Moonspear o most wretched of men

astronomer thread'd be cool :)

It was night time, and though it was not as cold as it was in winter, Charon did feel similar to then. It was warmer, but the lands were still rather barren; though leaves were beginning to return to the trees and grasses, the herds had not yet returned and Charon's patience was beginning to run out fast. In winter they knew that food was tight, but now they expected a wealth of food as long as they worked diligently, and instead they got nothing — no more than a pitifully wounded thrall, anyway, one that he was already beginning to regret not eating right away. The rest was bonding to her already, so opportunity was swiftly running out.

The night was warm and Charon sat atop a ledge along the higher reaches of the mountain. The view was fantastic, and he could see a lot of the areas to the east of Moonspear from up here. Charon looked to the starry skies and let out a quiet sigh while he wondered of the future.

<3

Dash, too, was losing his patience with this famine. Hope had turned to irritation when the foliage began to return. It just couldn't grow quick enough for him, and he assumed for the rest of Moonspear. Dash did his best to keep his vexation to a point, and made sure not to take it out on others, as he knew there was no one to fault for this. Instead, he simply kept walking. His patrols gave his mind something to focus on other than hunger, but tonight, Dash strolled upwards on the mountain instead of at the borders.

 Charon's scent gave him pause and his expression softened as he followed it to the ledge where his leader was gazing at the sky. Dash himself wasn't all that interested in things he couldn't get, and the sky fell into that category. But, he also knew other wolves took a liking to learning about them. His body instinctively lowered in respect to the Alpha's rank and Dash chuffed to announce himself, pausing to see if Charon would welcome him or turn him away. 

His head turned at the sound of a chuff, his gaze averted from the stars he felt so at peace beneath as he laid it onto Dash. For a moment Charon tensed, but as soon as he saw Dash' face he relaxed, silently welcoming the presence of a friend. They hadn't had a heart to heart since Dash' return — the last time they had seen each other was when Althaia had been thralled. "Join me," asked the Alpha of his friend and he turned to look at the stars again, exhaling peacefully as he watched the stars. With all the turmoil going on round him it was nice to have some form of peace by being in their presence.

"They are beautiful tonight," shared Charon, a calmth to his voice that was normally rarely there.

Dash's gaze was averted from Charon's face to his body, and he caught it tense up. He paused, wondering if should leave. But, as quickly as it came, the stiffness left, and Charon invited Dash to join him. With a wag of his tail, he made his way to his leader's side, sitting back on his haunches. He made sure to keep his head lower than Charon's as he followed his gaze to the twinkling stars in the sky. 

An ear turned to the side as Charon commented on the stars. Yeah, was all Dash could think to say at the moment. They weren't something he usually thought about, having more interest in what was here on earth than what was in the vastness of the sky. But, he would humor his Alpha this time. Why are they up there? he asked. He had no idea what exactly made the light in the sky, other than that it was different than the light that brought the day time.

Dash joined by his side and Charon looked back to the stars with interest. Dash' question was unexpected, and it made Charon think. He liked to think that they were up there because they were guiding him to greatness. But who knew, truly, what they were and why they were there?

Charon disclosed, "One day I want to climb a mountain that reaches all the way up to the stars so I can meet them and see what they really are. Maybe that day I can find out why they're here." He wondered what Dash would think about his destiny as child of the stars. Whether he'd be amused, irritated or understanding.

"It feels as though they look down on me. On all of us, really, but like they guide my fate." A smile fell across his face as he said, "I hope they will bring me children soon." Not that he was really a puppy kind of guy; but it would be different were they his own. They'd be the heirs to the mountain and to his greatness, in a way.

Dash's ear flicked towards Charon as he spoke, listening quietly. The dark male had never heard anything like that before, but, then again, he hadn't really engaged in a conversation concerning the stars before, either. There was only one thing Dash worried about. It's hard enough to breath at the top of our mountain, let alone higher, he commented. Was there even a mountain high enough to reach the twinkling bulbs in the sky?

He was quiet for a little while after Charon commented that he felt they led his fate. Dash had never considered anything guided him except for himself and instinct. Was there something, someone, that choose what he did before he did? They choose for us to be starving? he questioned, his voice confused. Why would anyone do that?

I didn't know you and Amekaze were a pair, he commented. Congratulations, he said with a smile, glancing to Charon. He hoped they got the pups they wanted. With this knowledge, he knew he would need to pick up on patrols to protect the pack. No enemy could enter, for fear of the pups, should they come.

What Dash said was true, but Charon figured it would be well worth the trip. He had gotten high up on Moonspear, but not yet high enough. Yet Charon was unsure if this mountain was tall enough, and if it was not, well... It was the tallest around, so maybe such a mountain simply did not exist.

"Who knows if such a mountain even exists," he said. "But if it does, I will find it and visit the stars myself." Maybe some day he would find out that it did, or maybe all his life he would never know for sure, would die without even seeing the mountain. If he ever died at all.

Charon scoffed when Dash said that they would choose to let them starve. "It's more complicated than that. They probably don't have control over everything. That's why they need wolves like me, to do what needs to be done." He wasn't sure what that was, really, besides becoming and staying awesome.

At the mention of his coupling with Ame and the pups that would follow, Charon nodded. He'd forgotten Dash had been gone when they had formed a pair, though it was such a natural order of things to Charon that he had not given it much thought. "Thank you." A smile rested on Charon's face, confident and pleased. Pleased that he was looking to a brighter future, and pleased that his friend was back home where he belonged. "Where have you been in your absence? Seen anything interesting?"

Charon was sure if such a tall mountain even existed, but vowed to search and visit it one day. Dash thought that was a little far fetched, but who was he to smash Charon's dreams? Tell me about it when you do, he replied, instead. If Charon was able to reach the stars, Dash would be pretty impressed. 

An ear twitched and his head jerked to look at Charon, who had just scoffed at him. What was that for? he thought to himself. Then, Charon explained that they may not get to choose certain things that happen. Dash hmm'd but didn't say anything in response as his gaze turned back to the stars. Dash was fully committed to making his own destiny, and if anyone was trying to intrude and he found out about it, they would be dust. 

The conversation moved on, and his Alpha asked where he had went. I sought out my family. I was lucky enough to find my brother, and got to stay a bit where he lived. I learned some social skills from him in my short time there, and told him he could visit, if he ever wanted to. Suddenly, he realized that may not have been his place to extend such an invitation. He looked to Charon a little worriedly. If that's okay with you. I don't even know if he will visit. He seemed pretty happy where he was.

Who knew if Charon'd ever reach the stars — but he would never give up on his dreams of doing so. And with that the subject moved on to the subject of Dash and where he'd been. Family.

A grin spread across Charon's face when he noticed Dash fidgetting about his invitation towards his brother. Charon shrugged and answered, deciding to take Dash out of his misery: "As long as he's as great a guy as you, he's welcome to drop by." Dash was a good sort, Charon thought; the only thing that was a downside about him was that he had left and who knew if the wilds may pull him away again. Yet at the same time, at least he had let them know. Another might have just vanished into the night without a word, as so many had done in the past, among which Charon's own brother Levi.

Charon put him at ease, and Dash smiled, his tail wagging at the compliment. He is pretty great, he confirmed. Some might have joked that they were better then the brother, but Dash didn't have that kind of ego. He was sure of his skill, but he was humbled everyday by the challenges that this world gave him, and he knew he would always continue learning. 

Having been idle long enough, Dash stood, though was careful to keep his posture respectful to Charon's. With a wag of his tail, he explained he needed to get back to his duties, and turned to go.

Fade?

Though curious if they would ever meet this brother, Charon did not push it further. He nodded and smiled, and looked up at the skies again.

"See those over there?" he asked, though he pointed with no more than a paw which didn't indicate much; the stars were big, after all. Without waiting for an answer he continued, "That's the big dipper." Not recognising Dash' need to leave, he explained a few other constellations before eventually letting Dash off the hook and off to other duties again.

i'll archive (: