Whitebark Stream mice with swords

Tagging @Artyom & @Surya

It didn't feel quite right to be wandering without a care in the world all day. Satya often had to remind himself there was nothing wrong with what he was doing or with having a few more hours to himself during the day. What was he supposed to do? Feed the birds? Dig a den for only a night? Scent-mark things along the way?

He wasn't wasting time or woolgathering; he was on a mission. There was no reason to feel guilty.

Even so, he was glad to find himself at the edge of a territory with his brother's scent at the borders. If he could stay here, he could go back to being a productive member of society, and that way his fun would be well-deserved. And it would be more exciting to be out in the world when he had a safe place to come back to, and what if he was here?

Satya tried not to think about that possibility as he tipped back his head to howl for his brother — and an authority figure! He would never admit it, but he sorely missed having someone else in charge of him. Someone smarter and wiser than him, hopefully.

Setting this before the death of Kavik & Grezig, if that's okay?

He'd been nearby when a call sounded from the borders, having recently returned from checking out a small herd of deer that had recently settled in the maplewood. Artyom, abandoning plans to refresh territory markers, quickened his stride and moved swiftly between familiar in the stranger's direction.

Dark eyes fell upon an obsidian frame, his hues made warm by the light of their afternoon sun. The leader studied him quietly as he slowed his pace and closed the distance between them, at once finding something familiar in his young features that he couldn't quite place. "Good day," he greeted, brown eyes curious as he offered a friendly lash of his tail. "What brings you here?"

Fine by me!

The first to arrive, unfortunately, was not his darling brother, but a pale and gold-cloaked man. Strangers had never scared him, but he was somewhat intimidated by the language barrier.

"Surya," he said, speaking the first word that came to mind. He was encouraged by the man's friendly demeanor, and gave a little flourishing bow along with a wag of his tail. "I am for my brother, Surya," he said, enunciating each word carefully but still managing to screw up the sentence. Neither could he rid himself of his heavy accent — thankfully, he was unaware of both things. Nailed it.

"Are you — father?" That would be pretty wild, wouldn't it?

A single-worded answer came: Surya. Artyom's expression dropped immediately, and was sure he felt his heart skip an uncomfortable beat. Had this yearling come to deliver news on the fate of his comrade, having fallen in his search for Aphrodite? An elaboration came swiftly, however, and he exhaled heavily in relief; this was merely someone searching for his brother.

"Surya lives here," he said carefully in mind of the boy's clumsy version of common tongue, and dipped hs muzzle to accompany his words, "he is scouting for a missing packmate, and will hopefully be back in a few days."

The enquiry that followed came as a surprise, and was a little confusing for him. Artyom blinked, unsure if the stranger was asking if he was a father or his father, so took a moment to consider how best to answer. Having never shared the company of a receptive she-wolf before Dawn, there was absolutely no chance who could've sired Surya and his siblings. "I'm a new father," he said with an awkward little smile, "but not yours." A gentle rise and fall of a shoulder - sorry.

Oh. Well, that was awkward. But at least his brother was here, and the leader seemed very friendly, if not a bit put off by his forwardness. Belatedly, Satya recognized his question as something of a faux-pas and favored the man with a sheepish grin.

"My apologies," he replied, choosing his words a little more carefully this time. "And — badhaee ho. Happy news!" 

Still awkward. Satya took a deep breath and plowed on.

"I can stay also? With my brother?"

The awkwardness remained only briefly, and Artyom deemed the apology unnecessary. Surya and his brother were young wolves and he was a year their senior, so he could understand Satya's automatic assumption to find his littermate having settled in his pack. The gilded leader was curious, however, to learn if the search for a real father was the true reason behind his comrade's dispersal.

Too polite to press, he let the dark youth carry on. He said some strange words that he didn't understand, but those that followed confirmed well wishes for the Whitebark chchildren. Artyom's heart swelled at once and his smile blossomed, tail responding with a few cheerful waves. "Thank you," he chirped, and carried on when an anticipated request came his way: "of course! A brother of Surya, now a friend of mine. Welcome!"

"Thank you," Satya parroted in his best form, dipping his nose toward the dirt in a brief bow. "I'm Satya," he added with a wag of his tail, realizing he'd not yet introduced himself, nor had he learned the other man's name.

He felt quite hopeful about this new pack. With any luck, the male would soon forget his faux pas, and conveniently fail to mention it to anyone else. He would talk with Surya when he returned and figure out how to patch things between them, and what their longterm plan might be. Piece of cake.

Things were looking up!