The Sunspire Like Stars at Night - Never Lonely

The air thinned as they began to get higher up, but her instincts did not tell her to flee the place and as she watched the darkness slowly descend in the sky and her companion's glow in the last vestiges of light she only felt her resolve harden into desire to reach the peak. Heph had climbed mountains before, to pass over them, but she tried to remember the last one she had climbed all the way to the top. She wondered what the sunrise would look like. She wondered what it would be like to all but tumble down - to hear Atka's laughter.

She turned her gaze over to Atka, she was not sure if the other wolf had ever been up a mountain before, if the thinning brisk (even in the summer) air would trouble her at all. Heph did not care to regulate the distance between them, easy in the other wolf's presence, comforting rather than discomfiting something steadier than night or day or even the stars which were only just beginning to shine through the dying light of the day. Her ears pushed forward, curious about what was next and there was a smile that refused to stop tugging at the corners of her features.

Tagging @Atka cont'd from we are the reckless

Atka's ascent up the mountain didn't troubles her, her features only accompanied with a light pant. She had her head angled at the sky, exhaling as she stared in wonder. Atka reveled in the view, the expanse of the sky kept her eyes glued as she slowly stepped forward.

❝It's beautiful.❞ Atka had seen stars before, but the coast was far too cloudy to see them in this detail.

❝It was a good idea to come up here.❞ Her tail gave a few brisk wags.

Heph smiled, the stars were brilliant in their clarity and there were enough to make Atka's white coat and yellow eyes shine. She felt alive in the cool night air following the summer sun. And she smiled, dipping closer brushing her fur with Atka's then away again playfully as she responded with a wink. "You are." Her steps evened out and she let her own tail flash back and forth as she breathed as deeply as possible. "I'm glad, I like it too." She had been able to see the stars so clearly when she was younger.

It felt odd, to share. But the darkness felt all-encompassing, open, and she felt on top of that abyss not in it or below it where she stood on the mountain. So she let the words thrum in the throat, full of a truth she was not sure what it was, still with a bit of humor that could not leave her. "My mom used to tell me that wishes were for stars." And she felt like in that moment, the pair of them there, she had that freedom to wish for impossible things even under the ever-changing stars.

❝What do you wish for?❞

Atka said in response, dropping her gaze from the sky to look at Heph, looking over her dark fur that was illuminated by the sky. Her eyes were a bit widened, sparkly with the little light the night sky offered. She wondered, what sort of dreams did Heph have? Atka didn't quite know herself, keeping herself busy in the moment, ignoring that burning question everyone seemed to have.

Heph braced herself against the thin cool night air, breathing it in and letting it fill her lungs until she felt a little dizzy. It felt like courage, and she hummed lightly, slowly building up her throat to the words. "What could I wish for with you here?" Her laugh came out in a trail of huffs into the night and she fixed her gaze on the stars finding it somehow hard to look at the other wolf even as she spoke to her.

She did not know how to answer that question. But it felt easier to try under the blanket of tiny lights that dazzled and distracted. Her shoulders shrugged under the weight of them and her voice lowered. Not quite a whisper, but softer than her usual reckless confidence. "I wish for our paths to continue to cross even though I don't know what this path I'm on is or where it's going." Her eyes closed for a second, just a brief second as she took another light-headed breath, her heart pounding wildly in her chest as she tried to pretend it was the altitude. "I'm afraid because I know people change and I know I can't know or stop the future and what's coming." She smiled, letting the words settle a bit.

It felt darker than when they first ascended, it was darker from when they were on the plains earlier. And it felt like the stars shone brighter. "What about you Atka?" She wondered what this other wolf wanted, what she dreamt of.

so atka might end up tagging along with dreven to the forsaken so she'll prolly try to drag heph with her, sorry LOL this one got emotional for atka xD

Atka listened with a tender expression on her face, her mind thinking over what Heph had said. She knew things would change, but Heph wasn't a wolf she wanted to let go of just yet, despite her relationship with Dreven. Atka wanted Heph to stay with her, which was probably selfish, and she knew it too, guilt creeping over her.

❝In the long run, I don't really know.❞ She responded, looking back up to the stars for a sense of comfort, face wrinkled in thought, ❝Right now I just-❞

Atka paused, sighing and closing her eyes.

❝I just want you to stick around.❞ She winced at herself, Atka knew that would be difficult.

Atka knew she was the one that just made that harder. She knew that she may have just recruited herself into a pack, a type of pack she would not have seen herself in. Dropping her gaze from the sky she looked back to Heph, studying her expression frantically for any sort of tell on what Heph was thinking. She was completely and utterly confused about her relationship with Heph, but knew their was some sort of bond, one she didn't want to lose yet.

Heph considered Atka's words. Catching the scent of a wolf she knew on them and the other tells, considered what staying meant as opposed to going somewhere but together. She considered what she knew and what she dreamt and what she desired. And she felt her throat tighten around something that tasted sour - not jealous or bitter or even fully sad. Not in the moment, only towards and into the future.

The world was wide but even a single forest somehow held mysteries to be uncovered and she thought about that too, the things she wanted to continue to know and learn about Atka, about herself. And her choices, what part, what little spit of a big world would be big enough for her what it meant to stay. She considered the ocean, wondered over the distance of it and to it and her plans that somehow had not quite shifted.

And she could see Atka trying to see her, but Heph did not know what she would find. There were things she could say or ask or wonder, but the why was only ever shifting water to the solid yet changing shore - there one minute and gone the next and never the same as when first stepped in. Her ears rotated to the side and she searched Atka's own features in the starlight, and there was a moment of confusion as her features twitched around a question, that slid out her throat "Stick around where?" Because she thought she might know but she did not know. And somehow the words were there.

awww good emotions though! And sounds good :D I'll have to think about what Heph would do but I have some threads planned around the Heartwood so she'll be around for at least a bit!

sounds good! :)

Atka took in a deep breath and sighed, swallowing back the bitter feeling in her throat. She remained hushed, settling her eyes on Heph. Looking over the face she'd grown fond of, her own features showed a slight smile, but her eyes still revealed the melancholic feeling.

❝I wasn't really meaning anywhere in particular... Just with me.❞ Atka paused, searching Heph's face again as she tried to find the words.

❝But I may stay nearby The Heartwood.❞ She then looked to the ground and sat down as she continued. ❝The only thing that is making that decision hard is you.❞

❝Even if you continue on, I'll value every moment, Heph. I still feel it was right for me to meet you, and if you come to seek me out, I will be there.❞

Atka stole a glance at Heph, head still slightly angled downwards. Her ears that were angled away pulled back forward to Heph as she waited a response, one she hoped would be much farther in the future, but it wasn't going to be. This conversation was happening now, even though Atka hoped it would happen in later days.

Heph sighed, listening. Her features changed and she felt her heart bubble and float in her chest like balloons, strings trailing in the wind. Wolves changed, all the time, their desires their thoughts even their dreams changed. And sometimes it was good and sometimes it was bad but the one thing one could not change was change itself. Smiling she moved her own head to brush up against Atka's neck and shoulder, comforting both herself and perhaps an attempt, maybe a clumsy one, to do so for the other wolf. "Change is natural, good even, wolves come and go." Her voice was sure as she spoke, after all behind her words was a deep belief.

She caught Atka's eyes. Her tail wagging slightly. There was, and luckily had not been any true ill-will between them. And the moments they had, the time they had spent traveling was special and wonderful. "And I will too. Treasure each moment. And even if I go I will return - if anything just to see your beautiful face." She meant it. Heph was almost sure she would at the very least return if she did not stay herself. There was so much world but she had decided to stay in these Teekon wilds. To gain a slight understanding of the lay of the land. She had a feeling that she could spend her entire life exploring them and thus she was sure their paths would cross again at the very least. And if she could settle in one greater place there was no reason she could not settle in a smaller. Hearts changed as well and Atka's companionship had already made its mark.

She smiled, a bit plaintive, but genuine as her voice tentatively reached out, unsure of her words, not quite having said anything similar before. It was a bit of a cliche but she thought it was just serious enough that she could say it with a hint towards joking even if she spoke the truth. "I don't want to cause you any hurt. You've far too good a heart to see it harmed."

Sorry for the late reply!

Atka closed her eyes as Heph brushed up against her, sucking in a breath. The bitter feeling had not gone away, she just felt grounded in Heph's embrace. As she pulled away, Atka's chest tightened at the soft brown eyes that met hers. 

Change is natural, good even, wolves come and go.

Atka continued to listen, seeking comfort in Heph's gaze as she spoke, and that is what she found. Atka didn't hate change, but she noted in the moment that all it had done was taken from her. However, this conversation was Atka's doing, she was the one who made to choice to seek 'forbidden things' as Dreven had called it.

And I will too. Treasure each moment. And even if I go I will return - if anything just to see your beautiful face.

She smiled at that, happy that Heph would treasure their time just a much, even though the whirlwind of emotions she was experiencing had not departed.

I don't want to cause you any hurt. You've far too good a heart to see it harmed.

Her smile was replaced with another frown, not because she was angry, just overwhelmed by the tenderness that she felt from this wolf. Atka was at a loss for words, her jaw opening but remained slack and silent. Heph really was the right wolf for her to meet when she had ventured into these lands, offering companionship to numb the grief she had experienced prior to her wandering. Heph had taught her many things already, whether she knew it or not.

❝Well.❞ She sighed, her frown gone, but brows still furrowed. ❝If I don't continue with you, then at least let me accompany you just past The Heartwood.❞

Heph smiled, feeling Atka return the gentle pressure. Glad that at least in that moment they could still enjoy each other's company she spoke again, warm and inviting. While she would be sad to say even a temporary goodbye the other wolf she knew that it could not be helped if Atka was to be happy. And besides temporary was what she had planned, even if Atka decided to stay it did not mean that Heph could not visit. "Sounds just perfect." Her voice was soft and gentle but firm into the night air.

She was glad to have met Atka when she had. Loneliness was sometimes difficult to avoid when one did not chase anything but superficial attachments and the other wolf was anything but. It seemed to be the right time and the right place, and then time and places moved as so did they. Fitting. She thought.

this post can be my last if you wanted to jump over to the dreven thread!!

Atka didn't respond, allowing Heph's words to remain in the air. She nodded with a smile, walking up to brush against her side almost feline-like, and stepping past, head tilting to look at the sky again. There was no rush, Atka knew that, but she wanted to prolong this moment. She wanted to sit and be close to the stars with Heph, though she knew they would have to go eventually.

❝Maybe someday I'll go see the ocean with you.❞ Atka sent a glance Heph's way.

She sat next to Atka, breathing in the night air and the company. And she wondered about Atka's words but she did not have to think to let her own reply hang into the air, full of promise. "I'd like that." She leaned slightly, settling into the company, enjoying that moment. It might all change the next day but she was content in that moment in those heartbeats the perfect constellations hanging themselves ahead.

Sounds good!