Golden Glade Mitsik

@Antha - set just after they find the mountain and check it out. We can give them more chances to talk before they "get back" to the glacier. ^w^ 

Any of the youth are welcome, if they see this!

The northerner stopped in the glade and turned back to gaze at the mountain. It was lovely and would make for strong families. It had good hunting grounds near it. There had even been goats on the mountain itself. The peak was an ideal location with no nearby packs to threaten their people. They had only the journey back to the glacier and to gather the rest of their people.

Issorartuyok had been increasingly grateful to Antha for her support and assistance. Her talent for scouting was sharp. The northerner thought of their previous talk and considered it heavily. The weight of his time spent with Meerkat and the way they had left things wore on him and made him feel as though he had been a bad man to her.

As he padded through the forest, he thought of what he should do to make it right.

antha had felt a sense of peace since returning to the mountain she'd discovered. all the wolf scents were stale here, save those left by the group. issorartuyok's village would be isolated. safe from war and disease. a place of families and prosperity.
no man of her homeland would dare set foot in such a place.
she trailed after issorartuyok, her steps featherlight with optimism. the witch sought company, conversation; companionship in her lovely mood. but when she discovered the northern man, his expression was solemn and thoughtful, so she only chuffed a greeting as she approached. if he wanted to speak, she would listen. if he desired silence, she would be his wordless companion.

The woman chuffed her greeting and drew to approach him.

Issorartuyok regarded her warmly, though his features still carried signs of his thoughts. The man could not settle on one thing. There was a heavy weight on his chest. He was not fond of the feeling, though he could not imagine what might make it go away. Perhaps, if he was to return and speak with Meerkat, he could make things better.

The northerner thought of Antha’s words, too. It troubled him to be faced with such things.

Do you believe it is a blessing or an omen that there are no wolf smells in these lands? he asked quietly. If he was to help lead their people to the mountain, across great stretches of winter terrain, he needed it to be the right choice. Issorartuyok did not know what he would do if disaster struck them when they had arrived to their new home.

issorartuyok's eyes were warm upon her. antha felt her skin flush under her fur, and found herself grateful for the distraction when he began to speak. he sought her advice, speaking of blessings and omens. a blessing, the witch answered at once, confident in her words. your village is leaving a place of chaos, yes? disease in your lands, war in the mountains. this place is the opposite. so quiet you can hear the wings of the birds fluttering against the wind. a haven.

Antha seemed to believe that it was a good omen, a place of peace that would offer them a fruitful rest. The northerner nodded his head, hoping that her words were true.

I cannot help but feel that it is too good, after so much hardship.

Issorartuyok chuckled, a soft rumbling noise. Their difficult times were nothing to laugh at, but his own bleakheartedness had given him pause. All he wished for was the safety of the glacier wolves. He wanted a land where children could be born and could live their lives with nothing to worry about. In the years to come, the northern man would like to see generations of his own blood prowling the woodland.

You are a skilled scout, Antha. The man nodded toward her. They would not have found their destination without her help.

congrats on 300! <3

issorartuyok expressed a feeling painfully familiar to antha; wariness of his own happiness, as if that too might prove treacherous. she pressed her nose briefly to his shoulder, remembering all too well what it was like to feel hopeless, and suspicious of anything that looked like hope. but the future promised easy sunlit days. the witch could see no other end to this. she prayed silently for a vision to confirm her feelings, but none came. at least, not yet.
thank you, she said to his words, flattered but finding an unexpectedly bittersweet quality to hearing the compliment. the scouting trip had sapped more of her strength than it might have in her younger days. this was meant to be her prime, but she felt so tired. time passed so quickly for witches. too quickly, for those who sacrificed as much as antha had.
her pulse quickened, and again she thought of spring.
i've spent most of my life traveling. i left home at a young age, she smiled slightly, reminiscing. that was my first journey into these lands. when i returned home, it was with a cure for my ailing sister.

Thank you so much! You helped me to reach it. *o*<3

Then you are talented in many ways, he praised with a sweeping look.

Issorartuyok found the information she shared to be special. She had ventured to the wilderness on her own and had returned to her people to save her sister. Antha was a remarkable individual. The northerner thought she belonged with the new lands they had found, for she inspired a sense of hopefulness in him.

My younger brother would have had brothers and sisters. His litter became very ill when they were young. He was the only survivor, Issorartuyok confessed this to her. The weight of the memory dwelled in his words, made them heavy. The northerner thought of those little spirits many times.

It is an honorable thing, that you saved your sister.

it's been fun!! <3

the northern man had nothing but praise for the witch. antha glowed under his kind words, though she turned solemn when he began to speak of his own past. that must have been difficult for your family, she said softly. i see now why you're so eager to move your people away from disease. i believe your village will be safe here.
and she did believe that, truly. she hoped for it, too; she hoped for the chance to put down roots and begin the long process of passing on her knowledge.

When Antha spoke again, it was with words of kindness. She believed that the lands would be fruitful for them. He trusted what she had to say. Issorartuyok did not wish to imagine that he could lead the Duskfire wolves to anything worse than what had plagued their glacier.

It will be good to bring them to something that is hopeful, the man said with a smile. The dark brown of his gaze fixed on Antha. He was grateful to have found her company in the wilderness. The northerner could not help but hope that she would consider staying with their village.

What do you think of the young ones? he thought to ask. Issorartuyok was fond of each one. He could not help but feel that they had accomplished a great deal by scouting so far from their home.

hope. a funny, tricky little thing; poison to the blind, salvation to the wise. there was perhaps a bit of magic in the feeling itself. a sort of warmth, a spark not unlike the beginning of a fire.
and like fire, it had the potential to burn the unwary. but antha kept these grim thoughts to herself, and turned her mind to the question posed by the northerner. i admit, i haven't had the opportunity to make true conversation with any of them, but they strike me as fine wolves in the making. brave and strong, all of them, to make such a journey, she offered a smile.
may i hear more about your village, issorartuyok? if i'm to join your ranks, i would like to know more of your people's ways. their history, out of habit, she watched his face as she spoke, watched for any sign of anger or deceit. once, she had not been so vigilant; antha never grieved the same mistake twice.

The northerner nodded his head in agreement. The children were something special. He was proud of them for their accomplishments. It was good to know that they had such strength in their future. The people of the glacier would be strong, he knew this. They would regain their footing after the disease and they would face a new day with many prospects.

It would only take a journey.

Antha asked him of the village, of it’s people and history. Issorartuyok regarded her quietly, wondering if she would be unimpressed to hear the truth.

I do not know much of the history. I am still new. It is only poor fortunes that placed me as the Alpha of the glacier. But I am fond of them, in my short time. I am proud to be at their head, with another strong leader at my side. This was the truth, from his heart – if Issorartuyok was capable of speaking from such a place.

when issorartuyok spoke, his tale was not of his people or their ways. he spoke of poor fortune. brief time spent well. a strong leader. put in such vague terms, antha could almost align parts of his story with parts of her own. it was different, to be sure. but somehow, she felt she could relate.
perhaps poor fortune led you there, but i believe we all step into our roles for a reason. we may not know each other well, but you strike me as a good leader. a good man. your village is lucky to have you, it was no small thing, to step into a new place and take the reins. surely there was doubt in him; fear. he seemed entirely too humble a creature to harbor the pride necessary to rule without second thoughts. it was part of his charm.

Antha was kind with her words. This offered some reassurance to the northerner. He had found himself doubting his abilities as a leader. Issorartuyok still acted with them in his mind. He only wished for them to have a prosperous future. In addition to that, the man wished to make a home that would be suitable for generations of children. It would be a place for love and strength to grow as one. The support of a village was all that a man needed, he felt.

It is kind of you to say these things. I hope they will be pleased with our findings. It will be a long journey, there and back.

Issorartuyok could not help but to worry about the children. He hoped that they were prepared for the trek back to the glacier. Once they had gathered their people and prepared them, they would cross the mountains again. When they had reached their destination, he wondered if the young ones would have found their true strength.