Moonspear Losing everything is like the sun going down on me

Alaric shifted through the pack lands. A jaunty step in his gait and a smile on his face. The throaty hum of a happy man as he traversed. A few dance steps inbetween the walk and the cliff. Always so close to the edge, skirting the danger like the jester that he was, and loving the thrill that colored up his spine and into the ruff of his fur.

He briefly thought of @Sialuk, realizing he hadn't seen her much. She was busy with her lovers and the pack lands, and he found himself contemplative. He felt a bit like the odd man out, and briefly wondered if he should move on to other pastures, though he also wasn't sure. So he pushed the thought aside and then lifted his voice to let it flow over the ground in a happy song. Words blending and echoing and a smile on his face.

She did not yet know if she would accompany @Argent on his journey, but the idea of it appealed to her. A getaway with him would give her a chance to get to know him one-on-one, away from the pressures of leadership and distraction of others. The nights they spent together were brief, and there was always more work to be done when the sun peeked its head into each day.

It was Alaric's voice that caught her attention, and she found herself drifting toward his song, lightness in her step. Sialuk knew that he was one of many she had not called to her ulaq, but why she chose some and not others, she could not say. Even Kannoyak she had kept at a distance despite his interest in her.

A lovely song, she greeted. Who do you sing for?

Alaric didn't hold it against the lovely Sialuk. He knew that he was a bit of a mixed bag. And his taste was one that not everyone found appealing. That was alright, because enough found it appealing. He supposed he should probably wonder at it, but he couldn't bring himself to worry about it much.

An easy grin lit up his face as he turned to meet her eyes for a moment in time, then quickly avert the green grass gems of his away. Whomever can stand to lsiten. He teased, but chuckled and shook his head. 

I sing because i Love it. There is no reason other than that. I like the sound and the words and it fills the silence. If someone finds it as enjoyable as me, well that just makes it so much better non.

Then he dipped his head to her. How do you fare, Sialuk?

She laughed easily at his joke, though she found his singing rather palatable. Sialuk was reminded of the many nights she had sung songs after the strange storm, and the sweet, sad beauty they had used to help her mourn the loss of so much during that time. On the other side of it, she had felt she had shed her skin and become something new.

Well, she replied, settling herself onto he haunches. And you? Is the village home to you? While others seemed to have paired off, or at least made themselves into small units, Alaric seemed to float between these places. Not to say such a thing was wrong or unwanted, but Sialuk wondered if he sought more purpose now that Chakliux and Quennell no longer required a high level of attention.

Alaric was pleased when others found his singing appealing, much like his story telling. There was an art to it and he loved it just as much as the former. It was nice to share it. Though he hadn't had time to share much with many. He was just a background wolf in a pack of stars. And that was alright.

I'm fine. It is an adjustment, simply because I was not used to home, but there is nothing unbearable about it.

Alaric had made no strong ties. He had traded with some, but mostly kept to himself surprising even himself. I look forward to when the little ones are bigger and I can ease their little scraps and cuts and take them on adventures. Tell them stories and sing them little songs. It will please me to be a fun uncle to any and all who wish to christen me such, if it be in the cards.

A lopsided grin on his face.

Nothing unbearable about it was not exactly a resounding phrase, though Sialuk could understand if he was merely content here, rather than feeling fully integrated. Still, his tone was upbeat, and he appeared enamored with the idea of the children who had been born to the village.

You will make a fine mentor, Sialuk agreed. Is it your wish to be father, too? She had not ruled him out, just as she had not ruled out Kannoyak, though she had spent less time with both of them in comparison to the time she spent with Argent. There was still time for that to change, for lives to be upended, and for the dynamic with all three to shift before her time came.

His words were more a direct thought about himself. He had always thought pack life would be unbearable and he had proven himself wrong. He enjoyed his new place. He was content and happy, proof evident as his voice rang out to dance along the spear. 

Alaric was surprised for a moment and he dipped his head. If that is in the stars for me then I will be glad for it.

Honestly, he would love kids of his own, but he was also happy to share in the joy of other parents too. Especially given his personality. Many who saw him thought him a jester, a fool and he played that up. He could make you laugh and dance and play. But there was a part of him that was serious and stricken, and he hid it well.

Are there any in Moonspear who call to your heart? Sialuk asked. If not in Moonspear, she wondered if Kukutux would know of women in want of a husband. Perhaps even Samani would know of somebody. She thought of Marina then, curious if the girl would seek a man to help her in the raising of her children. She did not want to presume for the girl, of course, especially with how tumultuous her situation was.

Alaric shifted at her words and gave a guarded smile. One of the few he ever offered. My body is given freely, but my heart is something I guard well. So no my lady no one has won it. But nor has anyone tried.

He gave a small shrug of athletic shoulders. He was a trader, in every way of the word. He had traded flesh for food and bed. He had traded food and stories and songs. He had learned early in his travels that it didn't bode well to wear your heart so openly. So he played the charmer, the rogue, the brother, whatever it was that was needed.

For Sialuk, she gave both so freely, it was difficult for her to separate the two. Never had she warmed a bed with somebody she did not care for on a level deeper than a friend. But she knew the ways of others were not always the ways of her own, and she could respect Alaric's differences for what they were.

She felt that Alaric guarded himself so well, that many—herself included—did not wish to tempt fate by breaking down those walls. What if she were to hurt him along the way? When the time is right, they will show themselves to you, she assured him, feeling he already knew this.

Will you sing another for me? she asked.

Alaric knew once he gave his heart away the one who held it could break him so easily. He wasn't one that shared all of himself. He had worn so many faces, honestly he wasn't sure what his own was.

Alaric chucked and gave a soft nod. Though in his mind he thought that well only if he let them. But he chose not to say that. Someday. was all he said.

A grin lit up hia face. Of course!

Then without missing a beat he lifted his voice into a jaunty tune. Baritone ringing among the peaceful village. To dance along the eaves

Sialuk leaned back, stretched, then settled at Alaric’s feet to listen to his next tune. It was a lovely way to relax and pass some time, although she knew she could not continue to lay about so leisurely forever. There were things to be done, her people to speak to, and she would need to sleep when the sun nestled itself into the horizon. For now, she let herself get lost in the lyrics of Alaric’s song, her imagination running wild with the story that he told with a melodious flair.

we can prob fade here! <3

Alsric would aing as many as she wanted and then when she had tasks to see too. He'd disappear back into the spear to hunt, to gather, to sing.