Broken Antler Fen When I was a child, I heard voices;

There wasn't much he knew before he woke in that desolate wetland. Then, in a rushing surge of adrenaline, the beast was overcome with dread. Where was he? Surrounded in the gentle cusp of baby green grass, he felt as though he laid on a pillowed moss, braided to perfection as though crafted from his mother's lips. He felt safe, but then...not so much.

Where was here?

With a deep breath, he was a man of unrelenting stoicism. It dripped off him like a tinkling icicle, though it seemed this place was untouched by winter's withering grasp. It was beautiful— breathtaking, even, for a man like him who'd never come to understand imminent beauty.

Cole would attempt to stand. At least...try to. Weathered limbs of primal rage came to fuse muscles together, stitch them back from their lumbering state. A deep groan left him, where his muscles screamed in agony from the tension bubbling beneath his blood.

"Damn," he sighed, relenting to his body's remorse, and settled to sit on his haunches. It allowed him a better scope of the area, but he only found it to be more peaceful. Though peace, desired by many, scared him most of all.

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all welcome— can't wait to get started :D

Ameline was bleary-eyed from her short trip back to Bearclaw Valley, ensuring its security. The peace of mind made her journey easier; she would have rushed back to Firefly Glen if her home had become occupied in their absence. As it was, her route fell South of the Glen, so when she saw the mountains in the distance, she realized too late that she’d drifted from her course. Tiredness, she told herself. She had enough energy left to forfeit for one last bit of travel before she slept.

She didn’t intend to keep Ancelin and their children waiting any longer than necessary, but the murmured curse of a stranger nearby caught her attention. Had he not looked so ragged, she might have flattered herself to think he’d taken one look at her and had uttered the word as a compliment. 

Rumour had spread of rabies in the Valley; she knew better than to get too close to one who looked weakened but still- she felt obligated to investigate lest he barge into the pack hunt and spread the disease further. Over the boggy scent of the fen, it was impossible to discern the scent of disease.

You thick? She asked. Of course the stranger wouldn’t know of her lisp, so she corrected herself. You good, or are you ill?

He should've heard her coming. He normally would— but these are no ordinary circumstances, were they? Cole had just fallen from the sky, broad daylight, and had a pinch in his shoulder. So if he hadn't taken a look over his shoulder to see who stalked behind him, then he was dead meat.

But he was still alive.

He cursed beneath his breath. A soft, un-gentlemen like tone that he shrugged off. He shouldn't speak that way in front of ladies. With a clearing of his throat, he shook his head from the disorientation.

Good, yeah. He breathed, blinking a few times to steady his vision. Hell...sorry 'bout allat. Cole feeling...awkward, was not something he imagined to feel...well, ever. But here he was, in a land where anything was possible, completely unknown and foreign to him.

Don't s'pose you live 'round here? Tell me, uh, where I am?

His voice was deep and even, and she heard more regret in it than sickness. She came a bit closer so she could see the drawling man, noticing then with a light smirk that in some ways, they were a mirror image of one another; hues of coal and gold in thick collars about their necks. She wondered momentarily if this might possibly be a lost brother of hers- but he seemed older.

He was lost, but not only that, it seemed he was completely disoriented. Ahhh, can’t help you much here, She said. I’unno what thith area’th called. I’m from a plathe called Bearclaw Valley but…I can tell you ain’t from there, She said with a faint laugh. 

Tell me where yuh from. Maybe I know of it. She offered.

Cole wasn't one to take in appearances. He didn't care all that much what 'ya looked like, more of how you could assist him. But it was a clear mirror of his own colors, inverse upon one another. Holy shit, does he have a bastard kid, or somethin' of that nature? He held his expression through a closed door, still  holding tight to his straight lined mouth.

He noticed, too, how her speech was slurred— it reminded him of his own cousin with a similar impairment. It ain't bother him one bit. Shit, really? He uttered, her point stating the obvious that he was entirely foreign to these lands.

Ain't no where near here, I reckon. He looked around momentarily, still taking in the serene beauty. It wasn't like the desolate plains he called home. Place'a grasslands. Fields of bison...stuff'n like that.

But he assumed she could be no assistance of home, not that he had much attachment. Bearclaw Valley? That 'round here?

She shrugged. His accent wasn't one she was very familiar with; and she'd met representatives of enough packs to have an idea of the languages and accents that existed in the area- or so she thought.

She got the sense that the ruffed man wasn't the type to put on a disguise. In all respects, he seemed earnest; while she searched for some sign of tension or nervousness that might indicate he was lying, she could find none. It left her wondering how he'd come to be so lost; he didn't seem to know where he was, or how far he was from where he'd come. 

Bison and plains- that didn't exactly narrow it down for her. 

"Yeah, I theen platheth like that," She said. "But they're not far away...You been travellin' long?" A time span might give her a better idea. Not far from the Valley were plains where bison and wild horses roamed- but he seemed too discombobulated to have come over the one, narrow mountain range. 

"It ain't far," She said. She found it difficult not to add a swing to her voice; listening to him speak was like following along with a catchy melody. "There'th a big hunt goin' on near here, though. The elk hunt...You heard about it?" 

To her knowledge, all packs in the area had been invited- if he didn't know about it, then he was definitely lost.

'Ya have? He raised a brow, thinking that there may be hope afterall— but wait, there's no way it coulda' been the same...he'd been gone for so long, would there even be a reason t'go back?

This was a chance for Cole to start fresh. Start new. And who was he to deny such a god-givin' miracle?

Nah...ain't even reckon it's worth t'ga back.

He thought he caught her tryna mimic his accent— Cole raised a brow, but made no further comment.

Ain't heard 'f it...that a bad thing?

Another light shrug. Sure. There were a few places where bison roamed. He could potentially be close to home for all she knew- though he didn’t seem too eager to go back. Impartial, at most. 

Her interest was piqued; an available loner? Just what she was looking for. She liked the gunslinger’s honest answers, and how humbly he admitted he was lost with no trace of ego. Such wolves were few, far between, and valuable. 

Nah, She said, and began to smile. Jutht meanth you ain’t from around here. She assured him. Now she knew he was truly lost- if he hadn’t heard of the elk hunt, he’d have no attachments to any of the wolves there. 

We wuh invited to a collaborative hunt, tho were all other packs between that mountain range, She gestured past him, Thith one, She gestured beyond her, An like…The one patht that. Been huntin’ elk for a few weekth…Eatin’ like royalty, She said with a chuckle. Fattenin’ up for the winter month…Thoun’ interethtin’ at all to you?

Cole listened to her intensely. The idea of fattening oneself up on elk for the season didn't sound half bad to him. In fact, it was the most exciting news he's heard in a damn long time.

Might be the dumbest fuckin' animal to say no, he chuckled to himself, eyes glancing momentarily to the mountain range beyond. His stomach decided to have a say in it too— a low growl murmured through the air.

You invitin'?

Ameline cackled, pleased that the man had a sense of humour. She regarded him then, pleased now that her accidental detour had brought her to cross his path. It would be good for the both of them- and she liked win-win scenarios.

She nodded. I’m Ameline Bearclaw, She said, with a proud wave of her tail. Thtick with me; we’ll get you fed, oriented…Thingth work out, you can come home to the Valley with uth in a week when we go back.

Nice 'ta meet 'ya, Ameline Bearclaw. Cole regarded her in good company. She seemed kind, at least from this conversation, and he needed a home. While he enjoyed the dispersal lifestyle, he was gettin' too old for that.

My name's Cole. Just Cole.

And she invited him along with her. He couldn't believe it— with his rumbling belly, he may have just hit the jackpot of all luck in the book.

Awfully kind of 'ya. Lead the way, Ameline Bearclaw.

He'd follow her to wherever she took him. Maybe it was his stomach talking, but he had a good feeling about this.

end here?