Moonspear i'm still here

for @Sialuk!

he recognized this place, but not well enough to recall anything of worth to him. he knew, at least, that this was the teekon wilds. this was the land where he'd been born - or somewhere close to it. his birthplace was not what he sought now, however. now he searched for kaistleoki.
it had been two long years, and never once had winterbourne set aside his search. he half-feared that none of the wolves he knew would be there, or if they were, that none of them would know him. he'd changed, to be sure. he had more scars now, and for the first time in his life he no longer looked a boy. he had become a man, truly, finally. all it had taken was losing everything... again.
winterbourne picked among the rubble of a half-ruined mountain, climbing higher in hopes of spotting the river his late husband had loved so much. he did not know that his love was dead, not for sure, but he knew that only one of them had emerged from the river in the narrow shallows where he'd woken. for his own sanity, he could only assume that his husband had perished. still he could not bear to even think his name.
but he had to find the rest of them. ira, their children... they were somewhere out there. they had to be.

Can I be the +1? :eyes:

He threw a cursory howl over his shoulder before he left, although that was all the notice Caracal gave to Atautsikut before heading out on a trip back east to let everyone know where he’d gone. Traveling solo was a bit more fun when he had a specific destination in mind, plus somewhere to head back to when it was all said and done.

The journey took a couple of days at his jaunty pace. His first stop was “the moons,” as he collectively thought of Moonglow and Moonspear. He hoped Sialuk wouldn’t be upset with him for taking off without much, if any, warning. Hopefully she would forgive him.

Unaware of the man climbing overhead, the yearling raised his voice to call her name. While he waited, he looked around, wondering where to head after this: Mereo? Or Sapphique?

She saw less of Sixsix in recent months, but he still did make an appearance now and again. Sialuk had spent time with him this morning, roaming the slopes of Moonspear and listening to what the land of her ancestors had to say. They whispered many things, not all of which she could parse out, but she took in as much as she could.

Then, a voice not a whisper called for her, and Sialuk paused to listen. It was the voice of Caracal—kajuk as she had come to call him in her mind. He had parted some time ago, but Sialuk could not begrudge him for it. He had only been waylaid here due to his ankle, and she had done her duty to mend him so that he could continue his path, wherever that took him.

The raindrop began her descent down the mountain, only to find herself coming face-to-face with a wolf not kajuk at all. His fur was a multitude of grays, and she paused to observe him a moment. You search for something? she asked. Sialuk did not wish to linger long, knowing Caracal waited for her.

Winterbourne is inactive but I was hoping we could continue this? :)

After ascertaining his surroundings, he decided it would make the most sense to hit Mereo first. It was a bit closer and, as excited as he was to catch up with Meerkat and check out her seaside digs, he really wanted to see Killdeer. And check on his mom and other relatives, of course.

Once he made a decision, he began to fidget. He supposed he wasn’t in any particular rush, though now that he had a plan, he wanted to get to it! Of course, Caracal wasn’t so impatient he would just bounce right after calling. He would give Sialuk a little more time to show up.

The stranger slipped away, and Sialuk did not follow. She turned her gaze toward Caracal’s voice and made her way there.

Caracal, she said, It is good to greet you. Your leg is mended still? she asked. He appeared to be in good health, so she could only assume as much.

She eventually appeared, her pale face a welcome sight. Caracal studied her expression as she approached. There was only warmth there, in her voice too. If she was upset about his departure, she didn’t let it show.

Hey, hey! Yeah, my leg’s doing just fine, thanks to your stellar care, Caracal replied, pausing to take a breath before adding, I’m sorry it kinda carried me away from here without warning, though. Always gotta be on the move, seems like. He gave a sheepish laugh.

But since she didn’t seem to hold it against him, he relaxed a bit and asked, How are things with you?

He apologized, and she smiled, though Sialuk saw no need for his sorries. Kajuk had been nothing but kind, and if the time came, she knew that he could be called upon to return the favor.

They are well, she said. Still split time between spear and spine. More on spear now, not often on spine. Sialuk had not given up her title as a wolf of Moonglow. You find family in Mereo? she asked. It was hard to recall when Towhee had left and when Caracal had come. Had their paths crossed in Moonglow?

Sialuk said she spent a majority of her time at Moonspear now. This somehow didn’t surprise him, though he felt a pang of concern. Was she in isolation there, especially now that he had gone? Or had she found others to keep her company?

Oh, yeah, a few of my relatives are living there. I’m actually on my way to see them! I ended up joining a pack called… well, I can’t pronounce its name for shit. But it’s out west. I’m actually learning more about medicine, Caracal shared, intuiting that Sialuk might like hearing this. She was part of his inspiration, after all.

It was good to know that Caracal had found family there, but that he had also made a path for himself. This was how many stories went. Children need to forge their own way in the world apart from family to grow stronger. Sialuk knew her own mother had done this, though her story had been much different.

He was clever to speak of medicine to her. Ah, it is valuable skill to know. You have teacher to guide you? she asked. She’s always had Kukutux, but there were many healers in this world.

Yeah! There’s this lady there named Lane, she’s my official mentor, he replied, tail swaying.

It stilled a little when talking about this topic inevitably reminded him of how he wasn’t exactly a great pupil. He barely spent any time at the summit and often wandered away without a word. Caracal was still learning some stuff, though he would probably be way further along if he would just commit himself better.

Anyway, I don’t want to take up all your time ‘cause I know you have stuff to do. But I wanted to swing by and say ‘hey,’ make sure we were good, the yearling said, face and voice both softening.