Blacktail Deer Plateau pasiaktuk

In Lane’s (very liquid) timeline this takes place about five weeks after her pups’ birth, circa July 30. Couldn’t resist another thread with @Kigipigik. 

Perhaps it would not be surprising to someone with a little more life experience, but Lane had been caught off-guard by how much her sense of home in Duskfire Glacier had been tied to her feelings for @Rye.  She had meant for her trip away from her home territory to be a short one, but the more distance she put between herself and Rye, the more her spirits lifted. All the way out here it was as if he and his chosen companion, @Imaq, and the child they conceived together, all existed as fuzzy memories in the back of her mind. It was all a dream, a bad dream, its potency fading with every stride the Lane took away from the Glacier and toward wakefulness.

The icy slopes of the Glacier and the mountain it fought to consume had long since disappeared behind Lane. Before leaving her home territory, she had checked in with @Wintersbane with her plan: she would scan the surrounding territories for any sign of their missing beta, Iana, and then report back in short order. She had previously mentioned her desire to scout once the pups were weaned, and so her travel plans would likely have come as little surprise to Wintersbane.

Weaning Veteran and @Wayfarer had been a sour, messy ordeal, particularly with Veteran, who fought so desperately against every developmental milestone. In hindsight, Lane had probably forced too much change on the children too quickly. In the hours after Imaq’s delivery, when Lane’s heartbreak was at its most acute, she had yanked the pups from their whelping den, declaring that it was time they became “big kids” and moved to a rendezvous site outside. Of course, this decision had very little to do with what was truly best for the children, and a whole lot to do with Lane’s emotional turmoil. Lane could not stomach the idea of sharing space in the communal den with Imaq, Rye, and the child they had conceived.

Despite her fading attachment to Duskfire Glacier, Lane still felt strongly connected to the little lives she had left behind. Weaning them had been incredibly frustrating, testing every ounce of her (admittedly small) reserve of patience, but maybe she would let them nurse just once when she returned. For old times’ sake.

Even when the peaks of the Sunspires loomed directly overhead, Lane felt no desire to turn back. She had come this far; she might as well see how that budding pack was doing on the plateau. She knew the way, having scouted this route shortly before the children were born. She was traveling lighter this time around, and so descending The Wall felt more like vigorous exercise and less like a perilous tempting of fate.

Lane lingered at the base of The Wall, wondering if she ought to do things the official way and howl for an audience. She stood, panting, trying to catch enough of her breath to call out.