Arrow Lake Drifters

All welcome, but for @Lote in particular!

Perhaps a week had gone by since his return to the wilderness. And yet again, Saviguk found himself coming to with a start. Confused at not at all familiar with where he was. Ah, now he remembered. He had blacked out again. These spells where he randomly lost consciousness were not a singular occurrence. He could recount at least six other incidents when this had happened to him. 

His head was throbbing. But the rest of his body was undamaged. Frowning, he could only hope that the mysterious cause for his symptoms was not something serious. He was no medic. To his surprise, as he looked about, he was by a lakeside. Steep mountain walls rose up around him, giving the impression that this was quite the isolated area.

How in the heck he had made it all down this way in once piece was beyond him. Not that it mattered. His throat burned, when he at last stood. With plenty of water nearby, at least he could keep hydrated. Taking his time while he drank, he fought to ignore the pain in his temples and searing up his back leg.

 

the four-year had continued her path north, judging her decisions by the basis of whim and luck. there was a deep-rooted aversion to the mountains that loomed to the west. aiwë could not bring to mind exact memories of the events that had driven her from her son's side but there were flashes of brutal tumbling and careening, the crash of stone ringing in her ears, the sound of mountains tearing themselves asunder.

and, of course, the gut wrenching pain of searching for the child she'd lost in the snow.

the paintwolf wasn't ready to face the trails winding through the stone monoliths. 

the east imbued her with a sense of uprooted terror. the south was not much different. 

but the north sung of fever, of festering fire that crept along her spine, the warmth of a daughter tucked against her chest. 

it was the only thing that made sense anymore. 

thus, the four-year set out as fast as her hindered legs could take her, loping lopsidedly on account of her ruined limb. through the forests of vixens and across the seas of budding green until she'd reached the edges of a loch that nestled against the distant base of the ridge. 

the elven nymph wasn't sure when she'd reach freshwater again. her memory only drew dark blanks. instinct pulled her to the edges of the lake, bending stiffly to lap vivaciously at the water -- which still held a hint of winter's chill. 

straightening slowly, it was then that she spotted a far off figure of ebony -- latching to it and good ear swivelling forward as she surveyed her surroundings. 

a low, curious note escaped her without thinking, surely only a murmur to the stranger when it reached their auds.

He lifted his hard head up, slowly, so as not to welcome a spell of dizziness or another jab of pain. A delicate, scarred woman called to him. A pale contrast to his dark. 

In return, he crooned a low note. Placating and gentle, as he was in no shape for a confrontation. Slowly, through the ankle shallows, he went to her. Every now and then his eyes squinted slightly. A hint of his condition. "Pale dove...this place, do you know where we are?"

as the shadow approached and materialized into a clearer figure, it became apparent that he was injured which sent a bolt of tension along her frame. 

injured people were often desperate ones. desperation could turn the kindest face into a monstrous one. 

yet, she remained fixed to her place along the shore, watching the man draw to her. viridescent optics were the only part that moved, tracking his progression coolly. 

the morë-wilin did not appear to wish her harm, however. in fact, he seemed more at risk for harming himself as he drifted sluggishly to her. 

aiwë cast a sweeping glance across their surroundings. 

"a lake," she offered, though it was regretful rather than sarcastic. she knew no more than he. 

"can I help you?" this too was abrupt and blunt, but the words were gentle. despite herself, a glint of concern flitted across her features. 

He bore no ill intent. And even if he did want to harm her, he was in no shape to do so. Besides, Saviguk simply was not that kind of wolf. No matter how long he had been gone. Spirit or not. "Perhaps you can." He offered in the tenor of his voice.

For now, his discomfort had subsided but there was no telling when it would flare up again. "I am lost you see. I have no idea where I am, other than somewhere in the Teekons." His tail tip grazed the water, while he looked at her almost shyly. "I hate to impose, but might you know where I may find a healer? I've ah...been having some alarming black outs."

lótë listened. still as the water before them, only the flicker of her remaining aud and her eyelids moved. when he had finished speaking, the dove gave a curt nod.

"aiwë knows some." her offer came, soft and simple. she turned slowly, allowing one last sweep of her gaze along the waters before gesturing to the forest at her back with a small jerk of her tawny chin. they'd need to get him out of the water and somewhere dry and comfortable to tend his wounds. 

"moonwoman better but aiwë do."

"Other than the blackouts and the...headaches, I think I am okay." But with such alarming symptoms as those, it was best not to take any risks. He tried a small smile, relieved that the woman, Aiwë, had some knowledge. He gestured with his muzzle back to his hind leg. "That scar is an old injury, it doesn't hinder me."

The name falling from her tongue made his oceanic eyes go wide. "Did...you say Moonwoman? Do you by chance mean, Kukutux? White coated...emerald eyes." 

aiwë led the way, her own hitched gait slowing to accommodate for the weary soul at her side. peridots widened at his symptoms, momentary panic flaring to life in a hot rush of candlelight. lótë knew some basic first aid but she'd never helped another with such serious injuries as his.

the words brought her to a halt, turning to meet the blackbird's shocked expression with one of her own. 

"aya," she rasped, peering at him intensely. "kukutux is moonwoman -- matchmaker -- to village moonglow. she is first wife to sunman, i am second wife. kukutux is sistraa."

He followed slowly, so as not to risk worsening his condition. The headaches came and went. He feared moving too fast might bring one on again.

 The name of the place Moonglow wasn't familiar to him. He only knew of Moonspear. And now she was a wife to someone called Sunman. Not his father, Jarlio. Her true, first husband. And now she was also a wife to this woman standing before him.

He shook his head, trying to clear the confusion away. Just how much had he missed when he was gone? "Sorry...this is just so much for me to take in." He drew a breath, fixing oceanic eyes with peridots. "But I suppose I should explain. You see, I am her first son. Saviguk Ostrega. Born of the great speared mountain."

lótë bit her tongue, holding back her words. a guarded mask of detachment settled over her features, shutters being drawn over a window. the mother -- perhaps even stepmother to this young man, though she didn't think on that too long -- rose to her stained paws. 

she circled him, sniffing. poking. prodding here and there. 

at last, she stood before him and simply gazed at him. 

there was something there. something, but what? 

the look of his father perhaps, or something from the other world of spirits?

"can you prove it?"

How could he prove it? He had no physical evidence to offer. Only facts. "You may know of my sister. Sialuk." He wet his lips, his throat feeling dry. "She is missing a toe on her right front paw. And she has a kink in her tail, towards the end." He recalled in vivid detail. 

"Kukutux wears vivid jade eyes. She is fond of rabbit pelts. I cannot recall a time when I seen her not wearing one." And then. "You might know my Aunt. Hydra Ostrega. We were close, living on the mountain, before the storm swept our lives away."

aventurine stones widened -- softening in surprise and utter relief. 

"aya," she breathed. "this is truly spoken." 

a sombre expression, her lips flattening into an empathetic line. her eyes and octaves alike dropped as the four-year told him the harsh truth of it.

"there are no other ostregas left. the last outside of your mother and sister that i ever saw was antares. and he is gone -- in search of a new name, just like the one your mother took."

"clan ostrega has become clan nuiruk. your mother. sialuk. myself. aiolos -- husband to your mother and i. all of our children." 

"you would be nuiruk too, then. if you wished." the doe blinked, her words gentle. 

it would not be an easy task. to find the others. to make them see the boy who had been, hiding in the man she saw now.

yet, nothing that was worth it ever was.