Noctisardor Bypass pius x

pinging @Heda and @Ava Amara but AW, especially to leadership!! >:D

andras was growing desperate.
he had holed himself away for a good while, healing, recovering. a hefty scar now sat along his shoulder, covered only by a thin patch of undercoat. he still thought often of the red damsel who had turned his ministrations away. he is hungry, tired;
and worst of all is that god had not spoken to him in weeks.
his travels turn to aimless wandering, the scent of his daughter now lost and buried beneath other foot traffic through the valley. so, for the time being, he turns north toward more familiar terrain; rocky expanses, barren fields, dead forests. it felt almost like home.
a secluded passageway leads him into a protected canopy of greenery, and there is the distant sound of water just beyond his reach. it would be perfect if not for the pungent scent of others. this valley has keepers. perhaps it would be best to be one with them. there is safety in numbers; he can blend in, fade into the background until he is ready to return to his post.
perhaps this was what god wanted for him. all he has to do is give them his word.

One of those keepers was washing in the river when the scent of the stranger found its way to his nose.

Glaukos pulled himself from the rushing water and moved along, not exactly slowly but without much insistence, as he knew the bypass had one way in or out; if there was danger he could meet it and put an end to it before anything could get near either of the sisters.

What he found was a trail leading first to a section of the river and then deeper, which irked him; but the scent was not layered in a way to suggest an incursion, and beyond that the stranger had a scent that made the soldier think of his old General. An elder wolf, maybe. Someone most likely lost and in need.

And then he came upon a shape among the trees he did not know. The stranger was distracted, and Glaukos did the natural thing and cut off his point of egress by angling his approach; and when he had studied them enough, he called out: You're in my home. What is it you want?

a man comes to him. glistening with creekwater, haughty, painted in silversmoke; he reminds him of a son he could have had, perhaps in a different life.
my name is amadeo, the lie slips easily from his teeth; the grizzled eyes lock tightly onto the strange man's form, as if to say 'no bullshit' in the secret language of masculinity. i come to you seeking a home for the remainder of the cold months. perhaps permanently. i offer my protection and my loyalty in return. i served as a general in a past life.
an unassuming chameleon.

Sorry for not responding faster! I thought he'd dropped!

The man is a giant; not quite to his own specifications, but there is a swagger to him that Glaukos finds appealing in spite of his age. Besides that, there is a familiar quality to him. He is reminded of Germanicus with a surprising sentimentality which he swallows. There is no place for that here.

Amadeo sounds like another needy individual trying to survive the winter; Glaukos takes a deep breath, his face expressionless as he scrutinizes the stranger. He looks healthy enough and older, so his usefulness might be limited—but when he mentions being a general in a past life there is a shift in Glaukos, a raising of his head. A new, but small, glimmer of understanding that bordered on respect in the depths of his dark eyes.

We could use hunters. He admits, considering.

If you can pull your own weight here, you may stay. The implication was there: if he began to slack or he became a drain on resources, he would not be welcome. Glaukos would be watching.

I am Glaukos. This is Rivenwood.

no worries! <3 it's fine we can just pretend he's been laying low in rivenwood this whole time LMFAO

ah, there it is; that mutual sense of understanding andras had hoped for. he nods his head in recognition. i can hunt. i can also fight.
and i can show you the right way to live.
when he leans closer to inspect the other man, there is an unmistakable smell upon his ruff; there are women in his care. well met, glaukos. you are the general here, i take it? it is hard to juggle responsibilities on your own, there's a lift of his brow; implying, of course, that if he is the only man in charge, he must feel...  burdened. i gladly offer my assistance.

When the man draws closer Glaukos allows some perusal, and while he finds it unsettling there is not a single moment of unease displayed; he is accustomed to being inspected in this way, just not by a stranger. He stands a little straighter.

There are two sisters I protect and care for, he answered as if he were reporting on this fact, going so far as to protect their names for now, and the details of their season; but being the only man of Rivenwood capable of being a father in this space, it was obvious what he was protecting.

They will be den-bound for many weeks. It is constant work, so I will appreciate having a second hunter to assist me. that was all he would admit to; and as he spoke he welcomed the man to march through the heart if Rivenwood with him.

He could stay.

immediately, he understood. picking up what was being put down, andras did not pry; he only hums with a lift of his chin in acknowledgment. it is that time of year. it was a struggle for me, too, when i was married, haha. there will soon be many mouths to feed, i assume?
he strides comfortably alongside the younger man. for a moment, andras feels as though he is back in new bayridge with his general at his hip. there's no use wasting time. how do you feel about going for a hunt now? the silversmoke eyes glimmer. a way to get to know one another, the father thought; and a way for him to figure out how much of a threat he had in his hands now.

Glaukos gave a nod, although he paused slightly at the mention of marriage. That was not an aspect to his relationship with Druid and he doubted very much that Heda was interested in the same thing (showing how limited his involvement with her, to not know this precious thing about her); but when it came to the many mouths, the soldier was concerned.

I can show you to where our hunting grounds begin. Rivenwood is fortunate for its placement, as there is only the one way in and out, and so when herds come to graze here it is easy to trap them and work them down. Which was to say, with enough bodies they could feed everyone in a substantial way, and they would not need to branch outside of the bypass.

For now I have been keeping track of the larger prey but I have not put myself at-risk by hunting them. Better to do that with backup, which would be you. Two wasn't quite enough either, but they could go together to track down these herds and study them for future hunts.