Northstar Vale shed a little light

As he trailed along the outer layers of what appeared to be the remnants of a dead pack, Hadraniel silently wondered what had become of it. He could tell the claim was only recently abandoned and the sandy male was curious if any of it's fallen members still lurked within the dying territory. He thought they would make easy targets to lure back to Ryūjin and he was hopeful that a few still remained. But as he weaved his way threw the barren trees and further into the neglected forest, it became more and more apparent that little to no one remained. 

He took a moment to rest beside a fallen log before sucking in a breath of the cool winter air. Tipping his head to the flurry filled sky, Hadraniel let his call sweep across the remainder of the vale, summoning any who might still reside within it. He hoped that if anyone was left in the area that this would be enough to get their attention, otherwise he would be forced to leave empty handed and that was the last thing he wanted. So with nothing better to do than wait, the man plopped himself on his rump and waited for someone, anyone to come.

He hadn't left the Keep in weeks. Although it was cold and snowy, Tambourine decided that today would be a good day for a little bit of travel. He notified @Stark and @Banner that he would be leaving the territory and intended to be home by nightfall. He then headed toward the rear of the pack's domain, climbing into the mountains there and then dropping into the valley below. He left a trail of paw prints in the deep snow as he headed toward the Duskvale residence.

He was almost to Northstar Vale when a howl rose into the air. Although the message wasn't for him, Tambourine nonetheless howled back. He then made his way toward the call's source, his pace slowing as he encroached on what he assumed was claimed territory. The scents on the air were stale at best, though, and by the time he arrived to find a solitary stranger seated in the snow, his brow was furrowed quizzically.

"Hello," he said, mindful of his posture as he neared the beige stranger, "are you from Duskvale?" Where was Saena? Where was Warbone? Where was their pack?

He was surprised to hear his howl replied to so soon and a surge of hope shot through him that someone from the fallen pack still remained. As the soft patter of paws was heard in the distance, Hadraniel's ears swiveled atop his head towards the sound while his nose wiggled in an attempt to find whoever was approaching. Soon enough a stranger was revealed behind the thicket of trees, and while fully grown the youthfulness in his face revealed the fact that he was still young.

Any hope that Hadraniel had been clinging to instantly shattered the moment the boy asked him if he had been a part of this pack and the sandy male replied with a quick shake of his head. "Is that what this pack was called? Duskvale?" He asked, assuming the boy knew something about whatever this place used to be.

"Yeah," he replied, then added, "Was? They're not here anymore?" Tambourine's face fell. He hadn't liked Warbone nearly as much as Saena but, especially after their encounter here with Banner, he'd had high hopes for their flowering comradeship. Distressed at the thought of never seeing the she-wolf again in particular, he demanded softly, "Are you sure they're not around here somewhere? Why would they just... leave? Oh, hey, Saena told me they travel a lot and always stay together, so maybe they just left for a little bit but they'll be back?" He couldn't help but sound hopeful as he eyed the stranger.

Abruptly, the youth remembered his manners. "Oh, I'm Tambourine, by the way. I live at Marauder's Keep, back that way." He lifted one broad forepaw from the snow and gestured to the mountains behind him, then fell quiet as he awaited a mutual introduction and perhaps some feedback on what he'd said.

Duskvale. He wondered if Ryūjin had an alliance with them since they were so close in proximity. "Doesn't seem like it" he answered while glancing around as if he was searching for some member that might still remain. His ears fell back as the boy began to spout out questions and an annoyed expression soon found it's way on the male's face. "If we're able to wander this far into the territory without running into anyone I doubt they're still here." Either that was the answer or these wolves seriously sucked at border patrol. 

"It'd be foolish of them to all travel and abandoned their claim, but who knows maybe they relocated or something" he answered with a shrug of his shoulders. Whatever happened to them wasn't really any of his concern, but Hadraniel couldn't help but be interested in what had caused their downfall. Perhaps winter had been too much and had forced them to leave or maybe they had been chased off? "Hadraniel" he introduced in return and used his muzzle to motion to the mountain behind him. "I live in that mountain over there, it's called Ryūjin."

There was a slight edge of annoyance in the stranger's tone as he refuted Tambourine's optimism. The youngster's lips pressed together. He didn't argue but he also didn't let go of his silent hope that Saena and her wolves had merely stepped out for a bit. They'll be back!

The adult introduced himself and mentioned the name of his pack. This immediately piqued Tambourine's curiosity and made him momentarily forget about the fate of Duskvale. "Ryūjin?" he repeated, rolling the name around in his mouth. "What's it like?" he asked.

He had been expecting the boy to continue on about these Duskvale wolves, but when it seemed he just downright forgot about them it came as a bit of a shock. Hadn't he just been asking a bunch of questions about them as if they were his dearest friends? Oh well, Hadraniel was at least glad that he wasn't  being bombarded with questions he didn't know the answers to. "It's pretty cool" he answered with a swish of his tail, his bad mood practically gone.

"Parts of the mountain caved in so now a forest grows inside of it" he explained, pride clear on his face. He had to admit that Ryūjin was pretty damn interesting, especially for an adventure like himself. "What about Marauder's Keep, what's it like there?" he asked, curious to hear what other's homes were like.

He was after information about the pack itself, their ideologies and practices and general characteristics. Instead, he received a description of the territory. Tambourine wasn't disappointed about this, though. He pictured the landmark in his head, wishing he could see it for himself. He was endlessly captivated by other packs, even if he knew he would never, ever leave Marauder's Keep.

Speaking of which, he instantly replied, "It's great! We live in a forest and sleep together in a big cave called The Crook. Stark and Banner are the leaders." He paused for a beat. He almost always introduced Stark as his foster father, loudly and proudly, but now he added, "They're kind of like my parents." Banner was more of a big sister than anything but, together, the two of them were certainly the pup's parental figures in their way.

"Is there anything special about Ryūjin?" he wondered next, unaware of his possibly uncouth phrasing.

Hadraniel, while disappointed that how none of the Duskvale wolves decided to show, was at least glad to be able to receive some type information. His ears gave a twitch at the mention of how these leaders were like the kids parents, and he wondered if this was another abandoned child like the many he had met before. "What happened to your real parents?" he found himself asking aloud before he had the chance to take back the words. 

As for Ryūjin, "well I'm kinda new there so I don't know much, but I'm pretty sure they worship some God or something". As to who or what that God was he had no idea, and probably wouldn't find out for a while considering he wasn't exactly the religious type.

Tambourine shrugged lightly. "My mom's dead and my dad..." He smirked, only for his expression to fall. He'd meant to say, My dad's a bag of dicks! But Saena had bequeathed him that term and now she wasn't here anymore. Sure, he hoped she had only stepped out temporarily and that she would come back... but it still made him a little sad in the moment.

Hadraniel's words were a welcome distraction. Unaware that he hadn't finished his own sentence, Tambourine blinked his pale eyes and parroted, "Some god? What's some god? What's worship?" He'd heard the word before but he wasn't sure he really understood it. He peered inquisitively at the stranger-turned-acquaintance.

Hadraniel couldn't relate to having a dead mother or caring for her in that matter, but he only assumed that the father hadn't stuck around since he didn't finish his sentence. The sandy male wanted to welcome him to the daddy issues club, but the poor expression on the boy's face was enough to make Hadraniel hold his tongue.

"Ugh well I guess a God is a being or object that you find superior to your kind?" Was that the right way to describe it? "And worship is when you like devout yourself to and praise said God". He had never stuck around anywhere with a religion long enough to know how it really worked, but he assumed those were the main points.

For a long moment after Hadraniel explained, Tambourine remained silent. He was processing the other male's words, trying to parse and make sense of them. It reminded him of his conversation with Freyja. He had left that particular encounter feeling both enlightened and imbecilic all at once. He would probably come away from this one in the same mindset. He loved learning things about the great big world, though it inevitably left him feeling as if he knew nothing at all.

"So... kind of like an Alpha?" he wondered aloud after doing his best to stitch the facts together in his head. "Except that a god can be an object?" That part threw him. "What kind of object?" Tambourine looked around himself, silvery gaze falling on the nearest object (aside from the wolves themselves): "Like a pine cone?"

An alpha wasn't exactly what he was thinking when it came to a God, but the more he thought about it the more it made sense. Both were looked to for leadership and guidance and both had followers who they could command, so in some ways he saw the similarities. "Yea I guess like an alpha, but they can be other creatures too. Like I once heard about this group of wolves that worship a white stag."

As for the pine cone though "ugh I mean if you think the pine cone is that badass then by all means make it your god, but I was thinking more on the lines of like the sea or a mountain".

Hadraniel seemed a little annoyed by the continued questions and Tambourine's apparent obtuseness. The boy tore his gaze away from the pine cone and blinked up at him. He didn't think pine cones were particularly cool, though it did make more sense to worship something as large and majestic as a mountain. He didn't know what the sea was but he could picture a white stag. It was a pretty cool mental image.

Aware that he seemed to be testing Hadraniel's patience, Tambourine decided not to ask about the sea (he could ask Stark later) but instead said, "That's pretty interesting. How come they decide to worship these things? And what..." He trailed off, his tongue digging into his cheek and his one eye screwing up thoughtfully as he tried to articulate what he wanted to know. "What does worshiping do?"

This topic wasn't exactly his strong suit and he thought it better if the kid asked someone who actually knew the correct answers. But since nobody like that seemed to be hanging around, Hadraniel was forced to answer the questions as best he could...which wasn't very good at all. "Well I think when you worship you can like ask prayers and stuff" he answered with a shrug of his shoulders. "Prayers are questions or comments you say to your God that you want answered" he quickly added in before the boy had a chance to ask. 

Glancing over to the pine cone, Hadraniel thought the best way to get it through the kid's thick skull was to give him a demonstration. "So if the pine cone was your god then you could say something like...dear pine cone god please make me the best hunter in the entire world" he took a moment to look over and see if this was all sinking in before continuing "and if the God favors you them they'll answer your prayer." At least that's how Hadraniel thought it worked.

His brows lifted as Hadraniel explained the power of prayer. That didn't make any sense! How could a pine cone—or even a mountain or great white stag, for that matter—have any control over that sort of thing? If Tambourine wanted to become a great hunter, he needed to practice, practice, practice. He couldn't just ask someone to make him one like magic. He snorted, less derisively than in amusement.

"That sounds sort of—silly," the juvenile concluded, hoping his take on the matter wouldn't offend Hadraniel. "But I know," he continued in the very next breath, "that all wolves and packs are different." He thought again of Freyja, then Saena and Warbone, and how they all compared to the traditions of Marauder's Keep.

Speaking of which, he should probably head home and let Stark and Banner know about this development. He was still reluctant to believe Duskvale was gone for good, though Tambourine knew his leadership would want to know what he'd discovered. They might also be curious about Hadraniel and Ryūjin. Although Tambourine didn't fancy himself a scout, he liked the idea of coming home with news and information. It made him feel useful.

With that said, he sort of hated to part ways so soon. He loved meeting new people, making new friends! Although Hadraniel seemed a little exhausted by all his questions, Tambourine was happy to have made his acquaintance. And before he left, he must know, "What brought you here anyway? Did you know them? Saena and Warbone?"

His nose scrunched up at Tambourine's snort and he let out an exaggerated huff. This was exactly the reason why he didn't try to explain things, cause bratty teenagers, who were much like Hadraniel himself, couldn't take anything seriously. "I know" he responded with a rather stoic expression. At least he wasn't the only one to find religion to be a bit of a joke. He respected other's beliefs and everything, but unless their so called god was to come and stand in front of the Hadraniel himself, well he would find it difficult to believe in them.

As for his other question, "nah never met em. I came down to look for some loners that I can recruit but haven't had much luck" and that's all he said on the matter. He was unaware what the relationship between Ryūjin and Marauder's Keep was or if there was one at all. But he wasn't about to spill the fact that they were few on numbers to someone who could very well be an enemy he was unaware of. He seriously doubted that was the case though since Tambourine did seem to be aware of Ryūjin until now, but he'd rather be safe than sorry.

He hadn't met them and though it took Tambourine a few beats to put two and two together, he decided Hadraniel must have come here in the hopes of picking up some stragglers. But there was no one left. Whatever had happened to Duskvale's members, it had happened to all of them. Tambourine could only hope they were all together and in one piece, wherever they were.

"Ohh," he said a little dumbly, not really sure what else to say, before adding, "I should be getting back to the Keep. It was nice meeting you! Thanks for telling me about Ryūjin." The lanky youth turned to go back in the direction he had come, though not without glancing over a silver shoulder blade to say a last, "Bye!"

Having gotten what little information he was going to receive, Hadraniel could tell their game of give and take was coming to an end. He gave a nod when thanked for speaking about Ryūjin and shouted out a final "cya" before turning to head home. He hadn't achieved his goal of recruiting anyone but had at least managed to get a hold of some information concerning the wolves that once lived here. He would visit again sometime in the future to check once more for any stragglers but he doubted he'd find any.

So with nothing better to do the male made his way home, eyes peeled for anything to eat. All that talking had caused quite an appetite.