Sheepeater Cliff twinkle twinkle little bat

@Lennon @Korei Julia @Aditya
Sorry if this is awful I'm so tired today ;-; let me know if anything needs changing!

 

Alarian was pleasantly surprised to find that traveling with companions was far more pleasant than traveling alone. Though he had a bad habit of wandering off, he always managed to return to the two (typically with either prey or some strange new discovery dangling from his mouth) before much time had passed. 
It didn't occur to him that it might seem strange to the others that he disappeared so often and suddenly, only to return in the same manner. He had the attention span of a gnat, truly. Quickly, though, he found himself in the habit of urging them to come with him on his wanderings on occasion, and this was one such. 
When he had first spotted the creatures, they were mere flecks along the jagged face of the cliff, but it had been enough. His curiosity had been sparked, and he had gone dashing off to get the others.
As they approached, the flecks took on a shape, and then details; suddenly the discovery was much more interesting to Alarian. He bounded toward the cliff, getting as near to its sides as he could while still being able to view the higher parts of the mountain side. Bulky hooved creatures in shades of brown and tan seemed to cling impossibly to the side of the mountain, finding ledges to stand on where there were none. Their heads were adorned with horns, some large and magnificently curled while others were more like pointy stumps. Alarian wondered silently what the difference was between those ones, but he wasn't about to get close enough to figure it out.
He looked over at his companions, eyes wide and sparkling. I've never seen creatures like these before! I wish I had horns.

Korei Julia was slowly taking a liking to Alarian. Mostly due to the fact that he brought food for her and Lennon, and himself. She normally stuck to the path they were going, but this time found herself following Alarian. "We can't go too far...all right, I d-don't want to get lost." She carefully followed along, wondering what exactly he was looking for. 

Then she spied what he had found, a group of animals. She knew that she had seen those before, near Moonspear. But, what were they called? It took a bit, but the name came to her when she looked at their horns. "Bighorns...we had some near our pack." She licked at our chops, recalling the taste.

he saw them from a distance, a little trio of varied hues--one white, one gray, one brown. aditya trotted across the plains, having been occupied with surveying the territory just outside morningside's border, but now curious to see what this was about. a family? an envoy from a neighboring pack?

they were staring up at the cliff, perhaps admiring the sheep that called the rocks home. wagging his banner tail slightly, aditya chuffed, approaching them with guarded interest.

"hello," he said, drawing to a halt in front of them. two of them had no discernible scent of affiliation, but one--the young, ivory-pelted girl--smelled strongly of the moonspear. he flicked an ear. a defector? a runaway? or simply exploring?

"i have not seen any of you in these lands before," aditya remarked casually, gesturing with his nose at the plains around them. "what brings you through here?"

Their travels together had provided Lennon with much more to do than just singing to himself amongst a lonesome atmosphere. Ali with his treasure findings and Korei was opening up more the longer they roamed together, and with that, he felt a new instinct to protect them? The hickory wolf was no buzzkill as if anything he often brought amusement that contained some form danger, such as jumping on the fallen log that was him and Korei's only segway across the river. 

Lennon hardly ever disliked someone, yet he held a compassion for these two that he hadn't experienced with everyone in the past. In their past times, he often caroled to them (whether realizing it or not), and was in no way shy of over talking. 

With a sudden stranger encountering the trio, his immediate instinct was cation and aggression? The hairs on the back of his neck raised, and directly after this reaction the male seemed to pause in puzzlement - he'd never thought of company in such a way. He gave himself one quick jerk of the head, an attempt to coordinate his thoughts. 

Now, he sent the newcomer a classic smile and greeted him. "Hello, there," His gaze glanced at the large hoofed animals and his mouth watered a moment before refocusing. "Starin' at Bighorn's it seems." He jested, in the back of his mind he still felt some caution for, in his opinion, no reason.

Oblivious to Lennon's slightly averse reaction to the other wolf, Ali was actually rather happy to see another. He wagged his tail at the newcomer, a friendly smile on his face.
We're just passing through! The boy noted that this new wolf smelled of pack-- that meant it must be close to where they were. I'm Alarian! This is Korei-- He pointed his muzzle at the girl, then nodded toward his other companion with his next words: And Lennon.
Are you from a pack around here? Alarian couldn't help but wonder aloud after a beat.

Korei peeked her head around as Alarian came and greeted them to the wolf, and she squeaked a small hello towards them. Then she pulled her head back to hide behind Lennon, feeling safe as she viewed the bighorns. She thought about Moonspear briefly. Then quickly pushed such thoughts away.

aditya noted the bigger male's caution toward him, and gave a smile of reassurance his way. the smaller of the two men was easier with a response, glowing, and the girl, while shy, also looked friendly. they were, apparently, just passing through. on their way to where?

"pleasure to meet you," he said amiably. "my name is aditya; i come from the morningside pack, just north of here." he gave korei a long look, plainly and silently with his eyes asking--i know moonspear. why have you left?

his meeting with the girl from that mountain the other day had unnerved him, if only for the intelligence she had thrown suddenly his way. moonspear and the caldera were at odds, with a war brewing against another enemy on the horizon. was korei fleeing certain doom?

It was a weird way to put it, but Lennon felt...honoured? To have Korei feeling safe behind him, made himself felt like he was specially chosen, and was made for a job he wanted. The stranger's smile got Aditya's point across, allowing the wolf to relax slightly. Morningside? He hadn't known of the place, he was relatively new to the wilds, his only pack interactions with Easthollow and Moonspear. It was rewarding to discover new ones, like some sort of treasure hunt. 

The lengthy stare at Korei reopened Lennon's caution, to which he moved closer to her side, hoping to convey easily what that meant. In no way, even with his friendly mien mistake a potential danger towards the young girl.

Nice to meet you too, Aditya! Ali was quick to embrace the interaction, not really noticing the look the stranger was giving Korei. He found himself curious about this Morningside pack, though, now certain it was them he had smelled on his way out of the forest. Morningside? Is there-- is your pack next to that forest?
He paused a moment, trying to think of a way to elaborate, because that forest wasn't very specific. The one with the red sap all over the trees! I think there's a pack there... or at least a lot of wolves.
The boy rather hoped Aditya could tell him something, anything, about either pack. He had no business with them and likely never would, but he was curious to a fault.

Korei caught the stare and retreated somewhat more into Lennon's fur, so only her nose would be visible by the other wolf from behind Lennon. Why was he staring at her like that? It was somewhat scaring her, she did not like it. "Lennon..." she said quietly. Morningside she had not heard of. Or his name. She glanced toward Alarian as he asked about a forest, and wondered if he had been around there before.

he noticed lennon's protective, almost possessive, move toward the girl and resisted a smirk. he meant no danger to this korei, but certainly lennon didn't know that--and anyway, he admired a man who stood up for his loved ones, even if the mistrust was, well, misplaced.

adi turned his golden eyes to alarian instead, smiling as he spoke. "ravensblood forest," he explained, his tone warm. "not quite a pack, yet, but they're there. we've also got the caldera wolves, just south of here. . .and moonspear, to the southwest." he thought of glancing again at korei, but with her body language screaming no! and lennon's bravado, he decided not to go that route.

figuring he might as well mention it, he added, "be careful if you're traveling further south. there's a pack of wolves down here nastier than anything. war on the horizon." korei likely knew that already, but he didn't know if she had told her companions anything of such nature.

War. Lennon’s stomach dropped and his heart grew heavy. There was no way he’d allow Korei to join a pack with war creaping forward, he wouldn’t put her in such danger. ”Between who?” The quiet (for today that is) male finally spoke, he needed to keep her safe from anything even close to war - unable to bear witness to her injury or death just as he’d done in the past. 

He’d deicded that the wolf wasn’t a threat, and lowered his guard. Aditya seemed kind enough, but his nerves had been on edge lately.

sorry this is awful

Alarian was glad for the information-- especially the bit about steering clear of the pack the other mentioned. Nasty wolves... he resisted the urge to shudder in fear. He noted the names and directions carefully; perhaps it would be useful later.
The mention of war, though, had him nervous. He averted his eyes for a moment, shocked and a little afraid. Quickly the boy regained his composure, not wanting to ruin the conversation entirely. Lennon had already asked what Ali was wondering, so he stayed silent for now, but his wide eyes were fixed on Aditya.

Korei Julia hid again at another mention of Moonspear. She wondered if this wolf knew she was from there. If he would tell them where she was...she did not wish to imagine them coming. Even though she somewhat doubted they would, as their last meeting she thought she did not care about them. She still missed some, such as Wraen and Terance. And Liffey, her fellow star gazer. Then...there was mention of war. She did not like the sound of that, not at all.

he gave a slight shrug in quiet apology for his lack of information. "between those southern wolves and the caldera. and moonspear. . .but it's complicated, i hear. that's all i really know," aditya admitted truthfully. he fixed the bigger male with a gimlet stare. "i'd get out of the valley before it all blows up."

he wagged his tail. "say, where are you all headed?" aditya asked, his voice kind. he gave a short nod toward the mountains above. "our allies live just across that range. if you're looking for a pack, and they've got room, i can't see why they wouldn't take you in if you're willing to contribute." he would have invited them to his own home, but he knew for a fact the plateau was overcrowded already.

but the trio looked useful enough, anyway. lennon, the big bruiser, was probably good in a fight, at least. the other two weren't as brawny, but they looked swift--hunters or scouts, they could probably make.

He listened intently, not wanting to place either of the others in danger. At the mention of Moonspear he glanced at Korei for a brief second but refocused. His advice was quickly taken, at that moment he decided he wouldn't be dwelling much longer within the valley as they traveled. 

A pack. That was the whole point of traveling, wasn't it? To find Korei a home. Yet, the idea of him settling anywhere and bowing to some stranger made his hair stand up. It was an impossible image. "Perhaps we'll check it out." He thought aloud.

PPing Lennon a bit here since he's inactive and I need an excuse to get them going LMAO

We weren't going any particular direction-- I guess away from here, now. The boy admitted in response to the other male's question. He was certain the others would want to avoid the brewing war.
A shared look between Alarian and Lennon told them both it was time to leave. They would need to move quickly if they were to act on any of this information, surely. And Ali had a feeling neither of his companions liked the sound of war any more than he did.
The boy offered Aditya a warm smile. Thank you, Aditya. All of that is helpful. I think we have to get going now, though. Lots of ground to cover.
He glanced at his companions, turning to follow Lennon, who chimed in with his goodbye. Ali looked back at Aditya once more. It was nice meeting you. I hope the war doesn't find you or your pack. He meant it, too.

Korei Julia kept close to her boys as they spoke to the wolf Aditya. And she remained silent. Until Alarian bid his farewell to the other, and she squeaked a small farewell as well. "G-Goodbye" she said very, very quietly. Then she stuck right by Alarian's side from then on.

the trio was kind and gracious, and aditya found himself smiling as he bowed his head to them in his own farewell. "best of luck with your travels, then," he said warmly, wagging his tail once, eyes sweeping over the three wolves assembled. "it was nice to meet you. . .and if you're still in need of a home after a few moons, our pack lives on a plateau just north of here. you can't miss it."

with a murmured goodbye, aditya trotted off, leaving the group to their own devices. he hoped the information he'd given them would suit them well. they were all quite young, around dawn's age, it seemed, and it was a tricky world they were navigating. he did sincerely wish them the best of luck.

perhaps he should have taken them back home with him.