbearing even in tense times, she did still command some respect even out here on neutral ground.

Scarlett did not realize that she had create some confusion with the female. She actually thought she had been more than clear, then the female's question followed. Scarlett had no idea but she could have a good guess. "I am not sure, of course. But I do think since this area has been without their normal standard of wolf packs for a few months and it felt only natural while scouting for land that this is a good place to settle. And since they settled so soon after each other I do not think that they were aware of each other at first? It is all speculation. It could also be that the storm made them relocate? We had some flooding ourselves," she spoke, mostly saying her thoughts out loud. Her voice keeping the same warm pleasant tone.

Her tail started to sway lightly when the female revealed a bit more information. "Nice to meet you Miss Saena," she greeted politely and with the expected respect in her body posture. Scarlett wasn't really a fan of the taiga anymore after what happened with her and Tuwawi. "I'm the Beta female of Bearclaw, I was the founding alpha female but I stepped down when I was close to giving birth. I couldn't do my alpha duties well enough and I don't really have the natural dominance like you have," she complimented. "So I am actually pretty happy with the position I have now." Scarlett didn't mind chatting about these little things, actually it gave her great pleasure.

Scarlett's theory was a sound one. While Saena believed it was prudent to investigate surrounding areas before claiming land, not all wolves were sensible with their claims. Some set up shop in areas that were clearly contested and others cared not for those around them. Saena had chosen the maplewood to give her wolves the best possible chance, and while they were a small pack, she believed they were a strong and able one.

The storm seemed responsible for a lot of changes. She wondered if other regions fared as poorly. "The storm displaced us," she revealed. "We were closer to the sea before. But when we moved in, there was no one close." Now she need only stand at the edge of her land and lift her nose to detect other wolves. Many of them were grovers, but there were others and now she knew who. Scarlett's pack was too far to smell, but the alleged hollow pack might be responsible.

"Sounds like you had a good run," she said. She herself would never step down, at least not until she was dying or could physically not uphold the position anymore. Even children wouldn't hamper Saena. She intended to select a beta or a pair long before her eventual first litter quickened. She already had ideas about who to ask. "Your mate leads now?" assumed Saena.

Scarlett moved her ears forward when she heard about this female having to move territories because of that horrible storm. Her face was full of compassion for the female she just met. Scarlett was very compassionate for others hardships. Just because she experienced quite some hardships herself. She rarely talked about it, usually keeping herself friendly and listening to others instead of telling others what was hurting or bothering her. She was raised in a way that she never mattered. "That must have been tough. But at least you found a new territory to stay in. That is very wise to move to location where another pack can't stoke up a rivalry," she returned.

Scarlett shrugged modestly. She didn't see herself as a good leader especially since Raziel had talked her down quite a few times. Her red eyes fell to the ground as a flustered feeling rushed through her. "Ehm. No. My mate and I broke up. A friend of mine is running the pack for me because he is way better at it than me," she spoke, talking herself down. A light shrug came from her. "It is a long story, but basically my own mate sorta left me while I was pregnant. He came back just in time when I gave birth but then he disappeared again. The male who is leading now cared for me, otherwise I wouldn't have survived or at least my young wouldn't have. I think my ex-mate didn't even realize that he needed to hunt for me while I was close to giving birth and the time after that. Anyways, rambling..." Scarlett looked at the female a bit timidly. "So that male who took care of me is leading now for me. But he has been away for a long time now, so I need to run the pack again. But.. Yeah. It doesn't feel in my nature to do so. Plus that male who is leading now scolded me a lot of times for doing it wrong... or something," she admitted, somehow needed to tell someone that she wasn't really excited to lead.

She hoped she wasn't doing anything wrong. She didn't want to ruin what he build but then again, he shouldn't go away and leave her in charge. Scarlett was just not so sure of herself anymore and it was clearly weighing on her. Maybe because the female was more dominant than her she felt the need to just tell her everything straight up. "Its complicated," she then just spoke with a bit of a defeated sigh, just accepting that this was her life now. "At least I don't have a crappy mate that doesn't really care about me," she spoke, instantly trying to be positive again and cheer herself up.

Saena bobbed her head, a simultaneous agreement and thanks. She thought she was a pretty wise leader. She was definitely young and probably made mistakes that older wolves saw right through, but in her eyes, she was a good enough leader. She'd so far managed not to crack under the pressure of leading. She'd made some bad calls, and was bound to make more of them—hell, she was already starting to wonder if chasing off one of the surrounding packs that Scarlett mentioned wasn't a bad idea—but in the end, she and hers had pulled through. She couldn't help giving herself an invisible pat on the back.

She didn't spend long on it, though, because Scarlett then launched into an explanation of her situation. Saena had expected a brief answer, a "yes" or "no" with maybe the slightest elaboration. Instead, she seemingly got Scarlett's life story. It was overwhelming and far outside what she'd even wanted to know, so while she tried to pay attention, she most certainly zoned out more than once, so that the story sounded more like: friend leads the pack, womp womp womp, mate sucks at hunting, puppies, insert space-out here, friend who leads is gone... It was at about this point that Saena sharpened her focus and paid closer attention.

It seemed Scarlett was left with the reins of the pack but didn't feel confident in her ability to do it. Saena couldn't empathize with the feeling; since becoming an adult she'd been ambitious. Nervousness about leading had never factored in, though it should've. "Isn't it your pack?" she pointed out, skeptical of any wolf who claimed they weren't good enough. "You obviously led it once before, unless your friend freely gives out breeding rights to men other than himself." That was unlikely, thought Saena. "Besides, if it's your pack, isn't he the one doing it wrong? You sorta set the rules, y'know."

Scarlett was a bit a loss because the female across from her asked very good questions. It was her pack right? Technically when it came down to it? So why was she letting Raziel tell her what to do. Technically she could take over right now and lead her pack to somewhere else. But did she want such a thing to happen? She didn't get any joy out of leading. Her blood red eyes fell down for a moment. Though she didn't see any shame in admitting that it was still weird to do that to a female that seemed so natural with leading her own pack. "But when I did that it was with my mate Kove, for most of the time," she spoke softly. "He doesn't. But I think he did have a bit of a point now I think back on it. I just don't feel at home being a leader," she spoke in return. "Everyone its own thing right?"

She looked at the other female for a moment. Maybe she could lead but was just talked down by others. Scarlett just really wanted a break instead of over thinking everything she did. The whole time. She was glad once Raziel would return and she could let him lead. That way she wasn't questioning herself so much. She liked to be a mother to her pups and be active hunting-wise. Maybe she could get the opportunity to master her gamekeeper trade for once. "Maybe I didn't make the right decision to let him lead, maybe the pack wouldn't have existed anymore if I stayed alpha. I will never know for sure. But currently I don't feel like a leader. I feel much more at home with someone else leading and I can help pull the cart," she shrugged.

To each their own. That was the message that came most clearly to Saena and she agreed with it, though she still thought Scarlett could've done more about her situation. After all, the pack belonged to her. She could've told its current alpha to go fuck himself if she wanted to. Saena wouldn't have hesitated to do the same. "I'd never say he had a point," she countered, "it's not his place to say whether you do it right or wrong, even if you aren't comfortable leading. Frankly, he sounds like a bit of an ass and you shouldn't validate him by agreeing. I'm sure you're worth more than that."

But she didn't want to push the point too much. Scarlett's decisions were hers to own. Maybe she was right and maybe the pack would've failed under her leadership, or maybe it would've flourished. It was neither here nor there, and it wasn't something Saena ever thought about regarding her own brand of leadership. "Well, whatever makes you happy is what's best for you, right?" she said with a smile, "but don't let some asshat push you around just 'cause he's the alpha. Seriously."

Scarlett smiled a bit at the other female. The pale female felt motivated now after hearing her talk to passionately. She could do what she wanted, why was she holding herself back because others told her so? Raziel was an ass, especially now she thought of the fact that he was only staying in the alpha spot if she would mate him. She shivered, yeah not a good situation to begin with. If the male wasn't returning she would take matters in her own paws! She nodded back to Saena with a smile. "You are right. Thank you," she spoke warmly.

She was going to be happy from now on! She would make her own choices and build from there. "Thank you for your inspiring words," Scarlett spoke and gave her a respectful nod. Maybe the alpha female was a counselor too. Who knows! Scarlett was definitely going to take some close to her heart. "I should probably head back if I want to be home on time," she then announced. By the looks of it Scarlett didn't want the conversation to end so soon, but she had other duties to do.

She said nothing in respond to Scarlett's thanks, instead dipping her head in acknowledgement. She wasn't normally one to help those in other packs, but Saena remembered feeling put down and worthless as an adolescent under Koda's judgment. She found it hard to stomach the thought of others feeling similarly, even if the circumstances were different. The lead bitch was mostly glad that Scarlett took her unsolicited advice as a compliment rather than inappropriate meddling.

I should get back, too, she quietly agreed. Since the incident at the foot of the glacier, Saena was loathe to go too far from her home. No doubt that was fading fast, evidenced by her presence here, but she felt leery staying away for prolonged periods. It was too easy to imagine falling prey to another fainting spell. So Saena turned sidelong, shot Scarlett a grin and said, take it easy, before wheeling into a canter that would carry her to the taiga.