Moonspear Sal din hug og lat den ri og renna.

The context was a bit of a giveaway, though Njord confirmed the meaning of the word. Towhee dipped her head in understanding, abruptly realizing the two of them were still standing motionless at the base of the mountain.

-“I guess this means I’m a pollywog too,”- she commented, turning and motioning to indicate they should finally begin that walk they’d planned. It’s not easy, signing and moving, so this is when lipreading is the most handy. As long as you look at me, we should be fine.

She drew in a breath as they began what amounted to a steady climb, eyes roving over the nearby mountainside. Towhee couldn’t help but remember her arrival in Epoch—well, after she’d healed from her reopened wounds—and how it had seemed like such a paradise to her after the dry canyon. There was a lot of greenery here too, but also a lot of rock.

While you were on your trip with Ray, Meerkat told me about how you guys came to be here. It gives me hope that I can also rebuild a bit here, Towhee mused, not looking directly at Njord but uphill still. Maybe this is a mountain of healing. I mean, the damn thing got hit by space fire or something and it’s still here, standing strong. Even the pack came back, in a way. I was there for the first rodeo and it actually seems like it might even be more powerful than back in the day… no offense, Hydra! she said, raising her voice to shout the last three words.

Her voice trailed off into a chuckle and she looked sideways at Njord, wondering if he thought she might be a little bit crazy. But, no… Towhee was just old. And worldly. And maybe a little off her rocker, sometimes.