Bearclaw Valley help is on the way

blondine was enjoying her stay at easthollow, but knew that it couldn't get in the way of her search. indra was out there somewhere, probably holding onto a grudge the size of the teekon. they couldn't make amends without seeing one another; having been the one to leave, it was blondy's responsibility to find her friend.

that morning, she'd wandered back to bearclaw valley to see if she could find @Larus. she wandered around the clearing, calling his name — larus! you still here, boy? — but hadn't had much luck in getting a response. she gave a quick set of short howls as a last ditch attempt to get his attention before settling down for a quick nap.

You got this stuck in my head with the title, lol.

His rebounding route took him closer to the valley. He was grasping at straws and trying to remember where he'd last made his camp. The sight of the sloping valley hillside drew him closer; it was beautiful with its blanket of white. There was a nagging sensation in the back of Larus' mind that told him he was forgetting something important - but as someone who suffered from a terrible forgetfulness, such a feeling didn't often amount to much. This time though he knew there was something he needed to remember.

Words popped in to his mind from time to time as he hiked, and he held on to them like breadcrumbs as he traced his way deeper in to the valley — until the sound of someone calling his name made him pause. He looked around with an expression of utter confusion for a few minutes, pacing one way then another, crunching snow or sliding across patches of stony ice; then he saw her, and something clicked.

Blondine! He crowed without thinking, and plunged through the snow towards where he'd glimpsed her. Except by the time he'd reached where he'd thought he'd seen her, she was gone - and the images of her began to dissolve in his memory immediately. He spent a few hours roaming slowly in circles before he found a coiled body sleeping beneath the trees.

the sound of larus's approach drew blondine from her slumber. she stood and yawned, stretching out from her nap. hey there, she cooed, i've been lookin' for you. been hidin'? a teasing smile wrapped itself onto her maw, complemented by a tight squint of her eyes.

blondine began to walk forward, figuring her friend would follow. you ever find out what's going on here? she asked, wondering if there'd truly been a pack in the valley.

With one look at Blondine's face, Larus remembered more than he anticipated. The valley, their first meeting, bits and pieces floated to him in quick waves, and he smiled as she spoke to him. It felt good to be recognized, to be known. It was a little bit painful for Larus to think about all the emptiness inside of his own head - the questions that used to fill it, the wondering. How many places had he been and people had he met, only to forget? How long until Blondine was forgotten entirely?

Not hiding, he clarified. I got lost, but... I wanted to remember, and something brought me back here. Seeing you, I... I remember. He must have sounded like a crazy person; Larus was candid, his explanation as sincere as he could make it. He was here now because he remembered her, and she was the only thing that stuck in his brain. Did I disturb you? He had not meant to.

blondine smiled, her crooked teeth peeking through stretched lips. she struck a pose, just the same as she had before, and batted her lashes (the ones she still used) for an extra twinkle. darlin', i'm too pretty to forget. 

there was really nothing remarkable about blondine; one might have even called her ugly with the scars across her face. she was quite ordinary — on the outside, anyway. 

you didn't disturb a thing. she turned to walk across larus's path, deciding that she preferred his right side to the left. i told ya, i came here lookin' for you. it was nice to have a friend again, even with a memory as shot as his. blonnie didn't mind it one bit.

He smiled at her comment, not hearing the facetious tone - he genuinely agreed with the statement, seeing beyond the scars and all that the woman was missing. She had a good heart and kind eyes, both of which were aspects he clung to quite desperately as he made his way in the world. Larus didn't want to forget again.

Looking for me...? He murmured, perplexed why anyone would seek him out. He was a traveller with a terrible memory; had he done something? Had they made plans? Was he losing pieces of himself again...? A brief flare of anxiety cautioned him to stop overthinking things, and his smile strengthened, although it was mostly for show as he tried to stow away his confusion. What for?

blondine thought about it for a moment. you're good people, she replied. the huntress moved to bump his shoulder, adding a brief nudge to his cheek if he'd allow it. finding folks whose company she truly enjoyed was difficult, especially when away from the south. the wolves of abernathy hill were so different from the teekoners; it sometimes made it difficult to form a real bond.

but larus was different, she thought. he had something about him that she couldn't quite place, but that she enjoyed nonetheless. what were you doin'? blondine asked. she wondered if larus had been watching her sleep, a strange (and humorous) thought.

You're good people, she replied simply, and her conviction made him blush profusely. He bashfully looked away from her, feeling much more like a foolish boy child than the man he had matured in to ages ago; something about Blondine's casual attitude was alluring to him. Maybe it was how easily she saw the good in him, or better yet, how easy it was to trust that she saw him for who he truly was - and Larus did not often have that certainty.

Her question made him roll his shoulders in a shrug. I think I was hunting. I think I'm always hunting for something - food, shelter. But it felt like I went too far, so I came back. He could've explained it a little differently: I came back for you, but that would've been a little on the creepy side, and so when the thought brushed through his weak little mind he let it fade out without voicing it.

The valley was calling to me too, he added hastily, covering his bases in case he came off as sounding extra weird. I don't know if I ever lived here before, but it felt more familiar than anywhere else... And I thought I'd stick around a while. Looks like you had the same idea - are those other wolves I smell? There were fresh layers of other wolf scent upon Blondine which piqued Larus' curiosity.

it's good you know yer way back home — a sigh, followed by a cough — some folks go huntin' and that's just it. blondine thought about her own life, how long it'd been since she'd gone south. was she missed? 

the huntress nodded. i lived here once, a pack called bearclaw valley. it's where i met my best friend, but she's gone now. over that there, uh, barrier, she said, motioning back toward easthollow, that's where my new pack lives.

they're very kind. you'd do good to come visit some time.

He nodded as if he understood, but Larus rarely did. He could not remember the last time he'd met hunters on the prowl, or visited an established pack, but he must have done both of those things - prolifically - if he managed to survive this long. And if the Bearclaw Valley she spoke of was home to her, yet familiar to him in some way, perhaps he had come from nearby? But that was wrong, too. Larus did not know this valley or the people within it. He had no recollection of ever meeting the Easthollow wolves or their matriarch, despite at one point living among them... It was a hard way to live.

Then it is a good place for you, he offered instead. A kind place filled with kind people, just like her. I would love to visit, if you think the wolves there would be welcoming..? His tail pendulum'd behind him as he said this, and then he shrugged his shoulders: I'd be happy anywhere you are. It isn't often I encounter such beautiful souls... As far as I know, anyway. He blushes, smirking, and passes a fleeting look over the horizon.

blondine beamed with joy, performing one more fawn-like leap. oh, they'd be happy to have you! she couldn't imagine valette or greyback turning away a visitor, especially if he didn't cross the border. they could always talk on the outside, using the stone circle as scenery.. that wouldn't be too bad, would it?

she decided not to think about it too much. larus's comment would have made blondine blush, were it not for the wiry tufts of russet fur hiding either cheek. i don't really know what to say to that, she laughed, biting the inside of her lip as she turned away, you're getting me all worked up.

blondine stopped herself then, shaking her head in clear shock at her own words. not worked up that way, i mean... — what am i trying to say? — well, you're getting my heart all warm and such. very sweet of you to say such nice things.

not wanting to dig herself any deeper into this hole, she thought to excuse herself. i, uh.. i really ought to be heading home now. blondine tamed her toothy smile down to a tight grin, her eyes averted as she turned to walk back to the hollow.

She was excited at first, then bashful, all of which made Larus want to laugh - but he'd forgotten how at some point, so the most he could do was smile, letting the warmth of the expression penetrate his gaze. The corners of his eyes had tiny crow's feet branching from them which vanished as soon as she began to blunder over her words — and when she decided she was too flustered to stay, he opened his mouth as if to speak but she was already moving. Larus stood there like a fish gasping for air, and Blondine excused herself, sauntering back the way she'd come before he could compose himself enough to say anything.

In the end all he murmured was, oh, okay... as he watched her warm coat dwindle in his line of sight.