Swiftcurrent Creek snowfall

@Constantine ? :)

It was in the darkening hours of the evening that he pulled himself to his paws, strolling across the territory in search of the man with the fur of ink - the man who supposedly was their alpha, his alpha. Numbers were starting to dwindle too low for comfort and as he had sat in under the dimming rays of golden (the last brushes of the day's light), he had felt the shivers of uncertainty tingle up his spine, an uncomfortable prickling that had driven him to seek out Constantine.

It was so quiet.

Steel-grey fur glistened in the pools of moonlight, gentle fingers of silver sweeping over his lean figure and dissolving into the shadows; the night held many mysteries, but it provided cover and though it was not required, it comforted Soltero like a tender blanket to soothe his worries. There was discussion to be had, and if nobody else would engage to spark it, he would do it himself. He had no clue if matters had been spoken of behind closed doors, but in reality, nothing had reached his ears and if there was no solution being passed from wolf to wolf, surely he ought to investigate. To seek out the answer.

So he walked. His leathery nose pressed slowly to the ground, and he tracked the man's scent with a swift stride - if all went to plan, he could talk to the alpha and at the very least gain some sort of knowledge of what was to come.

hope aria is ok :L

aria had been missing from the borders for some time-- but she had been on a mission. she had been searching for constantine and chusi's missing children. no, she hadn't found them-- or even a trace of them. but... no matter. there was nothing to be done. she returned to the creek now, intent on staying. though, truthfully, she didn't feel welcomed. not by anyone except for constantine. 

she spotted a man she knew only in passing. her pale gaze settled upon him as he came into view, a light chuff breaking from her muzzle to get his attention. maybe she could work on her reputation. she was not a bad wolf. she had not done anything wrong-- and she didn't want to have to leave her friend. not now... where would she even go?

Absolutely c:

Aria was not the only one to be having no luck in locating the lost children - Soltero had caught no traces of them; a deep guilt pounded at his chest when he thought of his failure, reminded of the sadness in Talos' eyes when they had spoken. He often thought of her, the way an older brother might look out for a younger sister - perhaps it was simply his loneliness, the lack of parents or siblings to keep him company. He wanted to help her. 

The smoky traveller was working hard, though.

Perhaps that was another reason he desired to discuss with Constantine the future of the creek - there was no use in wasting his efforts on something that wouldn't last until the end of the winter. Even so, when a pale wolfess crossed his path, rather than the dark man, the Valento did not ignore her and stroll past, intent on his mission. Large paws slowed to a halt on the frozen earth, and silvery ears tipped forward on his crown - he'd met her only in passing, and perhaps it was time for them to properly interact. "Hello," a voice of deep baritones rumbled on the frigid air, leathery nose flaring to take in her scent from afar. "You are... Aria, correct?" He wasn't quite sure he'd have remembered, if not for Talos' outburst during the meeting. Remembering names had never been his strong suit - she was rather pretty, though, draped in a white as pure as snow.

he knew her name-- leaving her suddenly feeling embarrassed that she couldn't even begin to try to recall his. she'd isolated herself so much from everyone else... she bet he only knew hers because of the rumors that tormented her so. he knew. but what did he know? better yet, what did he think he knew? aria desperately wished to ask him what lies about here had made their way to him. but she knew better-- how obnoxious would that have been...

"that's me," she returned gently, a smile tracing her pale lips, "aria january." on one side of her face, which she tilted slightly to one side, her newest scar reared it's ugly head. aria had yet to get used to its appearance on her face-- she forgot often that it was there. though, truthfully, it wasn't that bad. "i'm sorry i... don't recall your name," she said in quiet apology, her smile tightening as she looked over his grayscale features.

It was true - Soltero had not been given a magnificent impression of the pale woman from anyone, but he preferred to conclude his own judgements about others, rather than swallow what everyone else said; He knew all too well what the comments of others could do (how opinions could be twisted, not necessarily at the fault of anyone in particular), and he had never really been spectacular with words... so the smoky guard decided to put aside any hard feelings. He wanted to see for himself.

Black lips pulled into a small smile at her apology, shaking his head. "No problem - I'm Soltero..." Oh shit, she'd given her second name too, hadn't she? "Uh, Soltero Valento. It's nice to meet you." Unlike his own name, Aria's was smooth on the tongue, and he comitted the additional name to memory (he couldn't promise it'd stay there, though).

he didn't seem to take it to heart, which brought a breathe of relief from the pale january woman. "soltero," she repeated, nose dipping down gently in a single nod of acknowledgement, "it's a pleasure to finally be acquainted with you, then." a smile traced her own lips, her feature's filled with interest as she looked upon soltero, her tail flagging slowly at her hocks. she gazed past him, briefly, at the sight of a small movement. perhaps it was just a bird, though, way off in the distance, for her gaze fell back upon him mere seconds later. 

"what are you doing?" she asked him, as casually as she could manage-- her conversation skills were so weak nowadays. but he had seemed like he was on a mission in the moments before... perhaps she could help, somehow.

Her question could have brought many answers - the one he chose to give was not a lie in any sense, but he did not go into heaps of detail about his task; mostly because he was pretty damn terrible at wording things... the shorter the sentence, the easier it was. "I was looking for Constantine." He replied, apple-green gaze flickering toward Aria before tracing the horizon and slowly deciding that he ought to elaborate on his... descriptive explanation. "The pack's been... uh... quiet recently. I just wanted to see if he had a plan for the future. Or if there was anything extra he'd like me to do."

Ordinarily, the ashen wanderer would not have offered his services, but this creek reminded him of his birthplace (which he did intend to visit one day), and he'd not be pleased to have it slip from beneath his paws. The smooth, rushing sounds of the water aided in soothing his nerves.