There was still no word on Ferdie. Some suspicious scents, cougar prints, and some fur left behind to suggest something amiss, but they had yet to find him. Namely, her searches, no matter how tireless and how far she ranged out, remained fruitless.
Amekaze grew restless and increasingly tired out from it all. But, as she had said she would to Jace, she had descended from the spire before dawn to travel nearer to the Plateau. Just to know for sure. She jogged purposefully into the afternoon.
But she never went too close. Their borders were clear and she had felt like eyes had been on her the whole time she trekked across the foothills, so she had kept it brief -- passing through, only, with scents taken in on the fly. Nothing indicated Ferdie's presence, past or present, so she found little reason to dawdle, especially knowing the Plateau was Fox's residence now. That, of course, was part of why this was her delegated task, because frankly she wanted none of her wolves within a mile of Fox's rotten hide..
She took a path towards the hot springs, deeming them an acceptable distraction from all her failed searches, if only for a little while. The dark Rikudou strode quietly into the warm mist, head low and ears angled back, as they thickened steadily around her. She considered whether or not she should circle back towards the Plateau one last time on her way home, or to forget it entirely. At least she had some time to spare before that, and busied herself with reacquainting with the hot springs.
![[Image: 5ifpFkc.png?1]](http://i.imgur.com/5ifpFkc.png?1)
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」
The pack had finally had a successful hunt after long ride of failures. Even though there were many mouths to feed, everyone got just enough to feel satiated and content for the next few days. Still, following a long set routine, Osprey got up early to have her own smaller range hunts, not because of dire necessity, but for fun. She liked the glorious feeling for every successful kill, as well as an excuse to leave the pack territories and have time for exploring.
This time she had wandered to the Fire Hot springs - a place she had visited twice before and each time she had met up with friendly and interesting souls. She approached the mist-cloaked place with her muzzle lifted in the air and sniffing the various scents it held. A moment later she caught glimpse of what appeared to be a dark shadow. She came to a halt, eying her surroundings warily.
From all her time spent around hot springs, starting way back when she had been but a loner spanning to the present when she occasionally visited the one high in the Sunspire, she was used to how they could obscure the senses. Their saturated air blurred the edges of sight, their scent overpowering, and sounds of water seemed to predominate almost everything. Her ears twitched hungrily for the sound of something more.
But it was a shape she spotted first -- someone also moving along, which prompted her to lift her head up higher and move somewhat closer. She whuffed lowly in curious greeting, testing the waters of the other wolf's friendliness from the distance she still maintained. Until she knew more, she was appropriately guarded and did not move entirely into clear sight -- both because she liked the air of mystery and did not want to rush headlong into anything unfavorable. She hopefully lingered just beyond a thin veil of warm steam, unless of course, the other wolf took steps closer. But Amekaze would leave that up to her for now. Maybe their paths were not even meant to cross at all.
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」
"Hey," she returned the greeting with a quiet woof of her own. "Are you from somewhere around here?" she asked casually.
Her ears switched forward, quivering in earnest curiosity to the greeting that was offered first. With that said, she edged even closer still so that she could get a good, thorough look at the other wolf, one dressed in gray-scale, with less of the steam obscuring her sights.
To the question, she nodded first. Indeed, these valleys were near to her roost. From not far. The mountain,
and it came with a gesture towards the towering peak of the Sunspire. She did not deem it necessary to reveal the specifics, for if a wolf was from nearby, they would only know of one mountain-dwelling pack in that direction. And it was hers. And you? Same question.
While she cursed the overbearing scent of the mist that made it difficult to discern this on her own.
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」
"From a forest - not too far," she decided to be cryptical too, even though it didn't matter that much. "Over there," she beckoned over her shoulder. "Blacktail Deer Plateau."
Amekaze did not know of too many forest packs. When it was clarified to the Plateau, she nodded in immediate recognition. It had never been a pack to interest her much, not since Ariston had given her the straight and true about it when she had visited him there once. Ah, I had passed by there on my way here,
she mentioned. I did not traipse all that close, though. Was only looking for someone,
she added with an impassive look. Since it was a long-standing pack, she had given it its distance when not even a trace of Ferdie was to be had in that direction. It had only taken one faint whiff of Fox to keep her from wanting to even nose any closer at all.
What brings you to the springs?
she asked with a gesture towards the steamy waterways. Amekaze knew some came here to soak, relax, or otherwise. In the wintertime it was an especially valuable haven in an otherwise frozen landscape, but they were not yet to that time of the year yet. Still, there were many causes to bring a wolf here.
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」
"Me? Well..." she cast her glance at the steaming and bubbling springs, "I like the way these go against the common knowledge of how things should be." At that moment somewhere in the distance a stream of water from one of the pools shot up in the air like a fountain and hot water splashed everywhere. "It's amazing, don't you think?" she commented, while her gaze was still locked at the site of the event.
No,
she answered outright with a straight face. Truth as it was, she masked her disappointment fairly well because she had nearly come to grips with Ferdie being gone for good. Nearly being key here, though. He has been gone for a while, and with very little trail left behind. I cannot say that my hopes were too high,
she admitted. Checking the edges of the Plateau had only been done because it had been mentioned a while back between her and Jace.
Amekaze then relaxed marginally as she listened, and found herself nodding subtly. It is, truly. Before coming here to the Teekon, I had never known a place such as this one,
she mentioned. I was brought here because of it being an interesting sort of.. watery landscape.
Amekaze gestured to the misty surroundings. She had once been a wolf who followed waterways almost exclusively, so finding one like this had been interesting, to say the very least.
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」
The stranger shared her views of the springs and Osprey smiled, feeling happy that she had found at least something common with her. "Not from Teekon wilds either?" she asked. "It has been almost a year, since I left my birth-pack, but the land there was very like the one here."
She knew well how tiring searching could be, and understood the weight of failure that often followed. She had once looked tirelessly for Kaminari so many moons ago, and the memories of that ugly feeling of loss were still more real than she liked. Ferdie may not have received anywhere near the same extent of her willowy, silvered little brother's efforts, but there were overlaps in the ache left.
No, from further inland some.. an impressive mountain there, with deep old forests surrounding it.
Amekaze remembered there fondly although the notions of returning had faded considerably. However she would always bear the surname of her birthplace mountain although few were privy to the knowledge. I have been here for a time now,
and it had become a home to her. Your homeland was coastal too?
she then asked, inspired by her mention of it being like here.
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」
"I have always enjoyed the forests though. The sea has never been my thing," the sea-side had sure left an impression on her those few times she had visited, but not enough for her want to wander there more often. "I never asked your name," she remembered suddenly. "My name is Osprey."
She nodded slowly as she slowly came to understand it more through the Plateau wolf's answers. Her homeland, while not immediately coastal, was very likely a place to feel the sea's influence as here did. She could feel it in the climate, the seasons, and practically everything, and wondered if she would miss it if she ever returned to Rikudou or elsewhere.
I see. Mountains and forests will always be my favorites as well, although as I had mentioned, waterways also draw me in while the sea impresses me for its mighty energy,
she said. But I would not want to live exactly on the coast.. visiting it suits me more. I do prefer where I am now,
she said.. even if she had once considered settling very near to the beaches and even stayed nearby them for a length of time. She was settled and content where she inhabited now.
Nevertheless, she found herself thinking of the raptor for which her hotsprings companion was named and wondered if she resonated with her namesake at all -- such as did she like fish? I am Ame,
she replied simply.
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」
"That is the mountain you mentioned earlier, right?" she returned to their previous subject. "What it's like - to live at the mountain? Do you get to meet stone-giants now and then? Or... the cliff-creepers?" she asked, referring to the mythological folk that were told to dwell in mountain ranges. Most people didn't believe in them, however, there weren't that many that had lived at the exact place, where these creatures could be found. So, how could they be sure about that?
She smirked subtly to the compliment. She fancied her name plenty as well, especially the shortening that she offered to others. While her whole name was something carried with a sense of mixed pride, it was best kept to herself. It means 'rain' in my honored mother's language,
she quipped as a piece of trivia to go with it. Osprey as a name was one she liked too, for it inspired thoughts of the predatory might of the namesake hawk. Or rather, she guessed it to be the namesake at play here since she couldn't think of anything else called osprey. You were named for the predatory bird, yes?
she asked alongside a tilting head.
Nodding then to the question about the mountain first, she had to take a moment to consider the.. stone-creepers. Not.. exactly. Although perhaps I simply do not know how to see them, even if a stone-giant sounds difficult to miss,
she smirked. I have heard a share of tales of mountain-dwelling goblins, though. Not that I can say I have ever seen any of those, either..
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」
"Yeah... mountain giants like to keep to themselves," Osprey agreed thoughtfully. "But mountain-dwelling goblins are something entirely new to me. Do tell, if you don't mind sharing your stories?"
Ah, so her assumption had been proven to be a miss. She was vaguely interested in the explanation and found it somewhat peculiar to be named after someone. Evidently her family was a sentimental enough group to consider that gesture.. which was surely some strange honor to the original wolf of the name.
While she was over here just named 'rain'. Just because. So, against the norm of what she knew, she didn't have very much room to be judgmental of their naming processes. At least there was an interesting tidbit of knowledge behind the silvered wolf's name.
Then on tengu, she chuffed softly and fleetingly contemplated where and how to begin. Well, they come from tall mountains, of course, and some are told to be warriors and mischief makers with the ability to shape shift.
she explained. Some tales label them as vengeful spirits, while others give them a more benevolent temperament,
she said. The myths were highly variable. Although, I cannot say I have ever seen one either -- I imagine if they shape-shift, they are probably difficult to spot.
She was unsure of how much more to say, or, alternatively, how to make the tale understandable when all of it was so vague. But, that was the nuance of much of the mythology she knew.
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」
With every Ame's sentence, which revealed the exciting mythology of mountain goblins - warriors, mischief-makers and shape-shifters in one person - Osprey's expression changed from simply curious to the one a person has, when it has found the golden fish and offered three wishes. This was amazing! Her imagination ran wild, skipping long distances in a matter of seconds, reaching the mountains and behinning to wander their stony paths in a quest of finding these creatures. The way the stranger spoke about them was captivating and Osprey knew that she had to hear more about them. It didn't matter that Ame admitted of never seeing them herself.
"Do you know those tales about them? Could you share?" she pleaded like a little kid for sweets.
As she spoke, she watched. Not all were receptive to such sorts of information. It was nothing but myth, unclear ones at that, where imagination was left to fill in the blanks. Not everyone had an interest, or an ability, to appreciate it. The look on Osprey's expression was quite the opposite of this, really, and Ame had to admit she was a tad bit surprised. This was as usually as far as she would go with sharing these sorts of tales.
She spoke on deliberately. Mm, some tales go along the way of tengu just tricking others -- some more malicious, of course, like to lead young away to the mountains' depths or causing travelers to hear laughter in the mountains when they believe no one is there to lead them astray. Others, a touch more.. lighthearted, like using their skills to sneak about and steal trinkets and food.
She peered first at Osprey, then aside towards the mists. And of course, some are good.. like one myth I always found odd in which they would redirect an underground spring water to help an ill individual that was no longer able to go to the spring themselves, who was said to have fearlessly helped feed the resident tengu before the sickness. So it is safe to assume that their abilities are varied, and come in many different sorts even if the source of their strengths remains unknown.. to me, anyway..
she rolled her shoulders, and was silent.
Then after a beat, she decided she had said enough for now. It was a taste, at least, and certainly, Osprey could allow her imagination to fill in the blanks. It was how Ame had received the tales too. They were never entire but that was a part of the beauty in it. I should be on my way,
she said, dipping her muzzle with a sweeping gesture. Perhaps our paths will cross again..
which was to say she was not adverse to seeing the silver female again. With that said, she ghosted off and was on her way.
i want to bleed in the 「r a i n」