Firestone Hot Springs drunk with vivid flame

@FitzDutiful

His previous adventure out to examine Hoshor Plains left one mystery solved only to present another. Zhavvi, now Zaria, was one of the few remaining wolves he knew of the plains pack and one of which he'd warned FitzDutiful about. He was weary of her and at the same time concerned for FitzDutiful. He was a patient and kind wolf. They were noble qualities, but traits that were easily manipulated and taken advantage of. The last time he'd seen his silvertipped friend, the wolf had been in something of a desperate place. He knew well that desperate wolves often did desperate things. He wanted to check in with the wolf and get a feel for himself as to what the situation was all about.

It was none of his business. He realized this. He was just a meddling outsider who happened to know both wolves separately and was still perplexed that they had ended up together. Or in the same area... or together together. He didn't know. Couldn't. But he wanted to hear the other side of the story just to make sure his friend was certain in what he was doing and get the full picture. The complete picture. Not the abridged version that came with the fragmented common tongue of a wolf he didn't truly trust. Nothing against Zaria, but she'd invaded his former territory and was associated with wolves who dabbled in poisons for sport. A coward's weapon and a sneaky one. He'd always associated a wolf's character with the activities they pursued. He didn't want his friend to get played.

He'd informed Tonravik of his brief excursion before slipping across the rolling plains. Now that the Hoshor wolves were gone, this journey was considerably easier. He could take a direct path as opposed to creeping alongside territories. It helped, that he was making a beeline towards one of his favorite places in these wilds. They'd discovered natural hotsprings within the spire, but after a trip like this one, having another set of springs in the distance would do well to ease his travel sores.

Kero wandered through the fog for a bit, letting the warm steam ease the stiffness in his worn muscles and joints as he passed through towards the area on the outskirts of Silvertip Mountain. He lifted his voice as though to knock and see if his dear friend was home.

FitzDutiful heard the howl, it was hard not to with the land being next door to their own. He often heard wolves come and meet acquaintances in the Hot Springs and had managed to tune out their calls from the kind that he paid attention to, the kind that came to him today. FitzDutiful smiled to hear it was Kero, turning away from the task of border patrol to head out, sending a quick nip to Zaria, Mason and June to let them know where he would be. His family. Well, almost.

He had yet to tell Mason and June of the new status that existed between himself and Zaria, he was pretty sure June wouldn't be perplexed but Mason had been odd around Zaria of late. It was almost as if he wanted the attention on himself. FitzDutiful had put it down to a fear of being replaced and was content to let him have his way, Zaria was good with him. Trusted.

As he walked down the mountainside, towards the hot springs, FitzDutiful reflected that he hadn't seen Kero since his distraught attempt at finding Raissa. How times had changed. That very experience, of losing the main provider for his children, had hardened him. It had only been increased by other wolves coming and going too freely. It had forced him to implement a two chance rule in his pack - though it was one he wouldn't force Zaria to implement too - which consisted of allowing a wolf to enter, regardless of their skills, to start with. If they left, the second time they must have something to offer - even if it was just working toward being useful. After that, well he had yet to hit a third strike with anyone.

Coming into sight, he looked to see if Kero was bathing in one of the pools, before heading over to meet him. "Nice to see you again, Kero." Kero, along with Perry, was one of the only wolves he would drop everything to meet. He liked Fox, appreciated Finley and Elwood, but had never felt the same sense of connection with any of them; not like the two other alpha males.

"What brings you this far out from the Spine?" he asked, unaware that the Spine existed no longer. They didn't have an outrider to provide that source of information and he was far too busy to deliberately drag himself to another's pack lands. He knew neither of his friends liked visitors right on the borders, anyway.

His voice faded into the wind. His head lowered. He had time to kill. No doubt navigating that mountain would take some time... Now it was just a matter of how to occupy his own time. Kero turned his gaze to the hot springs and wandered through them, balancing on the delicate ledges as he realized he was some kind of picky about which pool he wished to soak in. He explored them all and found himself doubling back. Some pool near the edge of this place. Some pool where the warm steam was frequented by a cool autumn breeze.

He found a spot where Kero was sure he would not be overlooked. He eased himself into the waters and lay sphinx like in the shallows of the pool. The waves lapped at his shoulders, but he did not lower his head. He knew that in doing so he would surely fall asleep. That was not something he could afford to do alone in these wilds and definitely not while he was expecting a visitor.

Kero was near about convinced he'd soaked enough when FitzDutiful arrived. Thinking it as good a time as ever, he rose from the water and gave his pelt a quick shake before the neighboring alpha drew too close to his splash radius. "FitzD! A pleasure as always." He stepped out of the water and gave the wolf a good sniff of greeting before he sank into a bow of a stretch. He'd traveled quite a distance in getting here. The water helped relax his muscles, but a good stretch would keep them loose and nimble.

He did not correct the wolf in thinking he'd traveled from the Spine. It was evidence to him that he'd not communicated with Zaria about his encounter with her and similarly, he did not wish to boast the Spine's, now Spire's, new location. It was a security measure mostly. The less knew of their move the fewer wolves would be prone to seek them. He felt their secrecy kept his family safer at night, through truthfully the Spire was something of a fortress. It needed little protection. Its treacherous slopes were a security system of their own.

"Was traveling this way. Thought I might pay a friend a visit. See how things were going." He'd been in quite a state of disarray last time. Kero hoped his friend was doing better. "It's been what? A month or two? How are things since the last time we met?"

It seemed Kero had just been travelling, and FitzDutiful smiled to know that everything was okay. The time frame since their last meeting was mentioned and FitzDutiful visibly winced. Had it really only been a few months? How things had changed in those four months, he had been completely out of his mind with worry and fear back then. Now, well, now he had someone new and things were on the up.

"Four I think — ," he started, "Um, sorry about that day." Zaria had joined not long after, and the storm had hit allowing him to wipe his slate completely clean and just accept that things were never going back to what they were. Now they got to move forwards, be better. "I don't know what came over me. I just freaked at Raissa leaving me with two pups who were barely weaned. Things are good now, though the storm caused us a few issues with prey. How about you? The pups arrived?"

He didn't recall much about this freaked out episode, the only thing that had stuck with him was that Kero's mate had been expecting and he was picking up extra responsibility. The maths would suggest that the pups would be around by now, but Raissa's pregnancy had been less than ideal so he had no idea if the things he had gone through were normal or not. Did every female loose pups or was that unfortunate situation they had gone through?

Not two months, but four? "My how time has flown." And fast. That's right. Tonravik had still been pregnant during their last encounter. Now his boys were almost three months and growing quickly. Things had changed, for both of them it seemed, and hopefully for the better. Still, he shook his head as Fitz apologized for their last encounter. "There's no need. I consider you a friend, FitzD. Isn't that what friends are for?"

He shifted on his paws to make himself more comfortable. Eventually, he settled into a sit as the silver tipped wolf continued to apologize. "Really, there's no need. We all have our moments." Well, he didn't, but he knew others did. His ears flattened in something of a bashful way as he waved off the explanations with a paw. With the good news, however, he perked back up and paid closer attention. Things were good now. That was good news.

"All good on my end. Pups came. I have four healthy boys running around. Luckily we've got a good pup sitter in our midsts and thankfully they're old enough now that I have a bit more freedom than before." His wanderlust was a terribly fierce thing. These travels were good for his soul, his spirits, so he was thankful not to be tied to his home quite like he had been in his children's early weeks. "Actually, question for you. Did you ever teach your kids anatomy? I used a rabbit to show one of mine how food works. The whole eating and then pooping thing... and he's been a picky eater ever since. I think he thinks eating anything means he's eating poop."

It sounded as if life on the Spine was all good, FitzDutiful smiled to hear so with his tail wagging slowly, expressing his delight. Kero had a question as a father, and he smiled even more to hear it little a small gruff laugh escape. "No, I never went beyond 'here eat this'. They both took a liking to it and I left it at that, just made sure they found the fun in going to catch it too." He had had it pretty easy, all things considered. It appeared others had a harder time raising theirs and he found himself unsure of whether having another litter was a good idea - maybe it wouldn't be so easy.

FitzDutiful decided to answer his own question, instead of waiting to be asked it. He didn't feel the need and he was sure that his friend would be overjoyed at the news. "I think I got pretty lucky with my two, though I hope the next lot will be just as good. I found someone to fill an empty space I never knew I had. We're hoping to have a litter after the winter storm is over." Well, he was hoping to. Zaria hadn't outright agreed, but neither had she disagreed. Before that was the task of telling the children; and making it official. Two minor points.

Kero laughed, this time at himself. He shook his head. "I might have explained too much." Seemed that way. He was finding that his kids only ever heard exactly what they wanted to hear and beyond that everything was a bit of a free for all. It was probably a good idea for him to save the details for when they were older, but hey, if his kids had a curiosity he wanted to feed it... Even if it meant they were a little picky for a while.

"I think... more hunting trips are definitely in order for us. Making it fun sounds like a better idea." It might be a good way to get his boy back to eating more regularly again. It was also a good way to teach them all the skills they'd need to survive on their own. When they were old enough... definitely. One life skill at a time.

As Fitz continued, Kero's ears lifted. "Another one?" he asked. He was vaguely familiar with FitzD's situation of having fallen for a female who'd not been able to commit herself as a mate. "Who's the lucky lady?" Another litter seemed like a huge commitment for any wolf so soon. Then again... he'd fallen into his current predicament more by instinct than choice so he wasn't want to talk.

Another one; for a moment FitzDutiful's ears fell and he wondered what his friend would think of him. Was he going through women the way wolves went through their winter coats; entertained with the idea of being warm, grow irritated with the way it tangles and overheats until eventually they gave it up for the summer? He hoped not. He decided to ignore that sentiment and answer the second question, letting his ears perk again and a slow wag of his tail begin.

"She's called Zaria," he said, happy enough to call her the name she had picked now. It had taken time but now the name was without a second thought. "She's from that pack you warned me about; so don't worry I was cautious. She was injured when she arrived but we connected somehow and things... well, they grew." He didn't want to let a moment pass for Kerosene to intervene until he was finished, he had a feeling he would disapprove from the 'another' comment he had made earlier so FitzDutiful hastily continued; "She compliments me well. We both put our pack before all others and she's taught me not to be so trusting - something I needed- I like to think I've taught her to be more accepting too, as well as understand pack life."

It was over. He waited for the judgement to arrive.

Truthfully, he was eager and glad that FitzDutiful had moved on. He seemed like the kind of wolf who needed someone special in his life and Kero couldn't fault him for that. It was nice to have someone important in life. Life felt more meaningful when the sole purpose of one's existence wasn't focused entirely on oneself.

What he wasn't expecting was for FitzD's new lady friend to be one of the wolves Kero had gone out of his way to warn Fitz about. His expression fell flat. He wouldn't dare try to hide his concern for this relationship, nor would he actively support what he felt was a bad decision. In this, his concern trumped Kero's happiness that Fitz had moved on. This felt like a step backwards and a scenario in which Fitz would once again be opening himself up to heartbreak.

"I'm glad you seem happy," he replied, not trusting himself to say anymore.

FitzDutiful noted the look, the body language that screamed he was doing wrong. He shook his head, though pleased his friend decided to say nothing more than just he was happy; even if he wasn't. "You cannot judge a whole pack by a few. Even if she was one of the few, wolves can change - those that were once the harshest can be softened and those who were the softest can be hardened. Life and experiences change us all; me with Raissa leaving and Zaria with her family leaving. Come by one time and meet her, you'll see she puts Silvertip Mountain first and foremost."

He left it at that, he wasn't completely sure what Kerosene was thinkings or what he was actually concerned about. FitzDutiful jumped to the only conclusion he could, he was with a wolf from the pack Kero had had bad relations with and that was the problem. But now she was a Silvertip wolf and the pack came first. He knew that; yes there was the secret that they would kill those wolves not of their pack. He wasn't the soft, gullible wolf he had been when the two had met.

Kero seemed to have nothing more to say, so FitzDutiful turned and left - unsure where this left them as friends.