Moonspear the dwarven forge

Also paging @Hydra

Several weeks after her departure, Alya returned to the wilds -- and to Moonspear -- looking a little thinner than she'd been when she left, but otherwise no worse for wear. The lustre of her coat had been diminished by dust from the long journey, but her eyes were no less bright as she loped up to the lowest reaches of her homeland and tipped back her head to herald her arrival.

As she raced through the foothills, she sought out the scent of her beloved, who she had been far from for long enough. She remembered being separated from him on their first journey together, and thinking she would never see him again. She worried now, that he had perished or disappeared in her absence. Or that, like her parents, he would be dead as soon as she reached him.

"@Nikai!" she barked when she found his scent -- fresh and nearby!

Nikai had been picking through scents when he heard the call. He had tried to find out some trace of prey, but he turned up empty handed each day. It was frustrating, especially knowing that winter was coming and what promises spring might bring the pack. They needed the sustenance. But unfortunately, choices were for those who could afford them, and they were empty-pocketed right then and there.

The return of his beloved brought some hope back to Nikai's mind and he started heading towards the borders from where she called right away. It didn't take too long for him to face Alya head-on, and as he heard her cheerful call, Nikai could tell from her voice that she felt much the same about him. Nikai's tail wagged excitedly as he trotted towards her and woofed happily to see her return home in one piece. He was headed straight for her, intending for a happy embrace when he reached her.

Even though she could smell him quite clearly, it was still a relief to set eyes on him and see that he was hale and healthy and still mostly whole. The thought put a wolfish grin on her face as she helped close the distance between them, rearing back slightly at the last moment to wrap a foreleg around him. This way, he was held firmly in place as she attacked him with kisses, tail wheeling excitedly and unreservedly as they reunited.

"Your mother is well," was the first thing out of her mouth when her excitement had passed enough to allow her to speak. "The whole pack is -- and your little brothers and sister. I even saw Leta." This was older news; things could have changed since she'd actually spoken to Valette, but Alya didn't consider this in that moment.

the pups were already born before their departure, but i'll roll with it! :)

Nikai was relieved to hear that Valette was doing well, and that the pack was, too. Especially considering the circumstances of late around the valleys -- hopefully the news would still hold strong today. How did she take the news? asked Nikai, remembering how much of a difficult time his mother had had each time he had to leave before. He could not imagine that the news of his lacking return would do her well. Especially with the lands in the state they were in.

Alya told him about his siblings and mentioned -- presumably, since she knew her name -- meeting Leta. How are they all? asked Nikai. They must already be getting so big. It was crazy how fast that went. Nikai felt a pang of regret he could not be there for his youngest batch of siblings, just as he had not been there for last year's through their youngest months... But it was what it was. He hoped that once things stabilised here they might be able to move back, but he had to admit with each day it felt as if Alya was more firmly rooted here and as if it was less and less likely Hydra would let one of her mirror images go away again just like that. Maybe he was wrong, but Nikai had in part started to accept that he may have to live here for a while to come, and they may not be able to return home quite as fast as he'd like.

I don't know how I missed that! I changed it and it should still fit with your post.

With some of her wily energy expended, Alya was ready to give a more sedate report. "She was disappointed, of course, but understanding," she replied, trying and failing to suppress her guilt on the topic. When would they return to Easthollow? Hydra would soon be having another litter. Alya wanted one of her own. "Leta looked well. But something happened when she was a little younger; a shewolf with a white body and a black head attacked her. They were unable to capture her. But your sister recovered, and she seemed happy and curious when I saw her."

It occured to Alya then that Valette would likely whelp again this year, and that if they stayed here at Moonspear, it would be another batch of siblings that would grow up without knowing Nikai. Alya would have no more siblings on this mountain. No more siblings ever, unless she could track down that elusive rumor she'd heard whispers of.

"Has there been any change here?" she asked him.

Nikai frowned as he heard about the news of Leta getting attacked. He hadn't known that had happened; it must've happened after he and Alya had left. Attacked? he asked with bated breath while Alya explained the rest of the situation. He looked away, frowning, and then looked back at Alya as he said, I'm glad she's well. I'm glad it ended well. Nikai felt very strongly that he should've been there, he should've stayed back home, but right now there was nothing he could do about it. And it had all turned out well enough. He supposed it was a good thing that Valette had Greyback now, to help protect them.

Things have been quiet here, Nikai said. Hydra's been trying to teach me some moves. She doesn't seem to understand that fighting isn't my strength and I'd rather focus on things I'm actually good at. She thinks I should practise because of my disabilities, but I believe there's a lot more I can bring to the pack than bad fighting. He wondered what Alya thought about her sister's incessant desires for Nikai learning to fight well. Did she agree? Nikai looked at her inquiringly, hoping she'd speak her mind.

The guilt was so strong for a moment that Alya could scarcely meet her mate's eyes. "Yes," she agreed, her voice deceptively mild, and she hurried to add, "Leta is insistent on coming to visit us in the springtime. Perhaps you and I can make a trip that way, and take our time going, before that happens. That way we can see everyone, and then almost as soon as we're home, we'll see Valette and Leta again."

The next topic made her frown -- not because she disagreed with Hydra or Nikai, but because thinking about a time where fighting was made necessary for her mate made her stomach twist. "I think it's an important skill to have, just in case," she said, seeing where her sister was coming from. "But not the best use of time. If you want, I'll take over these 'training sessions', and we can have them at a more managable pace. And I'm sure we'll have more fun, too." This seemed a fine compromise to Alya, who knew that her sister would not be appeased if her idea were simply abandoned. She only wished that everything else could be worked out as neatly.

That's a nice thought, Nikai said when Alya mentioned visiting Valette, Leta and the others soon. He was looking forward to visiting his old home. Missed it, often, even though this was his home now. It was hard to let go of these things, even with the wanderlust he held in his paws as much as Alya did in hers. But she understood, he knew that.

Alya at first seemed to think that fighting was a necessary skill, but then turned around and suggested she could take over the training from Hydra. Nikai smiled -- he liked that idea -- and nodded. There's a deal. I can check whether you're actually qualified to protect me from the dangers of the world at the same time. Nikai shot her a sassy grin as he said this, clearly meaning it playfully. When he thought about it, he had never actually seen Alya properly fight anyone or anything outside a hunt. Hopefully it would never be necessary to truly witness such a thing.

The teasing made Alya grin. She made a quelling sound at him and nipped at his flank.

"I'll feed them your other leg and run the other way," she disagreed, privately thinking that she'd probably killed more wolves than had ever thought about attacking Nikai. But that was with her sisters; it still remained to be seen how well she'd do on her own, or with Nikai as her only backup. "Besides -- I'm trying out this new tactic. It's called The Power of Friendship. If anyone wants to fight us, we'll just love them to death." This was all said quite drolly, but she was rather serious about this method of getting things done. It had worked for her well enough in the past, after all.

Nikai chuckled when Alya teased that she would feed the attackers his other leg and make off, knowing that it wouldn't happen. He nipped back at Alya's shoulder with a playful growl.

When Alya spoke next Nikai wasn't sure if she was mocking him -- since he'd always been rather pacifist himself -- or if she was serious in some way. Are you just mocking me here or are you serious? he queried with a tilt of his head and a quirk of eyebrow.