Blacktail Deer Plateau Quite The Goofball

There was something he had not realized for a time, not until he could not spell Spencer anymore. That she was in fact gone. But he didn't really care for that. He only joined for food, and a place to stay for the cold winter nights that would soon take over the Teekon Wilds. 

He paced about, waiting around a tree that he knew a squirrel lived in. He knew it wasn't that chipmunk Grayday had with him, it had a much longer tail than that. Engel muttered to himself over it, but he was hungry. And, after his last meeting with Grayday, he couldn't find it in himself to meet with the alpha, afraid he would get into more trouble. 

As he was pacing in circles, he spotted something out of the corner of his eye. Something bushy. Something that prompted chase. With that, he began chasing his tail, spinning in circles.

Forward-dated to today

things had changed since he had been away. aditya had been on guard since grayday had told them of his misadventure at the border. and there were new faces, ones he hadn't seen yet.

one of them appeared to be chasing its tail, just a short distance away.

quirking his mouth as he suppressed open laughter, adi moved toward the man, who seemed maybe too old for these shenanigans. still, it was charming, in its own way, and with a low chuff to announce his presence, aditya sat, cocking his head and watching.

"i had a friend who used to say you were never alone, because you always had your tail," he said casually, smiling. "out of sight, mostly, but always there."

Engel spun and spun and spun, everytime missing the wolf coming closer. He thought he saw someone every time he made a circle, almost having his tail. He almost had it when the wolf stopped, and Engel paused. Staring rather awkwardly, before realising he had in fact gotten his tail. Spitting it out, he looked over. 

"Alone? I'm not alone" he said, rolling his eyes. But, he was. Although the tail chasing was from being beyond bored, he was alone. "I guess he was right, the tail's always there...Unless you happen to be part bobcat" he laughed at his own little joke there.

despite himself, his smile grew into a grin. the older male's easygoing nature was infectious. aditya was always finding himself growing more luminous in the presence of positivity, and his golden eyes sparkled with mirth as he spoke again.

"well, they do have tails, just not ones as great as ours," he replied, thumping his own massive plume on the ground. "i don't believe we've met. i'm aditya, but call me 'adi,' if you'd like. i just returned from a month-long scouting voyage through the valley."

he wondered how this man had come to be a part of morningside. did he have connections to grayday, or had he just shown up on the border one day, ready to be a part of something bigger than himself? as someone who had entered via the latter option, aditya could respect that.

Engel laughed a bit more. That was true, they did have a bit of a tail, although it was small, very small. Compared to a wolf's, at least. "Well, Adi, I am Engel. How was this journey of yours?" he asked. He had done much adventuring himself, but he normally stopped to flirt here and there. He looked over Aditya, examining what he could from this angle. He did that a lot, sometimes they felt uncomfortable from it, sometimes not. "Morningside's quite a place, isn't it?"

he thought back on the trip, grinning as he remembered his talk with dawn by the lake. she was his, now. the feeling of having such a wonderful young woman by his side. . .  oh, and he supposed they had gathered some useful intelligence, as well.

"it was nice," adi said simply, his grin fading back into a pleasant, if subdued, smile. "we got what we wanted out of it. but it's great to be back on the plateau," he added. "when did you join morningside?"

he was glad the man had stopped chasing his tail--his momentary dizziness at the sight had subsided--and amusement was giving way to curiosity. who was this engel? where had he come from?

Engel raised a brow as the other male spoke. There was something about the grin Aditya had...but he could not quite place it. So he put it past. "Well, since I haven't seen you before now, guessing while you were all out...Or maybe before, I didn't meet many others then." 

"So what about you? When did you come to be here?" he asked back, sitting down. Any dizziness he had from chasing his own tail was gone. He recovered quickly, quicker than most times. Most times, he would just tumble over on his side.

he flicked his ear in acknowledgement. "i was quite new to the pack when i departed," he said simply. "i've only been here for a couple moons." and managed to win the affection of the alpha's daughter and the trust of the leader himself, he thought in addition, giving himself a moment for a humble brag.

aditya regarded engel curiously. "did you come alone? the pack's numbers are a little less than ideal for the winter," he remarked. it was true--wolves had come and gone since his own arrival, and the healthy band of maybe eleven or twelve adults had shrunk.

"maybe you'd like to help me keep an eye on the border and our surrounding territories--keep an eye out for wolves who'd like to join us?" he offered, with a smile.

The elder wolf shook his head. "There was someone else...but they are gone. No idea where, but I hardly knew them." Although he had been heartbroken for a day, perhaps less, he could care less. He barely knew Spencer. "So you haven't been here long either. Guess we are both quite new" he said.

The offer was accepted, with an enthusiastic nod. He welcomed the idea of helping those in need...while throwing some flirts here and there. New faces were fun to talk with, and flirt with...He flirted a lot. He was surprised with himself he hadn't flirted with this male yet.

"When should we head out, do you think?" he asked, raising a brow curiously.

"any time you're able. now, if you'd like," aditya said, smiling. "i'm keeping an eye out for that she-wolf that attacked grayday. no tail, pretty beaten up."

his smile faded fast as he spoke again. "if i find her, i'll kill her."

flicking his tail, he turned in the general direction of the edge of the territory, signaling for engel to follow. "walk with me?" he asked, looking over his shoulder. the man seemed kind and able enough--good company--and aditya needed to make sentry rounds, anyway.

Engel was surprised by the shift suddenly in the conversation. What had he missed out on? Engel shrugged, as if to say 'why not'. He followed behind Aditya, his gaze shifting casually to the treetops, the ground and shrubs, Adi's rear, a squirrel running across the ground, falling leaves. So many things to keep an eye on. He was so easily distracted, especially by things that took his interest.

"So, Adi...how did you come by Grayday? He sure seems like quite a guy, doesn't he?" he asked, almost saying 'handsome' somewhere in there.

he noticed that engel lingered behind rather than walking alongside him, raising an eyebrow but otherwise saying nothing. if that was where he felt comfortable, then so be it.

"i washed up on the coast after almost drowning," adi said, golden gaze fixed straight ahead. "i traveled inland, and that was where dawn--grayday's daughter--and our healer, pema, found me." he smiled at the thought of that first encounter. "they brought me home, and grayday thought i was fit enough to stay."

he cocked his head back over his shoulder, looking in an intrigued fashion at the older male. "what about you? how did you find us?"

Engel kept glancing about, until a voice brought his gaze straight to Aditya. "You almost drowned, huh? Not a fun experience I bet." Engel may have liked water, but drowning? He liked almost dying the least, of all things. "Grayday's a nice guy. Even though I had a little bit of a rough start with him, but I think we may be good now." He had been working on his manners since then, even though he may have been prone to a bit of flirting still.

"Came here with another, who isn't here anymore. Don't know where she went....so, what do you do in this pack" Engel asked, curious of what Adi did as a trade.

his mouth firmed in a grimace as he nodded, trying to keep the thoughts of choking salt and turbulent waves at bay. he had mostly moved on, mentally, from the experience--but every so often, he drifted off to sleep and woke from dreams of water surging over him, pulling him deeper and deeper. . .

"not fun," he agreed, his tone a little clipped. then, adroitly recovering his good humor, he smiled and said, "yes, grayday is wonderful. we'd be lost without him, probably."

aditya then let out a faint hum at Engel's next query, thinking it over. he had never really considered what his role was here. devoted member? lover to dawn? it seemed pretty all-encompassing. "a little bit of this, a little bit of that," he finally said. "i love to travel, so i suppose i'm sort of a scout for the pack. i spend a lot of time on the borders."

Engel attempted to catch up a bit, worried that Adi was a bit more emotionally damaged then he was giving off, giving him a worried look over. Though he was back in chipper spirits when the conversation went to Grayday. "He sure is."

"A scout, huh? Certainly get to see the sites, then, I guess...What's it like, to you? Going around to places you haven't been, seeing new things?" Engel asked. Personally, he only did it to get away from things.

he gave engel a reassuring smile as the other drew to his side, looking him over worriedly. he knew that he probably gave off a slightly traumatized vibe when talking about his clash with the stormy sea, and would give that vibe for a long time to come. he appreciated engel's concern, though.

"yeah, a scout," aditya said, nodding. "though i've never really traveled with a purpose, before morningside. i am. . .well, in my mother's tongue, we'd call me 'ek awaara.' a vagabond, a wanderer. it's all i've ever known. i never had a home before now."

he tilted his head, regarding engel once more as he continued to trot slowly along. "what about you?" he asked. "what do you like to do? what do you want to do?" surely there must be some activity that struck this man's fancy. . .besides chasing his tail.

"What language is that?" Engel asked curiously, he had not heard it. And it did not sound like the french language that Kieran had taught a bit of. "I've gone around here and there, and have not heard any words like it before."

"Well, I have done many things, though most is private" he chuckled after. "I think up poems. Most of the time. When I'm not doing that..." He moved his head up thoughtfully. "Sleeping. Or bathing."

he shrugged. "dunno what it's called," adi said mildly. "all i know is my mother and uncle spoke it; it's all i heard for the first three months of my life or so. i've encountered a few others since that had the language, too."

he listened politely as engel listed his interests, stifling laughter at sleeping and bathing: the former seemed a no-brainer, and the latter, well, was important, but an interest. . .? he was not one to judge, though. now, the poetry. . .

"poetry, now that's interesting," aditya remarked with a smile. "i do like poetry. do you sing at all? that's something i enjoy as well."

"A mystery language...Oh, let's call it 'Adiglish'. Named after you, the only speaker of it around" he said with amusement. "How much do you know of it?" he then asked, curious to know. He didn't think about learning it, teo languages was enough. And kieran still had yet to teach him more of French, if Engel ever got around to asking again.

"Sing? Me? Now, some may like my voice, but if I sang...well, let's just say that birds would fall from the sky, and not in a good way. I can't sing." But one day, he would try. Warm up his voice for it.

again, a shrug. "the lot of it, i suppose," he said with a smile. "like i said, it's all my mother and uncle spoke when i was young. and i have dreams, too, in the language. we call them sapnon." he thought of hari's visits, those vivid waking dreams that blurred the edges between reality and illusion.

of course, perhaps reality was the illusion. his mother had once taught him that.

"no singing? nothing? ah, well," aditya teased. "you might not be as bad as you think you are. give it a try; let's hear a song." his voice was set in mock encouragement, but a big part of him did actually want to hear this man's pipes. he loved a good song, after all.

"Sapnon? That's quite the word" he replied. "What other words do you know?" he asked.

Engel shook his head. He did not want to sing. "I...Okay, last time I sung was like...several years ago. I haven't sung in a long time. I can't even think up any lyrics. I mean, I can try...but, it'll be short." But, he could hear the teasing in Aditya's voice. "Why don't you start off, huh? Do you know any?"

aditya laughed, white teeth flashing in a grin. "i know a lot of words, engel," he chuckled. "i know a lot of songs, too."

with no hesitation, he broke into his rich tenor, pulling as best he could from his memory of his uncle's songs. there was one in particular that had been at the forefront of his mind, lately:

"mere sapnon ki rani, kab aayegi tu?
aayi rut mastani, kab aayegi tu?
beeti jaaye zindagani, kab aayegi tu?
chali aa, tu chali aa. . ."

he felt light, airy. dawn and grayday were well enough, but for the first time in a while he felt totally at ease with this man, not having to put on his best image of himself or impress engel. one song and he was the jokester he had been down on the southern coast, with not a care in the world.

"i held up my end of the bargain, then," aditya laughed. "your turn."

i feel a bromance comin on

Engel listened to Aditya's song, and how it was in a different language, well it felt different to others he had heard sing. Engel used to only sing to swoon others. But this, it seemed to speak to him spiritually...and he didn't even know any of it's meaning. "What's it mean?" he asked.

Then Adi threw in that he held his side of the deal, so Engel, a bit ashamed that he had to use muscles that were very, very rusty, tried to clear his throat. 

"I don't know why, you think that you could hold me when you couldn't get by by yourself, and I don't know why would ever want to tear the seam of someone's dream. baby it's fine you said that we should just be-" he paused to cough, he certainly had not gotten used to singing since back then. "Do I have to keep going?"

"it's a love song," he explained. "summoning the queen of dreams. the singer's dreams, specifically." his. how many times had he hummed that tune, hoping for that fantasy lover to appear from nowhere? how many times had he voiced those lyrics, wishing not to be alone?

but he kept such meandering, sickly sweet thoughts at bay as engel began to sing--a bit rusty at first, but showing great promise toward the end. it was almost a shame that he stopped so suddenly, pleading with aditya not to have to continue.

"no," adi said, grinning. "vah vah, kya baat hai, mere dost.well done, friend. for someone who says they can't sing, well. . .i'd like to hear your opinion of wolves who actually can't sing." he gestured around them, golden eyes glimmering with mirth. "and no dead birds fallen from the sky."

Engel raised a brow at that. "Ah, a love song. The best kind, if I do say so myself." Of course, even though the idea came to mind, he wouldn't steal the song for himself...no matter how tempting. 

Aditya complimented his singing, even though it was rusty at first, in another language. He felt extra complimented by that. "Thank you, thank you" he mockfully said, bowing his head. Then he got a cheeky grin as Adi joked of no birds falling from the sky. "Really? Then what's that?" he said, pointing at nothing in the air, before flicking some snow up at Adi and bolting quickly.