Dragoncrest Cliffs in a tidal wave of [m]ystery

"Aye," Njord said and Meerkat's breath left her in a happy squeak. More came after that, of course, and her entire body felt like it was vibrating when he brushed his muzzle against hers. When he took it a step further by tenderly smooching her forehead and tugging her against him, she let out a second happy squeak, feeling almost foolish in her giddiness.

His mention of Duskfire was like a tiny pin piercing her ballooning joy. It didn't pop, though it definitely began to slowly deflate. She knew she didn't want to keep her involvement with Issorartuyok from him, though she also didn't want it to overshadow whatever decisions they made today. A breath whistled through her teeth as she nodded, legs a little jellylike as she strode beside Njord toward the shore.

She'd considered this possibility: that he might want to join her pack. But Issorartuyok had made it pretty damn clear it wasn't actually an option. "You must decide if you will go or stay with the man you court..." Even before she'd approached him to tell him about Njord, she'd already concluded that bringing him to the glacier pack probably wasn't the best idea. Now she knew that for a fact.

Meerkat sighed, glad they were walking so she had an excuse to look ahead as she slowly explained, "I was happy with them... but now I'm not. A big part of it is because a little while back, I was flirting—for lack of a better term—with a man named Issorartuyok. But the more I got to know him, the clearer it became we wanted very different things. So I called it off. It was never serious but I had a hard time with it," Meerkat admitted. She nibbled at her lip and glanced at Njord, wondering if this information would change anything between them. But he'd asked and she wanted to be perfectly honest with him.

"I was in a better place with everything by the time I bumped into you that night," Meerkat continued, knowing he would know which one she meant, "and everything just sort of clicked for me. When I went back home after that, I wanted to tell Issorartuyok, as I was hoping we could remain friends. But he summoned me before I even had the chance. He told me he wanted to try again. I told him no. I reminded him we're too different. I also told him I'd found you. He wanted—he wanted to fight you, like I was some kind of prize or something. I told him no again."

Once again, she glanced at him to gauge his reaction to all of this. She worried that she was spoiling everything with this drama. But it would be worse to lie, so she concluded the story by saying, "Issorartuyok is the Alpha and we didn't part on good terms. Besides, he lives a very different way of life." Meerkat rolled her shoulders a little restlessly. "My time with the glacier pack is over."

That hung in the air between them a moment when she drew in a breath to remind them both, "I still have to say my goodbyes to those I care about there, but..." Meerkat nosed the curve of Njord's neck, getting him to stop, so she could reach out and clasp his paw like she'd done before. "If I can still have this, then everything will be okay." This time, she raised their joined paws and gently kissed his toes, brown eyes raising entreatingly to his face.