Gilded Bay Og havet, hun snakket til meg

@Keanu for visibility

It was an unspoken agreement that they should stay here. Loathe as he hated to admit it, Keanu was not well. He was not ready to travel, not yet, and they needed the Bay's resources to enable his recovery. Ahe fell into the role of caretaker, fetching food from the sea for the both of them and tending to his wounds with the aid of inland herbs and salt water. 

On one such morning she slipped from their temporary den - a sheltered hollow nestled amongst the stony spires. The sand within was dry and soft; it was surprisingly warm within the burrow, leading the firebrand to shiver at the change in temperature beyond its walls. 

The phoenix's fire-kissed limbs settled into an easy pace, the languid gallop warming her sore limbs as she loped to the beach. Ahe would search for anything edible that had washed ashore before looking amidst the shallows for a meal. 

Her golden optics were drawn to the sky, which had lightened to the pale grey of a dove's wing with the coming of morning. The Sun would be cresting over the horizon at any moment, its golden light shedding warmth, and the girl's progress was halted to watch. 

govinda was up earlier than usual; the golden-brown man usually never rose before the sun. but here he was, prowling the beach, the pre-dawn light glowing off his pelt. it might have been a short excursion were it not for the red wolf looking toward the horizon. this was decidedly not izel, and he trotted toward her, giving a gentle bark before pulling up to stand a few tail-lengths away.

"namaskar," he said warmly, softly, looking toward the waves. govinda glanced toward her, slightly transfixed by the color of her fur. like the sea at sunset, the rays bleeding into the water like rippling fire. "i have not seen you around here before. who are you?"

not that he was in any position to chase her off (nor did he want to). he did not claim an inch of this land, though he knew izel thought that she did. he was under no such illusion.

Ahe's gaze was drawn to the place where she knew the sun would rise, molten orbs locked on the spot lest she miss that first glorious flash of light that signalled the coming of the sun. So focused was she that she only barely withheld a flinch of surprise when the stranger spoke. Her russet shoulders tightened, lifting slightly as if for protection as the Kraken turned to face him. 

Sunshine optics scanned him over, noting that rather like the boy she'd met (who had mistaken her for Ceara), he too seemed crafted of the colors of life - the feathery brown of an owl's wing, the aura of a bountiful forest, the tawny golden-brown of leaves in autumn. He was older than she, if only by a touch, though his behavior spoke nothing of his intentions. 

"V-Velkommen," she managed, not quite sure what he'd said but answering him in the tongue of her grandfather. 

"Ahe," she answered with a graceful sway of her fiery plume. "Who might you be?" 

much like he had done, she gave him a greeting in a different language, then segued into the common tongue. ahe, he presumed her name was, if not just another word he didn't know--regardless, it was what he would call her, until corrected. "ahe," he repeated, looking for the answer in her face. "i am govinda. pleasure to meet you."

his eyes strayed further inland, toward the plateau, as if waiting for izel to pop out of the woodwork. the hawk-eyed woman didn't let much past her, not in the least a stranger on their beach. still, he was happy to see a new face; it broke up the monotony of his recent days.

"are you traveling through?" govinda asked, canting his head slightly to the right.

Govinda.

It was an exotic name, unlike any she'd heard, and her crimson crown dipped slightly in the acknowledgement of having a title to put to his face. 

"I'm pleased to meet you," she murmured softly, her eyes following his own inland.

The land was flat, unobscured by forest on this particular bay, allowing her to see the distant outcrop of a plateau and beyond that the peaks of Teekon's mountains - hazy in the light of dawn. Fog had crept in off the sea, allowing only the silhouettes of the landscape to remain visible. It seemed ambiguous to the Islander - not ominous but unknown. A fear of the new had crept in, anchoring her to the shore in Keanu's absence and she was unsure what might wait for her there. 

Guarded eyes returned to the stranger, paranoia leading her to silently speculate as to whether or not he had friends in wait for some insidious plans. 

Ahe remained calm, for she had no reason to believe Govinda was anything but a curious rogue much like herself. It was only the past speaking to her, twisting her thoughts into suspicion. He at least deserved the benefit of doubt.

"I.." she began, halting hesitantly as her gaze flickered in the direction of the den where she had left her foster brother. If this bay was claimed by Govinda or the possible hidden friends of his, they could be aggressive. She would not lead them to Keanu. 

"I am," she finally answered, sunshine gaze lifting to Govinda. "I have been wandering the coast since washing ashore though if this is your home, I will respectfully move on," she added. Best that he think her alone, at least for now, and should the need arise she could at least help Keanu travel west - away from the Bay.

she was wary, and for good reason. heaven only knew what kind of rogues resided on the coast, salt-crusted and snarling. nevertheless, he gave her a smile, relaxing his shoulders even further, and half-shook his head in a sort of 'i dunno' gesture. i live here, yes, but i'm not chasing anybody out just yet, he explained wryly. only rude wolves. . .and you don't seem the type.

govinda tilted his head, regarding her with a newfound curiosity. you washed ashore, too? he asked. there seemed to be no dearth of marooned wolves on these shores. himself, izel, now ahe. . .strange. perhaps the concept of vengeful sea gods was closer to the truth than he would have liked to believe.

A gentle smile graced her maw, an expression that felt out of place on her features. "Well, thanks. You're rather not rude yourself," she quipped lightly, mirth shining in her optics.

"Aye," the Islander answered. "We were swept out during a storm and I found myself in these lands," she murmured subconsciously, unaware of her slip up as her golden eyes turned to the sea. 

Darkness broken only by the brief flashes of lightning. 

Keanu's voice calling out, the words lost in the roar of the Sea. 

A glimpse of dark fur as a sibling was ripped from her side by the tide - Leilani maybe, or Akoni? 

Pain splintering through her forehead, courtesy of a boulder. 

She blinked, turning back to Govinda as if waking from a dream. "It should have killed me," Ahe murmured, almost as if to herself. "But it chose to spare me." 

the skin around his eyes creased in a broad smile, though it faded as she went on into something solemn and contemplative. each word she spoke brought the sea up before him, vast, deep and dark. the horrible beauty of it came vividly to life once more. pulling. . .pulling. . .and a voice in his ear, commanding him to go on.

twice i have survived the sea, govinda said, not to brag, but rather as a show of solidarity. i don't know how, either. other than--it wasn't our time to leave these lives. there was work yet to be done. hari had said exactly that. he'd begged the deity to let him go, but his pleas had been denied. ripped apart by undersea and then by the sea itself, he had no right to live.

but he had, anyway.

it is to be respected, he murmured, tipping his muzzle toward the waves. but i'm sure you know that, already.

"Sjøen," she named the ancient god in her ancestors' tongue, "has taken me more than once. The first time I was a child and it brought me to a new life. I sometimes wonder if that's what happened here. The ocean bringing me to a new land for a fresh start," she admitted, eyes on the horizon as the sun crested over the waters. 

The light spilled over the water, golden as it shed illumination on the contours of the landscape and the pair of sea-loving lupines alike. 

"I do," she agreed. "She is beautiful but fierce. She can be gentle yet destructive. It would be unwise to anger Her." 

"What work has been left for you to complete?" Ahe asked of him, eyes landing on Govinda with curiosity. There had been a time when her worked seemed to await - conquering untamed lands alongside her foster siblings, helping Keanu build a legacy - but that era had ended.

enraptured, he listened to her tale, all the while feeling the too-familiar tug of the sea on his bones. he was intrigued that she gave the ocean a pronoun--not to mention a name--but said nothing of it for now, letting her words fade slowly into the blissful morning air. when the question came, he shook his head, a small sigh escaping him.

if he knew that, he'd know everything.

i have not been told, govinda responded, staring at her with mournful golden eyes. i--i don't know. i guess that is for me to find out, with time. he didn't know why she had been spared, either. only the divine could answer those kinds of queries. did she not know that? i am here, though, as are you. we go on.

She nodded, feeling that she understood what he meant. The gods had yet to reveal what her part on this earth would be next, in spite of her prayers. She had clung to her old life in wait: to the shore, to Keanu, and the ancients Sköl had worshipped. They were familiar and they had never failed her. 

"Aye, we always do," she murmured, subconsciously referring to she and Keanu.

i wish you luck, govinda said with a smile, his eyes soft as he looked at her. if you are in need of a home, the plateau is welcome to you. if i move on. . .wherever i shall go, you can follow. the shepherd-language came easy to him. morningside had whittled his instinctual friendliness into something more useful--a fisher of women and men.

the sun was fairly high, now, and had faded from its brilliant red-gold to a more serene orange. i'll say farewell for now, he said, and let you get back to your business. take care, ahe. he stood for a moment, awaiting her response. once she had given it--or if not at all--he would depart, rangy form heading back up the slope toward the plateau, where he would continue to contemplate his future.

"And to you, traveler." She smiled, tail wagging slightly. It was hard not to like Govinda, on the surface he was open, friendly, charming even. "I'll  keep that in mind," she murmured genuinely. Could it be that Govinda was the gods' answers? Could following him mean a new life? 

She'd have to wait to find out - Keanu was not ready for travel, not yet. 

"May we meet again," she said to his tawny back as he made to leave, and she meant it. Molten optics watched him go. Long after his form had disappeared, Ahe remained - contemplating as she watched the surf.