Northstar Vale running down to the riptide

Countless times Ruenna had looked out over the Vale from the surrounding peaks, but this was her first time bearing witness to its majesty at eye-level. The view from Porcupine Ridge was majestic as was the view from the side of the Sunspire... but neither overlook had captured the feeling of being here, the overwhelming feeling of purpose and belonging that Rue now experienced.

Rolling hills stretched as far as the eye could see, and patches of grass were just beginning to peek out of the snowmelt along with some of the hardier foliage. The Sunspire Mountains towered over the vale, stalwart sentries surrounding and protecting the cordillera's most precious treasure. 

Perhaps some of Rue’s feeling came from the knowledge that this place could have easily been her home now, had events back at Blacktail Deer Plateau's founding unfolded differently. Perhaps there was an alternate reality in which the Sunspire wolves had been more welcoming, and Liri and Kavik had settled their pack here. Perhaps they would have existed happily here, beyond the reach of whitecough and the coyote band... perhaps @Liri, Kavik, Rue, and the others would all still be together. 

Rue allowed that the somewhat wistful feeling of belonging was likely rooted in nostalgia, but still... she couldn't deny that something about this place felt right. It just felt like home. Rue continued forward, resolving to find any reason compelling enough to convince the Diaspora leadership that this vale was the best choice for their new home territory. Rue could feel it in her bones, she belonged here.

The morning had found the healer tilling endlessly at the loose soil beyond the stone walls of her dwelling with chapped paws, loosening the winter-hardened earth with the intentions of planting a medicinal herb garden once the last of the cold season's chill had truly faded. As time passed and the sun crested over the high walls of the Vale, Liri allowed herself a refreshing dip in the lilly pools to clean her filthy coat though the water was much too cold for comfort. 

She shook herself violently as she pulled herself onto the bank with the aid of returning musculature. The fae set off at a brisk lope towards the southwestern edge of the territory for a patrol - hoping that the excercise and sunlight would warm her bones. 

She paused occasionally in her path, rearing back and grasping the trees with her forelegs as she left gauges in their bark or rubbing her scent along the foliage with a twist of her slender frame. 

As she neared the western boundary, drawing to a halt to inspect some early lavender blooms, the wind shifted and brought with it a familiar scent. The tundrian could not yet place it, the source of the smell being too far away yet to determine who it belonged to. The northron headed in search of the unknown wolf, curiosity driving her search. 

The silver figure of a female came into sight as she neared the treeline, a soft call of welcome escaping the healer's throat as she made to close the distance between them. Her posture was relaxed but confident, the wag of her tail signaling her friendly intentions as she approached. 

The Blackfoot felt her steps stutter to a halt as the light and shadows shifted in just the right way, as the conformation and features fell into focus. A wide grin broke across her face and the sylph could not stop herself from hurrying across the fields to breach the remaining gap to her Diasporan sister. 

"Rue!" Liri cried excitedly as she reached her former Beta, not even hesitating to pull her closest friend in for a hug - relying on the assumption that the Redfern recognized her. 

She pulled back after a moment, falling back onto her haunches to sit as her tail beat a welcoming rythm upon the ground. 

"What brings you here?" She asked with a surprised but happy smile.

She had intended to visit Arrow Lake and let the silver know they would be neighbours and maybe even allies should her pack become established in the Vale. Beyond that, Liri had not wanted to lose touch with her friend. She'd just been too preoccupied trying to build a home for the group that she hadn't the time to visit the bird yet.

Rue continued on, and every now and then the spring breeze would bring her the familiar scent of home. How strange, that the smell of this place would remind her of Blacktail Deer Plateau... or was it simply her imagination? Rue knew that sometimes the mind played tricks when you wanted something badly enough.

Liri's greeting broke the quiet of the vale, and Rue's attention snapped to the source of the soft call. The approaching form of her former alpha was no figment of her imagination; Liri was here in the flesh, materializing upon this land that felt so inexplicably like home. That couldn't just be coincidence, could it?

"Liri," Rue hummed her reply happily, overjoyed to be in the embrace of her beloved alpha once more. When they last parted ways it had felt all wrong, like Liri had walked away from that conversation with a small piece of Rue. 

Rue settled back onto her haunches as well, mirroring Liri's wagging tail and expression of delight. "I.. I'm not sure. Fate, perhaps--" she chuckled out, unable to stop grinning.

"--I was just doing some scouting. Something about this vale just feels like.. like home."  Diaspora's newly-arrived refugees had wasted no time in immediately dropping a litter of pups, so relocation was probably out of the question for the time being. But Rue could always hope for the future. 

"How are you?" Rue asked, amber eyes flicking down to appraise Liri's appearance as a concerned friend would. The absence of Liri's hind leg remained a startling sight, but Rue believed that the Blackfoot was looking stronger. Healthier. "..And Siqsa, is he well?"

Liri couldn't help but chuckle as well - which had less to do with the humor of the situation and more to do with her excitement at seeing an old friend, and such a good one at that. 

"Great minds think alike," Liri teased with a wry grin, seeing no reason to lie to Ruenna about why she was in the Vale. "The others with me agreed that this place seemed perfect for our pack," she explained, hoping the Redfern would be excited about her proximity to the Lake. 

"I'm...doing better," she admitted softly, truly considering her answer before relaying it. She smiled slightly so her former Beta would know it was true.

Inwardly, she thought of the norseman with the coat of smoke and the bicolored eyes. Something like hope fluttered within warmly, thinking of the future they might build for their groups together - should he accept her light-hearted challenge. 

Rue's next question drew her back to the here and now. "Siqsa is doing much better also, he was injured in a hunt but he has been recovering well," Liri assured, knowing that a bond of sorts had formed between the dragon and the bird. 

"How fare you and the other wolves of Diaspora?" Liri asked in return, recalling her encounter with Mahler some days past, with curiosity. 

Our pack? Rue's eyes widened. When they had parted Liri had spoken of gathering followers, but it surprised Rue that she was already preparing to settle down so soon... and so close. "Wow, that's..." Honestly, Rue couldn't help but think that the situation was fraught.  

The Diaspora leadership made it clear that they considered this mountain range theirs, on no uncertain terms. In a matter of moons Liri had risen from the grave, pulled a pack of followers from thin air, and established herself right in the heart of the Sunspires. The Diaspora wolves would see this as a challenge, and Liri as a threat... how could they think anything else?

Liri inisisted that she was better, and her hushed tone momentarily distracted Rue from her worrying. There was something heavy in Liri's voice that suggested she wasn't speaking about her physical health. But of course. Liri had lost much more than a limb; she had lost a mate, a pack, and a home. She might have surrounded herself with new followers, but it would be a long while before any of them would come close to becoming the kind of family she had lost. Rue leaned her shoulder against Liri, silently communicating her understanding. 

Rue nodded, appreciative to have news of Siqsa. She was glad someone was looking out for the wayward youth, even if it couldn't be her. 

"Diaspora swells with new recruits and new life," Rue reported, her expression somewhat cloudier than the good news merited. With the mention of her current allegiance, Rue's mind couldn't help but return to her dilemma. What would happen when it came time for Diaspora to run off Liri's budding pack in the Vale? When the line in the sand was drawn, would Rue be able to stand on the side opposite Liri Blackfoot?

Ruenna seemed speechless at the news that Liri would be settling in the nearby mountains and the healer's smile widened, for she was unaware of the claim the Diaspora pack believed themselves to have over the entirety of the Sunspire or the conflict her actions would incite. 

"That's wonderful news," Liri murmured genuinely, a kind glint shining in her oak optics as she congratulated Ruenna and her pack. 

"I met Mahler recently, I'm not quite familiar with your pack though. Perhaps we might someday be allies soon - once we're established here," the tundrian grinned at the idea, unaware that anything was amiss in her plans. 

Liri brimmed with genuine pleasure to hear of Diaspora's good fortune, and Rue couldn't help but admire the alpha's optimism. It took a certain brand of strength and courage for her to allow herself to dream so big and build her hopes so high, especially now that she had experienced how it could all be lost in a heartbeat. 

The mention of Mahler sparked Rue's curiosity, but Liri did not speak any more details. The statuesque Kapitan of Diaspora often found his way into her thoughts, even at the most unlikely times. Such as now. "That would be wonderful," Rue sighed out, although she was unable to keep the edge of doubt from her voice. 

For a long moment Rue struggled over what to say. 

"I wonder if you could use some help with that.. with.. getting established." Rue spoke softly, eyes searching Liri's expression. "Help from a close friend, perhaps." Diaspora's ranks were filled with strangers now; there were many who could step into Rue's pawprints and few who would truly miss her. Not only was this where Rue was needed, this was where she belonged. Here, beside Liri, beside the only person in the Teekons who Rue considered true family. If she was at Liri's side, there was no risk that a line would be drawn in the sand between them.

Liri's ears fluttered as she detected an undercurrent of doubt in the Redfern's soft tones. What was it that worried her so? The healer could not have guessed, for all the world an alliance between the two packs seemed a wonderful idea. Rue, Corvus, and Takiyok called Diaspora home - her former pack mates and brethren, her previous ally and friends. She did not know the others as of yet but in time she was sure she would come to view them in the same light. 

The healer's surprised, hopeful gaze searched Rue's features - trying to determine if she truly meant what Liri thought. 

"You would join me?" She asked, half fearing she was mistaken. "Your pack, they would not be angry with you? Don't get me wrong, my friend, I would love to have you at my side again," she smiled at the very thought, the truth of it shining in her dark optics. "But I would not want to cause conflict amongst your ranks," she murmured worriedly.

Liri worried about starting trouble with Diaspora... it was a legitimate concern, but it was also made irrelevant by the fact that her mere presence here would likely cause trouble enough. 

"I fear that Diaspora will be displeased regardless," Rue admitted, eyes falling from Liri's gaze. "Diaspora does not often collaborate, not if conquering is an option. I.. I have doubts that your presence here will be recieved gladly." Liri's reluctance to draw her membership from Diaspora's ranks was noble, although Diaspora would certainly not hesitate to poach every last one of Liri's decent recruits. 

Like hell Rue would see another home yanked away from Liri, another dream shattered. The northron alphess had waited long enough for her happy ending, and Rue would do everything in her power to make it happen.

"Family comes first," Rue finished, "Mahler and Stigmata will understand that." Hopefully she was managing to project more confidence in that statement than she actually felt. The Redfern was uncertain as to whether Liri considered Rue family as Rue did her, but Rue might as well be honest about how she felt.

Liri listened with a feeling of dawning realization as Ruenna's fears rose to the surface and made themselves known, her sepia optics turning to examine the paradise she had longed to call home for well over a year and had only claimed as her own some weeks ago. The northron considered this insight into the milititaristic base that was Diaspora. She could not determine that their way was any worse than her own but it was in polar opposite of her own beliefs. 

"Perhaps some understanding can be reached," Liri murmured at last, gaze returning to the silver's champagne optics in search of some hint of whether this was likely. "No pack can claim an entire mountain range," Liri refuted softly, thinking of the claim Mahler had lain to the entirety of the Sunspire. No matter how nomadic the members, no matter how many swelled the ranks - it was infeasible to believe that a single grouping of their kind could plant a flag along the whole of the mountains. 

"If not...we deal with it when it comes. We have survived worse," Liri reassured with a slight, wry twist of her lips. 

When Ruenna spoke of family, the former Alphess of the Plateau's gaze softened - recalling just how much she had missed the one she regarded as kith and kin. Rue had never turned on her, never forgotten her even in the Blackfoot's darkest hours. She was the truest friend Liri had ever known; it was beyond a relief to have her Beta back.

"Welcome home, Rue," the fae smiled joyfully, mirth shining in her dark gaze as she brushed her temple affectionately against the silver's shoulder in a leftover tradition from her homelands. 

"Perhaps," Rue agreed, also hoping that the Diaspora wolves would listen to reason. Perhaps they would be more inclined if one who had been their own-- particularly one who leadership had considered something of an advisor-- insisted that approach was best. 

"The only way for a pack to spread influence that far is to develop alliances," Rue agreed. You catch more flies with honey, Rue's mother had always told her. Maybe if she explained it this way to Diaspora, her departure would be better recieved. 

Rue nodded resolutely to Liri's foreboding words. If conflict was unavoidable, at least Rue would be on the right side of the battle lines. No doubt Liri understood the value of having a former Diasporan to whisper in her ear. 

Welcome home. These words had been spoken to her multiple time over the past several moons and referred to several different places. Rue realized in this moment that it wasn't the location that made a place feel like home, it was the one doing the welcoming. 

Wearing Liri's scent once more was like sliding into her favorite, most comfortable sweatpants. Rue rose to her feet, returning the alphess's affection by nudging against Liri's own shoulder. "Show me everything," she prompted, smile forming once more.

The Blackfoot could feel doubts of her own tug at her thoughts. Would these conquerors as Ruenna described them be willing to give up a chunk of the mountains they considered their land? Suppose they didn't and it came to bloodshed. A heavy feeling of dread settled over her shoulders; simultaneously, a fierce and possessive determination filled her heart. 

Liri had surrendered the Vale once, she would not do so again. 

Her focus was drawn back to the silver with her next words, nodding in agreement. Perhaps Diaspora lay claim to the Sunspire but even if Liri's group were chased off - how long until another bunch of rogues decided the elevated terrain made a suitable home? No pack had the numbers to sustain such a feat, an alliance was the only way to amass a force large enough to secure the range. 

Perhaps Diaspora would be in agreement. 

She forgot her worries for the moment, grinning widely as she rose to her paws. There were no words to express her excitement at Ruenna's return, she turned and with a motion to follow, eagerly led the silver on a tour of the resplendent valley.