Neverwinter Forest And I'm ready to soar

Someone from STM, perhaps? Since they’ve been camping out close by for a while now, aha.
You’re always welcome to pop in, too, @Leo

It’d been quite some time already since the female had settled herself in the woods with her younger companion. The lay of the forest had been somewhat engraved in her mind, allowing her to easily pinpoint her location no matter where she was within it. It was both comforting and worrisome. She enjoyed always knowing where and how close she was to the campsite she’d been staying at with Leo, but also unnerving due to the pack that resided close by. Their exact place of settlement wasn’t known to her, of course, but she knew of the general area. There were times in which she’d gotten close to the borders, but never did she walk directly up to them or cross the threshold into the pack’s land. To do so would be entirely too dangerous, as well as utterly foolish. It wasn’t in her character to act in such an immature manner, thus she kept herself as far from the invisible lines as possible. Despite those precautions she’d gone the extra length to take, however, she knew they could not stay much longer. It wasn’t safe, and she felt the child had healed enough already to continue on with their travels.

Having settled her mind on it, Asterr departed from the makeshift den in order to scout out the forest one last time. Her goal was to trek around its perimeter to see which direction called out to her, that way she could retrieve Leo and then set out for their next destination. It was tedious work, her gut sometimes nagging her to go one way, then dropping that idea in a second and replacing it with something else. At one point, something within her urged her towards the claimed mountain—for a better view of the land, probably—but she did not answer the silent voice. Instead, the dragon had turned herself right around and headed in the opposite direction, her shaded form crossing the earth with precise steps. It was only when she broke through the northeastern edge of trees that her body came to a halt, nose tilting up against the wind as she inhaled.

There.

Something about the fragrance of the air and the mountains from which it’d originated had her yearning to journey towards it. Alas, she could not—not yet, anyways. Asterr refrained from departing from the woods entirely, having to forcibly turn herself around and start back in the direction she’d come from. Their next location had been decided, all she needed to do was retrieve Leo and hope he agreed with her belief that he was okay to travel.

@Mason, assuming at some point Mason would have told FitzDutiful that he met two lone wolves, even if he didn't mention the details. Let me know if this needs changing

FitzDutiful had been keeping on eye on the two lone wolves that kept lingering near their lands. They hadn't harmed Mason whenever he had met them, but he had been watching them from the tops of the mountain. They never threatened his lands but neither did they leave, they didn't seem to be massing numbers either. It was time, however, to find out what they were around for. His initial reaction had expected them to come and request to join, but they never did. Then he feared they were starting a pack of their own, but he was sure Mason would have mentioned that. Now things were more stable in his pack, he felt he could leave them temporarily.

As he headed down from the tops of the mountain, the snow faded away - it was more severe near the top than at the bottom. The female almost left the safety of the woods as he got closer, but turned away from his borders and headed back the way she had come. Intrigued he followed silently, until she once again turned to start back towards the deeper forest lands.

"You seem lost, or unsure of something." he said, stepping in front of her to block her way back into the forest. His tone wasn't angry or unkind, though it was stern and spoke of his alpha status - that he was used to having his questions answered.

The girl’s mind had been set, and her body had responded by setting her on a direct course back to Leo. She felt it important she reach him as soon as physically possible, a nagging feeling in the back of her head motivating her to obey. It wasn’t like her usual wanderlust, but something different—something she couldn’t quite place. It was only when the ivory male stepped in between her and her destination that she recognized the feeling as originating from her nerves, though rare it was that she ever grew nervous. Of course, with the time she’d spent so near a claimed land, it was only logical that stress would eventually weasel its way into her system. In spite of her inner turmoil, her outward appearance remained calm and collected, her gaze studying the other rather than turning away from him. Never had she laid eyes upon him before, though the scent he carried was familiar. It was the same of the boy she’d met not too long ago, as well as similar to that which lingered along the invisible boundary lines of the mountain’s pack. He had to be a member of said pack, she realized, though still she did not panic. There was no reason to fear him, for the girl was in an unclaimed territory, and he’d yet to show any signs of aggression. It was due to those reasons that the yearling chose to answer his words, rather than depart from the scene in silence.

“I was unsure of something,” Asterr admitted, both her voice and gaze remaining even. “But I no longer am.” It was true, her statement. For a long while, she’d been uncertain of where to go next, of which location she would stop at with her companion. Thankfully, her unasked query had been answered, and she was ready to carry on with her journey. “Has something brought you to these woods?” she asked, mildly curious of his reasoning for leaving his land. While it wasn’t uncommon for wolves to travel away from home—whether it be to explore or something else—she couldn’t help but think it wasn’t a mere coincidence that they’d run into one another.

The female confirmed that she had been unsure of something but now had made her mind up. She returned the question to him, asking what he was doing in the woods. Given her honesty he decided that it was only fair for him to be honesty as well. "You. You and the young one you travel with." he smiled, gently, before continuing. "I heard about you from my son and, after months of you not coming to see us nor moving on..." FitzDutiful trailed off as he tried to find the kindest way about it. "Well, I came to see what your intentions were. We have space if you want a place on the mountain and if you intend to start a pack of your own here I figured it was good to know that too."

FitzDutiful sat down, looking at the black female. He doubted she wanted to join for she had already met one member of the mountain and still hadn't approached though her ethereal vibe was slightly disorientating. If he hadn't been so attracted to his mate, he would have been in awe of her but his attachment to Zaria protected him from that awe that her elegance would have inspired. For now, he watched her his eyes betraying the curiosity that he felt.

Bumping this quickly on account of it getting old, ehe @FitzDutiful

The reasoning behind his trip to the forest did not shock her, for it was the answer she’d been expecting. It did not concern her, really—in fact, it would have been more concerning had their presence been ignored altogether. As he continued, it dawned on her that she was standing before the father of the boy she’d met. Judging by the way he spoke, she couldn’t help but presume that whatever issue had transpired between them had since been resolved, but never would she ask for true confirmation. It was a family affair, after all, and she had no business butting into it. Thereby, with that ejected from her thoughts, she was able to properly take in his words. The first response she gave was soundless, being nothing more than a smile and a soft shake of her head. When thinking of founding a tribe of her own, the mental picture appealed to her greatly, but the trees that surrounded them currently simply wouldn’t do. “I am certain your pack is lovely,” the girl began, following the male’s lead and sitting as the words danced off her tongue. “But I do not believe it is the place I am meant to be at.” It was a home that already held strong bonds throughout it, and the last thing she wished to do was intrude upon their family.

Asterr glanced away for a moment, her silvery gaze scanning the space around them. It was a decent woodland, but something about it didn’t quite fit the home she had in mind for herself. “When the time is right, I will settle down and start a tribe of my own.” Her tone was soft, almost sounding as if her soul itself was elsewhere. Deeper into the land, perhaps, already settling upon the earth she would someday call home. It was then she grew silent, allowing for the seconds to tick by as she recollected her straying mind, before turning and resting her eyes on the pallid figure once more. “The place I will settle at is not here in these woods, however, so you need not worry about anyone competing against your family.” Even if she had felt an unyielding attraction to the brush beneath her paws and the canopy above, the close proximity to another’s homeland would always be enough to have her moving along. It was foolish to settle so close to someone else’s land, she believed, and would in no way benefit either side.

“My companion and I will be leaving soon,” the dragon apprised. “I believe he has healed enough to start traveling again and, if he agrees with my judgement, we will be departing within the next few days.” It’d been far too long since she’d allowed herself to wander across the land freely, so the sooner they were able to head out, the better. “I do apologize for our staying as long as we have. While I hunted only small prey and what birds I could find, I can’t help but wonder if that affected your food source in some way. If it did, by some stroke of poor luck, I give my condolences to anyone who may have suffered due to that.” As always, her words were sincere, the apologetic tone she’d taken on being something that was unable to be forged.

So sorry! I've been focusing my old threads down and this is my last one from before xmas so you've got my full attention :D

Asterr wasn't about to join there pack and FitzDutiful resisted raising a wolfish eyebrow at that. He was now feeling a little concerned that she was going to found a pack at Neverwinter Forest. It didn't concern him as much as it used to, ever since they had moved to the other side of the mountain they had much more space and the neighbouring lands felt more open than they had. It seemed as though Asterr could read his thoughts, though, and confirmed that she was founding her own pack, but not in the forest.

"Thank you," he said, after she mentioned they would be travelling when her companion was better. He paused, allowing her to finish and shook his head in response to what she had said. "No, you've not affected us. We recently moved our lands to encompass the entirety of Silvertip Mountain, instead of just this facing slope. It had meant we have some of our own food sources and two forests to feed off instead of just the one." He motioned his head towards the hot springs; "It also means we don't worry quite so much about the number of lone wolves seeking the hot springs."

He smiled, liking the female and her sense of honesty; "Where do you plan to head to next?" he queried of her, wondering where the new pack would spring from.

Yay! :D

The dragon gave a nod of her head when thanked, though she felt the phrase to be unnecessary. If anyone should be giving thanks, it would make sense for it to be her. After all, she had remained so close to a pack's territory for quite some time, but not a single member had chosen to chase her out. She was grateful for that, really, as well as for being let in on her lack of influence over the ecosystem. "I am glad our presence was of no trouble to your family's source of nourishment," she voiced, offering a friendly flick of her tail. When she'd first learned of the pack nearby, she'd worried over several things after deciding to camp out in the forest. First, whether or not she and Leo would be discovered, and what type of behavior they'd be met with. Second, if they should be found, whether they'd still be permitted to stay or not. And lastly, how their being there would affect the prey. Luckily for her, it seemed as if her worries had been for nothing, as the wolves of Silvertip had been nothing but kind to her—granted, Fitz was only the second member she'd met, but that small detail didn't change her opinion of them.

Asterr had nothing against answering his questions, finding them to be somewhat pleasant. After so long of being in the company of a young boy, it was nice to be able to speak with another adult. "The mountains," the dragon answered, gesturing towards the Sunspire range with her muzzle. "When I first saw them in the distance, I was met with the desire to walk along their ridges. I am not sure exactly where along them I will settle, but something tells me they are where I am meant to be." She had a sneaking suspicion that it was Draco who filled her with the need to live atop a peak, to claim a proper dragon's lair, but she knew her own desires were also within the mix of reasons. Having come from a tribe of dragons, it made sense that she'd wish to live as close to the sky as she could get, to be that much closer to the clouds above.

It appeared the female was heading to a different mountain and not for the first time he was pleased he had picked a singular one instead of part of the range. It was so much clearer which mountain was his with it being the only mountain in the area. The entire surface area was his with no hidden boundaries and it made territorial marking easier too. No need to ensure that the line was steady and consistent among the rises and falls of the mountain surface. No need to be sure that an unmarked cave lead straight into the heart of their territory.

It occurred to him that he didn't know the name of the female. "May I get your name?" he asked, unaware that he had yet to give his. He assumed Mason had mentioned their names, though why that was his assumption it was hard to say. Another thought came and he tacked it quickly onto the end of his previous question. "And the name of the land you intend to call where you settle? It'd be nice to have names for the neutral packs around us." They may be moving to the ridge, but a wolf could roam far and that put the range within a day's meanderings.

The fact that it was a range she yearned to settle upon and not a singular mountain mattered little to her. While marking the borders could, possibly, grow tiresome with how precise one would need to be, she felt it would be worth it in the end. She'd have a home for both herself and Leo, and the various ridges surrounding them could prove beneficial if she played her cards right. Though the downsides, too, were noted, she believed them to be heavily outweighted by that which she deemed to be positives.

When her name was requested, she felt slightly embarassed for having not offered it sooner. It was an impolite thing to do, but the gesture had evaded her mind entirely until that point. "Please, forgive me for having not introduced myself sooner. My name is Asterr Draconid," she answered. "May I ask yours?" During her conversation with Mason, his father's name had never come up. Come to think of it, the boy had neither given his name, nor was her's given to him. It was not the first time she'd slipped up and forgotten to give an introduction, it'd seemed. She was not happy that things had turned out that way, but she could not travel back in time to change it. Thankfully, the topic was then moved back to the tribe she'd wished to form, and the name it would carry was questioned. "Ryūjin," the dragon said, her response coming easily. She'd put a great deal of thought into it during the night, and could think of no better name.

FitzDutiful smiled as Asterr apologised for not introducing herself. She reminded him of how he was before he became alpha - ever willing to please and sometimes putting himself out for others. That had had to stop, either because of the circumstances he had been placed in or because of the pressure of alpha-ship. He couldn't have told you which. "FitzDutiful Silvertip." he responded with a small nod of his head. It was then onto the name of her pack, a reply that he could scarce pronounce.

There seemed to be an influx of foreign tongues in the valley, but FitzDutiful didn't have time to talk any longer as a howl went up from the nearby mountain summoning him home. "I'd best go. An alpha's duty and all." He nodded his head once more in a goodbye before turning on his tail and heading off back home. He had achieved what he needed to here, there was no threat looming and maybe another pack that they could be friendly with.

The dragon would do well to remember his name, as well as that of his pack (which shouldn't be too hard, considering he'd taken the claim as his surname). Even he had said they would be on neutral terms, and while that wasn't quite an alliance of any sort, it also wasn't anywhere near an enemy. With her tribe to be so freshly formed in the swing of winter, it would do well to keep track of those she'd become neutral towards, just in case any pointers might be needed. The role of a leader was not foreign to her, of course, but she was certain it would be unlike her standing back home. She would not be presented upon a golden pedestal for the other presence lingering within her mind, but rather, she'd have to earn the respect and trust of her followers firsthand. It was sure to be an adventure, but the girl felt better knowing that she wouldn't have to worry about any outside pressures from at least one (of many) pack.

"I hope that we may cross paths again someday," she called after him, giving her farewells in the process. Asterr had refrained from requesting a greeting to be given to his son from her, for she'd not wished to keep him any longer. Besides, if announced by name, she knew the boy would not recognize her—an issue she would have to rectify someday. For the time being, however, she'd taken her own leave, heading deeper into the woods in order to share with Leo her beliefs. They would not be residing within the woods any longer, and for that she was rather glad.