Sun Mote Copse Brimful of asha on the 45

The air was crisp and cold, the sun shining radiantly in a clear blue sky and lending the snow on the ground a certain sparkle. It was a beautiful winter day, really, and the copse in particular was stunning in its halo of frosty light. The words winter wonderland really came to mind...

But Wildfire noticed none of it as she trudged along a slushy game trail, feeling completely wretched. She was simultaneously nauseous and starved, forcing herself to hunt even though she felt awful. She needed to keep herself in good shape in order to lead the pack, even though Bat's death made her want to sink to the ground and give up forever.

A breathy moan escaped her as the scent of a rabbit filled her nose. The smell of blood quickly overwhelmed it, signaling to Wildfire that someone else had already dispatched her prey.

Ever since the meeting Tulimaq had been attempting to keep busy, to find a niche and fill it so that the transition from ragtag horde of wolves to established pack could go smoothly; he'd failed his own attempts at a similar venture and was eager for a win. He kept to himself mostly, except when his path occasionally crossed with other members of the to-be pack (such as Wraen a day or so ago), which gave him some much needed practice in the whole being social thing. Word had been spreading through the group that their leader Wildfire was mourning a loss, although he did not have specifics — it didn't feel right to Tulimaq to pry, and he wasn't exactly attuned to things such as feelings. He was no counselor.

However, when he came across the firebrand's heavy scent upon the snow, he chose to deviate from his patrol and seek her out. If only to check up on her, feign interest in the borders if need be. As he went, there came a scent to rival the woman's — a musky, earthy smell. Rabbit. Hunting, like any physical activity, was right up his alley - so Tulimaq set his mind on that task, and soon found himself following both the wolf and the prey in tandem.

She followed the warm, metallic scent, expecting to find one of her pack mates standing over a fresh kill. Instead, she discovered a rabbit scrabbling about in the snow, leaving smears of red as it flopped about like a fish out of water. Wildfire's predatory instincts took over and she hastened nearer, observing the lapin's broken leg and then pinning the suffering creature to the ground in a matter of seconds. Her head lowered to snuff out its life.

The Sovereign stood there, foot still pressing against the stilled and bleeding body, but before she could coax herself to eat, footsteps made her turn. "Tulimaq," Wildfire said, her voice coming out a little croakier than she would've liked. She cleared her throat and added, "Hello." She blinked down at the hare beneath her foot, removing it. "Would you like to share this?"

Soon enough he came upon the scene, and it was a garish one — not that he was squeamish. An array of vibrant red marked the snow-covered earth, standing out all the more due to the presence of the stark white, and at its center was the luminous Wildfire. Tulimaq's first instinct was to look her over for injuries with a quick glance, but as he did so he noticed the wounded rabbit beneath her paw and figured she was alright. Except for the jaded quality of her expression as she looked over to him, she was in good health.

He shook his head at the offering all the same. Thank you, but that isn't necessary. Maybe it was because of his time spent on the mountain he'd claimed for himself, but Tulimaq wasn't accustomed to eating around others - plus he didn't have a taste for rabbit. He was more interested in working for his meals and would catch something later if he needed it.

His attention drifted to the trees around them, the mist that drifted through the higher reaches, and the condensation that it brought to the leaves. If he was very still he thought he could hear rain — but it wasn't rain, just the collection of mist forming those droplets and occasionally weeping off the branches. After a few moments of quiet contemplation he turned his attention back to Wildfire and murmured, You chose your new home well. He would've asked if she was alright, but didn't think that would help; whatever she had lost was still weighing heavily upon her and he wasn't about to bring it up. But he was here to listen, if she needed that.

He declined. Wildfire didn't feel like arguing. She would try to force herself to eat and whatever was left (which would be most of it), she would put into a stockpile. She sighed softly as she peered down at her kill, willing her appetite to make an appearance. Her stomach snarled for the food, yet she was almost certain she'd choke on it if she took a bite.

Tulimaq made an observation about the copse and Wildfire blinked up at him, remembering their first encounter here. "Kiwi chose it, really," she murmured, then drew in a breath and said, "I'm sorry I haven't come to find you yet to talk. Something—something came up." She swallowed the lump in her throat, then tried to quickly distract herself by saying, "Will you tell me more about yourself?"

He watched her carefully, not wanting to bother her with his presence but also growing a touch concerned - and she looked down at the rabbit as if mourning its passing, which he assumed wasn't really the case. Maybe she just wasn't hungry. Maybe the little dead creature beneath her reminded her of what she'd lost somehow. Tulimaq did not understand how the mind of a woman worked let along the mind of a grieving mother, and he chose not to speculate for long.

The man drifted closer. He kept his wits about him just in case her mood soured, and remained as casual as possible while she commented about the copse - then diverted attention away from her petite daughter. That might've been a clue, had he been more aware. But then, given the opportunity to talk about himself, Tulimaq easily slid in to the role of conversationalist. He was quite proud of his heritage and was always willing to talk about his people.

He settled back on his haunches as he explained, My people are called Tartok, and there are many branches of the family tree further north of here, living on the tundra, or in the mountains. He thought of mentioning their militaristic traditions but did not want to disturb her, so at that point he grew quiet, but only to gather his thoughts. And your family? They're from the plateau, I suspect. It made sense. The two groups had similar names and the Redhawks were close-by, from what Bat had explained to him.

She felt as if she'd heard that name before: Tartok. Before Wildfire could place it, Tulimaq turned the query right back on her. Her lips parted at first, then pressed together. She shook her head, feeling a flush under her red fur.

"I'll tell you about my family some other time," she said in a quiet, strained voice. She flashed him an apologetic look. "What brought you here? The notion of starting your own pack?" Wildfire guessed.

He should've known not to ask about her family, but there it was, his blunder was plain to see as the pain slipped across her face. She redirected again and this time Tulimaq would take the hint. He felt a little twinge of guilt upon realizing she was trying to think of anything besides her own family - so she must have lost someone important.

The man nodded at the question, becoming a little glum as he thought about his failure. It was as if Wildfire's sorrow was infectious. Not at first, but yes. I came to this place and decided to test the skills of those I came across - I like a good fight, and had heard that this place had mighty warriors. I started... Pretty far to the east of here, the other side of the valley. He thought of the wolves he'd found there — the mighty giant, the eager boy, the man of the hollow, the ghost in the woods — and Tulimaq realized he'd traveled a fair distance.

I grew dissatisfied with what I encountered as I went, until I found these hinterlands. Initially I wasn't going to try at all — I thought I'd leave, head north again, find Tartok and live my life. I was drawn to the mountain, and eventually tried to stake a claim to it. If I could conquer something as wild and dangerous as those slopes, prove that I could hunt the mighty boars that lived upon it, maybe reach the summit, then that would've been enough. Ah, but he was starting to drone on a bit. It had been a while since Tulimaq had spoken this much and he was surprised to find himself talking to openly about his efforts, and his failing. The boars proved to be formidable. At the mention of this, he shifted so that the gouge to his side was more visible; it was mostly healed by now and yet, would leave a hefty scar.

She didn't mind at all when Tulimaq spoke at length. It effectively distracted her from her affliction, even allowing her the momentary peace of mind necessary to nibble off a few bites of rabbit meat. They stuck in her throat but she managed to get them down as he regaled her with tales of testing other wolves via fighting, only to come up against a more formidable foe: a boar.

Wildfire winced sympathetically at the mangled flesh. "You're healing well," she observed. She was no healer, yet she'd learned a thing or two from Raven, as well as general life experience. "Do you believe in fate? Everything happening for a reason?" she wondered.

He was healing, which was more like good luck than anything. Most of the wolves from Tartok had rudimentary medical training but Tulimaq was not equipped to really help himself if something were to go terribly wrong. He kept his wound from becoming infected and that was all he could manage, and it would've been enough had he been in combat. It was healing at a good pace, but the gouge would leave a permanent scar because of his lack of knowledge.

Her comment about fate took him by surprise, and Tulimaq's expression knit in to a concerned scowl for a second as he thought about it. I've never really given it much thought, he explained with a sheepish flick of his ears, but I like to think... I make my own luck. I make things happen, and I have the power to change anything that isn't working. But there could be powers out there in the universe too, I suppose. What do you think? He was genuinely curious, as not many members of his family ever spoke of such esoteric concepts.

The question appeared to throw him a little. While he thought on it, then offered an answer, Wildfire tore off another hunk of rabbit. She'd hardly eaten much at all, though she knew that was the last she would be able to stomach right now. She would have to stash the rest or maybe take it to Kiwi. For now, she kicked some snow over it.

He bounced her question back at her again. Wildfire drew in a breath, deciding to indulge him rather than deflect. "I like to think so. There's a reason your endeavor didn't work out. It brought you here, maybe for some purpose..." Wildfire shrugged. "It makes it easier to accept when things don't go according to plan. I don't mean we should give up all control or responsibility, just that we can take comfort knowing that sometimes good things come out of bad situations."

Of course, she wasn't just referring to Tulimaq's arrival in the copse after his failure to launch. She was thinking of Bat too. Wildfire couldn't possibly imagine any good reason why her daughter should suffer such a horrible fate. But maybe one day, something else would come of it, to help her make sense of the loss. She just couldn't even grasp that right now though...

Before she could start circling the drain, Wildfire asked, "So do you have any particular skills, Tulimaq?"

Listening to her now, it seemed like she was grasping at some kind of belief for herself. She justified this concept of fate and he nodded along to what she proposed, thinking it was a decent enough line of thinking when you didn't have anything else to fall back on - but still, personally, Tulimaq thought his own self-reliance was key. If she needed to believe the universe was filled with good intentions that would resolve themselves over time, he would let her. Maybe that's what she needed right now. Plus she did have a point, sort of. Tulimaq would not have been here if his own efforts had been successful — or maybe he would be here, but in a different capacity. As an enemy or a rival vying for resources rather than, say, a friend.

Mostly combat-oriented, he offered as she pecked at the rabbit, believing he'd already answered that question to some degree with his explanation of his family. But, whatever. He could be more specific too. I enjoy hunting and fishing, and really anything that presents a challenge. I've been a teacher too, sort of. Ran in to a few kids on my way through the region and I tried to give them some instruction. I'd much rather be sparring or hunting something though. Had he known she had been a part of Drageda, perhaps they could've bonded over such a tenacious fighting spirit. I'd make a good ranger if I wasn't injured.

"I think you sound very well-rounded, regardless of your ranging abilities," Wildfire replied, lips curving into a slight smile that never reached her eyes before falling away again. "We're lucky to have you here, even if it was due to misfortune."

The Sovereign lapsed into silence for a moment. She wanted to know more about him, though she blinked down at the rabbit and thought again of taking it to Kiwi. Lifting her chestnut gaze to him, she said, "I'd like to hunt with you sometime. I'm no good at fishing—small woodland critters are my forte—but maybe you could teach me sometime, if you're not opposed to having an older student."

Another faint smile flashed across her face before she bent to pluck up the rabbit. Before she did, she remarked, "I ought to take this to Kiwi. I'll catch up to you again soon." Grasping the remains in her mouth, she lifted her head and waved her tail at the other wolf. She then plodded off in search of her daughter.

He nodded, a thin smile playing across his rugged face as she spoke, but as the smile faded from her features it left his as well. They were rather serious - Wildfire and her pain, and then Tulimaq and his... Well, being Tulimaq. The prospect of being a tutor to her was intriguing though, and he mentally agreed before being given the chance to verbally announce, If I find any bodies of water with fish, you'll be my first thought, which sounded strange after he'd said it. But she was busy gathering the remains of the rabbit, so maybe she didn't notice his slip of the tongue. As she began to leave they shared a glance and he bid her a farewell with a polite nod of his head - then she turned and departed, leaving him to figure out what to do with the rest of his day.