Bearclaw Valley watchmen of flocks

Hoping to use for Naturalist or Spiritualist; all welcome, but maybe @Ashlar?

The broken clouds splintered to reveal a patch of smouldering gold, bright but not too bright. If he wanted to he could stare at it through the haze of gray cloud, but there was much to do within the hovel.

The boy had spent the pre-dawn hours digging up the remaining bits and pieces of Evien's collection. Most of what he found was well dried, oftentimes frozen in to the earth, but a few smelled foul and so Karst clawed them free of the earth's grasp and hurried to deposit them elsewhere.

It made him feel wrong. This was not his collection — the previous caretaker was dead and gone, yet it felt to Karst as if he were unearthing a tomb. He would have to seek out replacements for what he had disposed of; however, he knew next to nothing about the herbs and mixtures.

As he paced lethargically back to the hideaway's opening, just shy of ducking inside, he paused and took a deep, shaking breath.

<3!

Ashlar had visited @Avicus occasionally while she recovered, though he was careful not to impress too much on her welcome.  Outside of that, there was not much for the boy to do outside of hunting.  He would occasionally serenade the trees, but the cold and the snow made for a deadened quiet that it seemed a little wrong to disturb.  So many times he would wander silently, taking in the winter with eyes wide.

Ashlar had never met the previous healer, but he knew that one younger than he lived in the valley now.  He was curious; was he like Merrick and the king's family, formidable?  Or was he like Snow had been?

When he finally found him, he approached cautiously.  It looked like he was busy with something, and instantly Ashlar was reminded of his father.  This eased his nerves enough for him to speak up with more volume than he usually did... and it even surprised him.  Uhh.. hi!  Do... you want help?

Karst felt his heart pounding in its cage. The work that digging entailed had left him sore in places he did not know could be sore, as he was not a very active creature compared to the other children. It had taken longer than intended for Karst to get the hovel to the stage it was currently at, but he was far from finished.

Distracted as he was, the boy failed to notice the approach of another wolf until it was too late. They spoke, which was a sound he did not often hear from anyone among Ursus, and he visibly jumped. The fur along his lower back spiked while his tail puffed and flicked with irritation before he could contain himself.

Wh-what? Karst meekly huffed, turning so that he could block the entrance to his home from this newcomer, but not enough to look straight-on at them. He watched them cautiously from the corner of his downcast gaze, knowing this wasn't one of the twins, nor any leader he knew.

Ashlar could barely believe it, but this other boy seemed even more frightened than he was.  Ashlar immediately relaxed and dropped his posture non-threateningly.  S..sorry.  D'you want help?  He asked again, giving a light and friendly wave of his tail and a slight sway of his rump.  He did not wish to alarm the other wolf, or to appear in any way aggressive!

It helped the boy some, to see another who struggled like he did.  It made him feel more confident, conversely, because he did not feel overshadowed by another who frightened him.  So many of the others here had presences made for greatness.  His earthen muzzle turned up in a hopeful smile.  Perhaps he had found a friend?

Karst was perplexed. He had never been asked that question before, to his knowledge, and immediately thought that this stranger was here to trick him, or test him. His ears slanted, his eyes narrowed; he bristled a little bit and — while wanting to deny this stranger and remove him from his safe space, grit his teeth instead.

If this was a game then this dark-coated boy would not be alone in playing it. Karst wondered about which of the other children would manage to draw a stranger in to a plot such as this; his mind flashed to Avicus, touched upon Aventus, even counted Averna among them despite her age.

N..n.. he began to say, but he knew better. If this person was sent by the princeling of their bitey sister he could not do anything about it. Admitting he needed help was one thing, accepting it—while anticipating a backstab—was another.

Need more plants. He finally says, and motions to the depleted collections within the hovel; Karst had cleaned out the dead and rotted parts of the collection and that left them nearly barren.

Oh.  He'd apparently misjudged and instead offended this new boy.  Ashlar froze and felt hot shame lick up within him as Karst visibly bristled.  He should have known better than to assume.  Karst had been working fine at what he did, and Ashlar had only interrupted him.

He dropped his gaze at the same time as his belly flattened to the earth, apology written on every angle of his submission.  It did not matter that Karst was younger, or that Ashlar had been here longer.  All the timid adolescent saw was an offense that he had not meant to give.

All was not lost - he was given a chance!  Ashlar brightened with a grateful smile, not only for the task, but that it was something he knew how to do.  He'd found plants for baba often!  His tail waved.  Yes!  The first was too enthusiastic, and he tempered it quickly.  I c.. I can do that.

If there was nothing else, Ashlar would leave now and find what he could, bringing anything useful back with the close of the day.  He'd come in meekly, of course, and await invitation, as he would not want to risk interrupting a second time.

Karst wasn't very happy with the stranger's announcement. He did not know how to process the enthusiasm in Ashlar's tone and saw the flash of his smile — those teeth — as a threat. His body stiffened and he shrugged himself back a half-step, raggedy ears pinning for a moment as he anticipated a snap of those teeth or some vitriol to be thrown his way.

The words sank in and Karst then understood. This wolf was offering to help him. He had knowledge of plants? That was more than what Karst had; that made Karst even weaker by comparison, ill-suited for his role. His eyes narrowed with suspicion and it shifted to something darker.

If he welcomed the help then the work would be done; but contrary to that, the work would mostly be done by someone that wasn't Karst. Could he accept? He did not want to be beholden, he did not want to be less than. Merrick had given him this role and he did not want it to be taken.

It would be a tricky situation. Go, then. He says, his tone barbed.

cool to wrap this or continue with him returning!  feel free to pp him coming back if the latter <3

Ashlar tried to exude only submissive calm as the other boy's look changed but it did not seem to work.  He could sense the suspicion and felt himself grow smaller.  He had only wished to be friends and somehow was messing up this chance.  His ears pinned back, eyes averted, and he only nodded in response to the curt instruction.

He had promised to learn what he could and to do what he could when he joined, so this was his promise.  It did not matter if the boy liked him, only that he had accepted his help!  This meant that he was giving him a chance, a potential opportunity to prove his worth in another way.  Ashlar bolstered himself with the reasoning as he picked up into an easy, loping run.  As the distance between them grew, his reasoning only grew further towards making excuses and plans on ways to remedy this.  He would find a number of things, just as he had for Baba!

Bark, roots, and what little plants that were left - Ashlar scoured them all.  In the end he found less than he would have liked, yet some was better than none at all.

The other boy might have been dismayed by Karst's behavior but Karst was unaware, he was too busy considering the angles and calculating what to do if things were to backfire. If Ashlar did not take to being sent out to work all that well, would Karst be able to defend himself? What if he did his job too well? The last thing Karst needed was this stranger growing an ego and ousting him from the storehouse; however the only thing that transpired was Ashlar departing to do some gathering, and Karst watched him with a scrutinizing glare.

He would prepare the storehouse for the other boy's return and make sure to absorb any information that was shared with him about the plants and roots added to the collection. It was a strange partnership — if you could call it that — but Karst desired to take full advantage.