Ouroboros Spine Uumman

Rodyn had returned.

Samani found herself abuzz with joy. She had gathered a number of small items for him – a rock that glittered on the inside like starlight, a deer pelt with peculiar white splotches, an antler that had found a flowered vine growing around it. This had been the hardest thing, the vined antler, for she had worked to prepare a place where it could grow when the snows had gone. It overlooked a sunny clearing. If the vine continued to thrive, it would grow along the mountain stone and trees.

When she felt as though she had arranged her small gifts in a presentable manner, Samani set out in search of @Rodyn. Her eyes flickered to any movement, hoping that he would appear. She knew that he would be busy, that he had proven himself to be a valuable hunter to their people. It felt like it had been such a long time since he had gifted her the tassel that still clung firmly to her leg. She had thought of him every day, she felt.

Pausing, Samani sniffed for a familiar scent.

Rodyn had not had a moment to visit with Samani since his arrival and with Natigvik pushed into their ranks. He had been hunting to fill caches.

He was patrolling today. And whilst in his searches he hoped he'd find his gaze upon a pretty peachy she wolf that he hoped to make his. Though, he clamped down on the thought not wishing to get ahead of himself. He still had a bit to do. And Samani could say no.

It was with a loud chuff of greeting when he saw Samani that he came across and loped towards her. A crooked smile lighting up yellow eyes, the laugh lines dancing at their corners.

He leaned forward to touch her briefly.

There he was, handsome and smiling and headed her way.

Samani’s legs had a mind of their own. They hurried, stepping swiftly over rock and brush so that she could close the space between them. Rodyn looked different to her. It was almost as though he had leaned out, become more agile in his figure. He was still remarkably tall, and he carried the same confidence that she remembered. The sea girl could not think that it had been only a few moons since he had gone. It felt longer. 

Rodyn, she breathed happily. You’re home.

The girl gazed at his features, lips curved into a sweet smile. She leaned forward to kiss his cheek.

Will you tell me about your travels? Samani asked of him, eyes wide with wonder. She hoped to hear it all – every place he had journeyed and all that he had seen.

The kiss to his maw had him reeling, and a blush stained his already ruddy cheeks. Rodyn had grown into his size, had wiled away the lean fat that had clung to him, to replace with musculature and size of a true hunter. It had been a couple moons of much trial, and tribulation, and yet. It had been peaceful and haunting and it had filled his heart better.

He smiled and nudged her again. I am and I missed you.

Gently he motioned for her closer, and spoke softly. Of course I can. I've hunted otters in forests and wetlands. I hunted stag in mountains and meadows. I've met many kind wolves, a few unkind ones.

A motion of disgust at his shoulder where his scar lay ropy and hard. Raised.

There was different sounds in each place, and the sea. Ah Samani I wish you could have been there with me to see it. I have some shells for you. I found one the exact shade of your eyes. It took me a long time to find it. He chuckled. He had spent more than he should have along the shores of the ocean, but he hadn't wanted to leave it behind. It reminded him the most of Samani.

There was a pack in the mountains. Deep in a vale, known as Epoch, they are a pack of teachers. There was a pack of soldiers deep in the redstone canyons, Mereo. The leader there was strong and able bodied, but a bit cold. The one of Epoch was wise and kind, though none as wonderful as your Anaa and Tataa.

An airy laugh fell from her lips.

Good… I missed you, too.

Samani had thought about Rodyn every day since he had left. She had imagined – several times – the day that he might return, how she would react, what they would say to each other. Seeing him in something that wasn’t her mindless daydream was surreal. It did not matter how the man had changed; she felt her heart thud wildly in her chest when she gazed at him. The sound of his voice on her ears was better than the music that had played in his absence. She had listened as the winds blew through the bone chime and she had thought of him.

Rodyn spoke of many things. He had traveled across a variety of terrain. He said that the sounds were different in each place he visited. Her peachy tail waved. He had gone to see the ocean and he had brought stones for her – the color of her eyes. Samani’s tail waved harder, swaying her hips from the force.

There were wolves in a vale and in the mountain – warm and stern. Oh, she wanted to hear all about it. She wished that she had been with him on his journey, that she could have seen these places at his side.

I’ll hear it all. Tell me of the stern leader. What were their names? What was that home like?

Her laughter. He could listen to it for days. It had been one thing he had missed the most when he had been walking. The sound like chimes. He would be lying if he said he hadn't seen her in everything he did.

A chuckle jumped unbidden to his maw at her hip sway. She was excited and he enjoyed that about her. Glad that he could bring such a smile to her face. The tail sway. He had wished she had been there too, but this had been for their future to help him fully undersatnd.

Rodyn hummed thoughtfully as he tried to remember it all. I met Germanicus in Mereo. He is a roman leader. A strong leader. His outpost sits among red stones hard and unyielding. It seems lonely to me, but perhaps it is just a different way of life. There was acceptance to him though of what I could offer and share. He offered me help on my hunt. I give him the meat. I keep the fur, as agreed. He honored this. He spoke ot me of honor and prestige. It seemed to me that honor was important to him, and word of a gentleman.

He remembered well the dark stare of the man, who had leagues under his eyes, and his feet probably had seen many dead at them. Burdened, yet unyielding.

Arsenio of Epoch was more kinder. He gave me leave to travel through their lands in exchanged for caches. Though he asked me ot leave a king of the forest alone, which I obliged.

Rodyn remembered fondly the hunting in the vale. The small game, the goats that colored and peppered the landscape.

The land itself of Mereo was hard and dusty. Though it looked as if it had many hidden secrets in it, but I didn't pass their barrier there. There was housing and many high rocks. Higher than me, but they weren't mountains. It was as if they were piled atop each other, like the caribou furs your mother carries at times, but they were stuck fast together. It smelled of salt and dirt, and musk.

Germanicus was from a place called Mereo. He was described as being a man who valued honor. As Rodyn spoke of the wolf’s home, she pictured it in her mind. It seemed an awfully strange place for wolves to live. They had made a deal, though. Rodyn had taken the furs from a hunt and the stern man had kept the meat. It seemed as though the Mereo leader had earned some of Rodyn’s respect, or so Samani would wager. He spoke kindly of the man.

Arsenio of Epoch was the next. Samani smiled when the hunter spoke of his time there. She imagined that Arsenio and Germanicus were two sides of the same wolf. One sounded warm and hospitable, the other sounded duty-bound and reserved. She wished that she could meet them both. The moon girl imagined that Rodyn might take her to these places, one day.

Would you return to Epoch? Or Mereo? To visit them again, maybe.

Samani wished that he could talk for hours about his journey. She did not want to make him feel obliged. She was sure that he had traveled many days and that he was probably tired. The young woman could not contain her excitement – Rodyn had returned and he was full of stories.

All those that Rodyn had met and traveled with they all had earned his respect. I hunted with a wolf named Heph. She is a loner and a traveler, a nymph, preferring to move rather than stay. She is a kind friend and Void, who is rather quite terrible to others, but he has always been kind to him. But I do not trust him around girls.

Rodyn frowned, loving his friend, but feeling shameful that his friend treated others so cruel. I tried to steer him in a different direction, but I don't know if it worked. He got hurt helping me. But he is alright now.

Yes and you shall come with me this time? I have no doubt they all will love you.

There was a forest I came across. Where there was deep scarring from a fire many years ago, but now it grows. Tall and golden and beautiful. The trees dapple the ground in colors and shadows. It is ethereal, and other worldly and I think you would enjoy it. The trees so high, when the wind roars through them, it whistles and sings, bringing with it sounds of the many birds that make it's canopies. There are small game animals and large game animals, and rivers pepper the landscape. It reminded me of home. I would like to take you some day, so you can get a glimpse of what I used to live in.

There was a softness to his gaze now. But Samani, what did you do while I was away? How did your hunting go for Caribou? I heard that you chose the second camp? Did you enjoy your time in Natigvik and the sea?

Heph was a nomad who had demonstrated the power one could carry while being alone. Then, Rodyn spoke of someone named Void. This individual sparked confusion inside of the moon girl. She wished to ask more about them, about why Void should not be allowed near women. How could Rodyn trust him only in the company of men? It did not sound like full trust. It also sounded like this wolf could be troublesome.

It was not her place to comment on such things. She was a listener. She wanted to learn what he had learned on his journey. She wished to see the tradesman’s adventure through his eyes so that she knew what it meant to him. The concerns that she had for the company he had shared could be discussed another time.

I wish to go with you, yes. I want to see all of these places with you.

Samani wondered if her mother would like that. The thought of scouting across a great many miles with the company of someone like Rodyn at her side was thrilling. She wanted to make it a reality. The haste she felt would need to be put to rest. He had just returned. He would need time to rest and to recover from the miles he had crossed.

I helped with Moonglow’s needs, yes, she answered softly when he asked what she had done. In comparison, her tasks seemed mundane. The hunt was good. Helping to pick the second location allowed me to consider becoming a scout. I like to see how the ground shifts and changes. I like to find all of the best paths with my own paws. It was rewarding.

Rodyn didn't know how to explain Void to anyone. The young male had befriended him first in the lands he had known no one. And now he was finding out, he was not as kind as Rodyn had thought. That he attacked woman and others. That he was violent.

Rodyn grinned. I'd like to show you everything. Let you feel the shadows and the light, smell the smells. It was beautiful and tragic and everything in between. I have enjoyed my time, but I missed you and I missed home. So I am glad to be back. Traveling is all well and good, but it is nice to have somewhere to return too.

Rodyn lifted head and met her pretty eyes with his yellow. Do you want to be a scout? I can help you with that. I enjoy it myself. Very much.

A scout and a hunter, she answered with a curling smile on her slender features. It seems you could help me with quite a bit, Rodyn.

It was welcome. Samani felt that the tradesman had been away from their home for far too long. She wanted to explore the surrounding territories with him. She wanted to hunt in the unknown lands and bring back their kills for their village. It was relieving that he was there again. She had not realized how much it had felt like she had held her breath, all that time that he was away.

The things that her mother had told her still hung in her mind. She had said that there would be others, that she should not set her sights so early. Samani did not know if these things were true. When she was with Rodyn, she could think of no one else. When she was away from him, she occupied her mind with imaginings of when they would meet again.

Callyope has grown so much. She is amazing! I think she would like to hear of your stories, too. She bumped him softly with her muzzle.

A footpaw scuffed the ground as he smiled shyly. Well whatever I have to offer you can have.

That was as close as he came to confessing fully. He would be able to fully confess in a manner of days he hoped. And then it would all be well, or so he hoped. Only time would tell.

Rodyn met her gaze again. Shall we go hunting or scouting now? What would you like to see? I can take you to the deepweald, where shadows make you hold your breath. Or I can take you to island on the lake, where brother otter plays and purls.

Some days the only thing that kept him going, was knowing that he'd be back to see Samani. That he was doing this for his own benefit, but hers too. To prove that he could take care of her. Not that she needed, it. The peachy woman was as strong as her mother and then some.

Rodyn grinned. I will tell her, but I will always tell you first. I always want to tell you everything first.

He chuckled, and pressed his snout to her downy ear, for a brief second.

If you’re okay with it… perhaps we could wrap some of these older threads and have a couple of new ones set after their engagement? <3 ^^ Sorry I’ve been a bit poor on Samani responses. I’ll do my best to do better. I love writing with you.

Both of the options he had presented were tantalizing. Samani mulled them over for a few moments, thinking on which would be most enjoyable. She couldn’t help but lean heavily toward seeing the otters. They were curious creatures that carried stones in their paws. Samani thought it cute. She wished to see the otters and to spend the rest of their free time together.

Let’s see brother otter. I enjoy watching them hold their stones and float on their backs, the girl answered with a light laugh. She stood tall so that she could plant a fond kiss on his cheek.

Before he had a chance to say anything more, the moon girl had turned from him. Her long legs raced swiftly toward the water. She hoped that she might beat him to their target, but couldn’t help from glancing over her shoulder to make sure that Rodyn was still there.

Of course I am okay with this <3 and I both adore and love writing with you as well. You needn't worry, real life takes precedence, and I'm not going anywhere an neither is Rodyn.

Rodyn himself enjoyed brother otter, and it had hurt him to kill them. Despite that it was for something he truly wanted, that would make his life so much richer if he was accepted. It had still hurt just a bit, and he found no fault in that.

Very well. Brother otter it is. They are cute. Have you seen them carry their babies yet? If not I must take you come spring to see that. I think you'd enjoy it.

Rodyn laughed and raced after her. He would spend the time he had with her, showing her all the secrets of the island of brother otter and rocks. He would find enjoyment in the little things, with the moon girl beside him.