Silver Creek waiting for a passing feeling

all welcome, pref. a packmate he hasn't met (or mato?)

he has taken it upon himself to sweep through the forest and into the surrounding areas of where tindómë will come to rest. this is not something the androgyne needs to do, probably, but he spins it like this: he's recording what happens in tindómë's founding, it can't hurt to know intimately the immediate surrounding areas, no? 

delight has since given up his quest to find something wrong with his new home. it's hard to shake the feeling he's waiting for the other paw to drop, but each passing day his security and hope grows. and even if something happens, he has family now, friends, he won't be shouldering anything alone. the wisp sighs as he follows the edge of the creek, glancing to make sure he's alone before allowing himself to admire the silvery surface of the water. there was still much for him to do - he had yet to talk to mato and declare his ambition, and he knew there were others recruited to their ranks he'd yet to meet, to add them to his story. but for now he could be a boy watching the pretty fish.

Hey there, soldier, Uka called out as he began to close in on Delight. Admittedly, they hadn't gotten the best first impressions of one another, but if they were going to be stuck living together for who knows how long, it made sense for them to at least try getting along. One thing that they did seem to share was a common interest in fish, and anyone who was a friend of the water was a friend of Uka's. You know what those are called? he asked with a nod of his head, It's called kokanee, and it has one hell of a bite on it. If they were here now, that meant that there were a bunch of less-alive ones nearby; he made a note to go looking later on that night to see if he could get some scraps. 

Uka sighed and sat back on his bottom, finding that age was quickly proving to work against him. As he moved his leg to a more comfortable position, he winced slightly, but hoped that Delight wouldn't have seen it. Listen, I don't like having feuds with my packmates. I guess it's a matter of, 'Don't shit where you lay', or something like that. A weak apology, sure, but it was the most anyone could hope to get from a guy like Uka.

waves waves

the wisps quiet is broken by a familiar and somewhat unwelcome voice. embarrassedly he dances from the edge of the water and affects a disinterested look, though it masks his sheepishness poorly. uka - well. it isn't that he harbors any intense feelings of negativity toward the brute, he's just - someone del isn't used to, doesn't know how to relate to. trajan had unsettled him similarly, but the roman had been quicker to slide into the wisp's good graces. delight doesn't know what to do with the information uka offers him - who cares about the names of fish as long as they're tasty - and gives him an odd look. he's about to be rude when the other man speaks again.

"feud is kinda a strong word," he says, then huffs. "but sure i guess. so you're gonna stay after all?" his expression lightens as he speaks; by the end of their introduction the androgyne was sure he'd botched it - if uka is joining them after all he feels relieved.

In all honesty, Uka hadn't decided whether he was gonna stay or not. It was a smart decision in the moment, but he had been known to change his mind just as often as a snake changed its skin. Delight didn't need to know that, though, and Uka didn't feel secure sharing that information with someone so close to the Morwinyon (that word would take some getting used to). Ah, yeah, you can expect to see more of me around these parts. At least, until I can find it in myself to hit the road again.

Then, turning his attention back to the salmon swimming in what seemed to be circles, Uka had a decently bright idea. You ever tried just watching 'em? The fish, I mean. Spending time with one's prey and really getting a chance to study its behaviors had only ever been beneficial, and it was a great way to bond with folks who seemed like they'd never get along with you. Uka knew first hand that watching the grand kokanee swim upstream for hours on end was one of the most healing activities a wolf could ever engage in.

something about the way uka answers feels wishy-washy, but del isn't the sort to push with those he doesn't know well. his expression sours again anyway, just slightly. somehow he has come to the conclusion, despite his air of ambivalence, that the man's placement in the pack is tied to him. if uka leaves delight is a failure; if uka stays delight is tortured by his presence. poor unfortunate soul is he.

oblivious to his internal catastrophe, his pack-mate turns to the water once more and offers to watch the fish or something. "i was literally doing just that," he says, annoyed. then he realises it's a peace offering and flushes, embarrassed. "butum, it is nice to watch them, yeah." he does not add, the water reminds me of mato, sensing it will be used against him immediately to admit such sentimental tidings. he shifts a little, indicating uka could find a place beside him to watch. he hopes the older male will shut up and watch quietly - maybe they can get along if neither is talking.

Now, Uka could have easily spoken out of line. He could have allowed the bad side of him to get the better and this entire peace offering would have blown away with the wind. But no; he tamed his tongue, and cleared his throat where words would have been. But do you know what you're watching? Uka asked, drawing in closer to the water so that his forepaws were submerged, Or, are you just watching because you're bored? There was a large difference between the two, the pleasure from the latter being the grandest.

It was easy to feel bad for wolves who didn't know the glory of the water, but it was even easier to feel as if one was beyond them. Meeting those who were ignorant to what was being offered, well, it only further inflated Uka's already too big ego. I mean, watching fish is boring. But studying them and really getting to know what it is that you're looking at, it's something you just have to experience.

these two's dynamic makes me laugh a lot tbh

"i'm watching kokanee," delight says without any real weight of sarcasm to it. he's a brat but he lacks any real malice, mostly just inexperienced socially. "not bored, just thinking. i was looking more at the water, actually," the wisp admits, moon-pale gaze following the lines of uka's legs as they submerge in the water. there's a ring around his form where the silvery shapes of the fish give him a wide berth, a dark spot in the glinting stream. 

his expression bunches into a frown, detecting patronization in the male's speech whether it's really there or not. he's given up on finding something wrong with tindómë but here it is right in front of him, and talking about fish of all things. it's not even that he disagrees with uka - his whole self-declared job is to get to know what he's looking at, after all, how else does one record history - but he doesn't like being looked down on. "it's okay," the androgyne says, prickly, "fish, i mean. you like water a lot, huh." a more level-headed boy would have sought what interesting stories belie that fact, but delight just finds it unimpressive. "are you a fisher?" he adds after a moment, because if nothing else, he is at least invested in keeping track of his packmates' various trades, lest someone try to usurp his master plan. plus it was the nicest thing he could think of to add, anyway.

I know right!!

It was now becoming a bit more clear why the two weren't finishing each other's sentences by now. In a way, Uka thought that interacting with Delight was akin to speaking with a rebellious teen, and that seemed to be pretty accurate. It was almost as if he were speaking to his own son, except he was sure that his kids would be a lot less headass than this ray of sunshine beside him. Only when I gotta be. I'm not as agile as I used to be. And when trying to take on fish like these, one needed to be as able-bodied as possible. 

Plus, I grew up around little fish like this, so killing 'em feels kinda...well, it feels too personal, I guess. To Uka, eating seafood was akin to eating one's own brother — every sane person knew that you just didn't do it. How about yourself, sailor?

disappointingly uka declines his assumption - or at least curbs his guess as to the man's desired trade. pale eyes draw into a squint at his following statement, which simply baffles the androgyne. growing up around prey brought on personal feelings? it is the sort of thing that from the mouth of a better creature might inspire admiration, or maybe just curiosity, but uka is so soured for him he just barely resists the urge to scoff. (though if his eyes should roll, he can hardly be held responsible - brothers to fish!) 

"i..." he starts and trails off. his conversation with seabreeze has reopened freshly-closed wounds, and thinking about back home makes his stomach turn. he frowns softly at his own feet, his voice dead in his throat for a moment. "i'm from the - the mountains," the wisp says finally, and if his voice sounds a little frayed he hopes the other chalks it up to his attitude and not to his anxiety. "...no fish in the mountains," he mutters, and sprawls on the ground with his paws touching the surface of the stream, darkened expression hidden by his bowed head. uka'd accidentally touched a raw nerve and now he's due for a long, proper sulk (if trauma-induced nausea and sudden sorrow could be called a sulk.)

No matter who it was, Uka was never a big fan of seeing folks upset. That didn't mean that he was a huge fan of talking about his feelings, but he did his best when he thought it necessary. He drew in a deep breath, then sat back on his haunches with a deep-bellied laugh. You know, before my pa passed away, he used to tell me about the streams up in the mountains. Said it was the clearest water to be found, and the tastiest, too. Now, I was never a real spiritual man myself, but the stories he told me made me think that maybe he was right. Uka gave Delight a curious tilt of the head and a raised eyebrow, as if to silently ask, Wanna hear one?

Without waiting for a response, he began his short retelling. It's been a while, and my memory isn't always too good, but I'll try to tell you one of my favorites. Up in the mountains where the spirits of winter lay, there was a beautiful maiden. Well, she was about as beautiful as a maiden could be, if you're into that sort of thing. Humor couldn't hurt right? Uka sure hoped not. Anyway, eh, she liked to sing a lot. Now, this got annoying, as one could expect, 'cause who wanted to hear someone sing 24/7? So there was this trickster guy named Filou who thought it'd be a cool idea to just off the girl.

This was where the facts became a little foggy, so Uka had to improvise. Uh, well, one day, while the girl was singing her song near the tip of the mountain, Filou snuck up behind her and pushed her off, but instead of falling to her death, she grew wings by the grace of the gods and soared. And that is where we get the most annoying creatures to ever exist, songbirds. Good enough, Uka.

why does uka insist on bothering him no matter what course of action he decides to take? delight can't resist the overdramatic hfff that escapes him when the other begins his story, giving him his best dead-eyed stare. "riveting," he says, in a tone he hopes will convey his complete disdain for the concept, but uka barrels on as if delight hasn't spoken at all.

not only is his story unwanted it totally lacks craft, rushed right to the punchline. the androgyne opts to stay on the ground but shifts, one damp paw pointed in his packmate's direction. "you have to give the girl a name," he says, "and - like, okay, why did the gods grant her wings? was she like, a favorite of theirs or something? or do you mean the songbirds were specifically to punish filou 'cause that requires a whole different set up-" the slightly puffy look he'd been sporting is gone, replaced by agitation and what you could generously call passion as he subjects poor uka to his tirade. (if nothing else - at least he doesn't look upset anymore.)

At least it'd worked. Uka gave a soft smile, looked at Delight, then turned back to face the extensive walls of the lake. Oh, so now you think you can tell my own story better than I can? he asked, showing an expression of mock offense, The birds weren't meant to punish Filou. They were meant to punish everyone. It's kinda like the gods' way of saying, 'Fuck off', you know? They didn't intend for us to be so rude to one another, that's just how it happened. At least, that's how he'd been taught.

I'm sure you have your own philosophy about the world. I also doubt that you've ever let someone get close enough for you to tell 'em. Not that Uka thought it was necessarily a personal thing, but he figured it would've been what someone like Delight hoped to hear. He seemed like one of those 'uptight-but-only-until-you-get-to-know-me' types, and that was the same personality Uka had been surrounded by for years.

he fixes him with a dead-eyed look. "yes." is that even a question? who is the storyteller here, after all? the núro is astute enough to tell that uka's offense is satirical, toothless, and he'd even caught that soft smile, but what is he supposed to do with that? worse than being genuinely disliked is doing all the work of disliking for the other person for them, he thinks. uka ought to at least have the decency to not like him properly.

ugh.

"whatever," he mumbles, having lost whatever footing he had in the conversation. the androgyne doesn't like to feel like a dumb kid, even if that's what he is. uka's story is still poorly constructed. he should win by default. though the man's next statement pulls him out of whatever sulk he'd been on the verge of with a deep frown. "i'm close with people," he says defensively (who, delight, who?) and rises to his feet, ears flicked back. "i'm just not wasting my time," he adds - a touch more snidely than he means, and a genuine flicker of apology runs through his face before it's buried under ego. "anyway, the ending would make more sense if filou had friends egging him on or something."

and with that, the androgyne absconds.

exit del! haha thank you for the fun thread!