Dragoncrest Cliffs midas is king & he holds me so tight

@Eastwood yooo
Setting a day before the raid on Drageda

When the world was blue and neither slumbering nor quite awake, the Brana rose. Drifting from the scarlet treeline and its earthy caverns, she wandered without purpose to that pre-dawn gleaming lake. It glitters on the thin crust of frost and thaw as Teekon's sun peeks. It unwinds through redwoods and the spires of the cliffs. The salted, lukewarm breeze holds the scent of coral in its airy fingers.

She was silvered in that light, too, so much that it almost shone right through her to the bone. Nevermind whether or not she went noticed. She was simply Brana; possibly a hopes to become included with the rest of Drageda, and yet all the more hesitant in doing so. Here, these wolves were warmed by the ocean's water that heaved through their veins; built for themselves and their caution to the brackish winds. In her glimmering eyes, they seemed the stuff of sea shanties borne on the waves unending.

And with all that had happened these past few days ...

Lashes fluttering together, Aure shook herself, the jut of her willowy body slight beneath the mass of her snowy mane. Gradually, her steps became tentative as she neared the wintery shore of the lake. So, for that moment, she banished such worries with a switch of a feathery tail, bent, and drank from the chilling waters.

East had been up long before the sun as usual. He had run a quick, solitary patrol along the cliffs, weaving through the redwoods with the ease of someone who had traversed the forest many times before. As a wolf that was found comfort in routine, he was not completely looking forward to learning a different territory, but as always, he would do what was expected of him. His relationship with his mom was slightly less strained than it had been when he first arrived, but it still weighed heavy on his mind, making his work a welcome distraction. 

As his short patrol came to an end, his attention was drawn to the lake as it came into view between the trees. Further piquing his interest, he noticed a new packmate he had not met yet. With a low chuff to announce his presence, he moved to the water's edge, dipping his head once in greeting before lowering his muzzle to the water to take in the frigid liquid. As he drank, his golden gaze drifted to snowy women, curiosity always one of his ruling urges. When he had quenched his thirst, he lifted his head, licking the excess water from his lips and silently studying the northerner.

Flushed nose still pressed to the water, she allowed her mind to wander as she languidly drank. It wasn't until her ears flicked towards the sound of a soft, announcing chuff that she noticed another join her. The Brana caught a flash of gold - his eyes, and in turn held them with her own, turning the color over in her mind as if she were sifting medallions.

Like most of the others here, he, too, loomed over her even from where they both crouched to the shore. Her gaze inspected the creamy-bronze of his own coat, and there was a slight sigh of relief in the back of her mind; though she was paler still, it was good to know that the entire pack wasn't a mass of stormclouds.

"Morning," her voice was soft and lilting, as if to not disturb the slips of sun that'd begun to chase some blue away. Rising up again, she rounded to face him fully; settling back onto her haunches and hugging a feathery tail about her. The she-wolf hadn't met him, either, but gazed heavy-lidded up at him with a soulful, tender look that still hummed of sleep.

She greeted him before turning to face him and taking a seat. East watched her silently as she did all of this, and paused a few moments before finally taking a few steps towards the pale woman and taking a seat as well. She had already been accepted into the pack, so his distrust of her was already less than with an actual stranger, but that didn't mean he trusted her yet. He wasn't necessarily prejudice against outsiders who joined the ranks, but he often withheld most of himself from them longer. He couldn't help it; they still posed just the slightest threat to the pack until they proved themselves worthy, and as someone who devoted most of his time to assessing threat levels and trying to keep everyone safe, it was something that was hard to ignore. 

He realized he hadn't said anything yet and finally returned her greeting with a quiet, gravely, Morning. Deciding to offer a little more, he added, I'm Eastwood. He fell silent again after than, waiting for her to speak.

She knew what it meant when greeted with some wariness; like so many others, she was no stranger to it. The look of reserved kindness didn't leave her once-lovely face, but rather stayed. Ears, thick for more colder dawns, leant forward at his words, catching them like dew on a spider’s web—Eastwood. Her mind mused over the name, considering it and turning it over; contemplating it like a new thread in the skies, wondering how it would fare from here on.

The ivory she-wolf supposed was likened to that, too. Nonetheless, she harbored his name in the recesses of her mind, and offered her own to compensate for the quiet between them, “My name is Aure.” Gentle, breathy, with an airy bite in the words that was neither ferocious or unkindly; only foreign.

More often than not, she was a mediator—a perfect listener, unless she was prone to find star-stuff in the bearing of another. How they moved, brandished their words. Her eyes, as they always did, had moseyed up to the morning heavy-blue heavens; where the rest of these constellations had faded back into the beginnings of sun’s shine, only an armful of them continued to steadfastly blaze on.

“I’m not sure if we have met, before? With what ze newcomers at ze sound, everything seems to have become... stilted in disharmony.” It was true she wasn’t apart of Drageda, the kru. Not yet. A part of herself still lingered at the possibility; providing her astronomical efforts to them may yet secure her place here. ‘Prove’ herself, as it be. But she couldn’t help but wonder how—when the children of these cliffs relied on salted warriors and healers?

Super sorry for the wait!

He studied her as she spoke, unsure how to feel about the snowy female. She seemed harmless enough, but he didn't get to where he was today by assuming a wolf's intentions were always accurately portrayed in their body language.  He supposed it was kind of a lonely way to go through life--assuming anyone he didn't know might have some secret agenda, but he had seen it too many times, and he would be damned if anyone ever got past his guard before he was sure he could trust them. Still, it didn't mean he couldn't be kind and somewhat amiable while remaining mostly reserved. 

We have not met before. I never forget a face, and this is the first I've seen yours, he answered first, his tone no-nonsense as usual. To her next words, he merely shrugged and nodded at first; he was no stranger to disharmony. In fact, he wondered if he could even live a life that only harbored peace. It seemed his only purpose was to see how much shit he could take from the world and still keep moving. East had the feeling that too much calm would make him restless; he needed wolves to protect--needed to have something to keep his martial mind occupied. It seems that way, he offered, stiffening a little at the mention of the sound. Nothing I'm not used to, East added next, shrugging again. It was a small admission--something he was comfortable giving a stranger in an attempt to break the ice a little.

A low, soft laugh bubbled from her throat at his admission, "That, we can agree on. Peace is something to strive for -- at least, to most. However, if there isn't a bit of conflict here and there, things begin to seem..." She trailed off, pressing her lips thin in thought. "Seem... remiss?" A shrug of delicate shoulders. "Though I learned such factors too late, I've come to live by ze life of never becoming too comfortable, too... relaxed."

She looked out over the unending lake, letting her thoughts slip from her shamelessly, "I'd become too languid, I suppose. And anxious." The she-wolf stretched a neck, working the muscles in a minute arc, as if her own words affected her. Her behavior, so gullible and giving with personal information, contrasted with Eastwood's more reserved, rationing one. Flicking her tail about her hocks and shifting on her paws, she looking back over at the kru, a wry, hesitant glint in her eye, lest she be wrong. "How about you? With such a brooding nature," she teased, "I doubt you are skayona."

East listened quietly while she spoke. She seemed to share his aversion to peace, at least somewhat. It really was nice in theory, but he wondered if it even really existed. It seemed to him that most of the time, he was destined to be at war with someone, even if sometimes that someone was himself. Being too comfortable is dangerous, he replied. That's how you get hurt, East added, shrugging a little. He truly believed that; he had the evidence to prove it too.

He followed her gaze to the water, listening quietly again as she spoke. He nodded his head in agreement with her first statement. Although, he found anxiety came with most situations, so having something to focus on always helped--for him anyway. A small smile formed at her teasing. No not really, he replied. The more passive trades certainly held their own value, but he was more interested in protecting what was theirs. And how about you? he asked, gaze moving to the snowy woman once more. What calls to you?

’What calls to you?’ A smile practically ghosted her lips, only there if you looked by the corner of your eye. Aure took her own lethargic gaze to the slowly-brightening heavens again, considering the Celestium, ”Usually, I will say ze stars, and it still remains true. I still adore them; I will always watch them, as they do to I. And yet...” she removed her spirit from the skies, lashes shuttering before reopening across the lake. She studied the morning light that glimmered there, ruminating with her next words.

”And yet... I wonder if I may return to service as a healer. Granted, I possess no great knowledge of botany, although I was born into a sanctuary.” Aure stilled again, before lending, ”I’ve thought of traveling once more, however, I’ve traveled for ze entire second year of my life, simply to get here. Although I love ze world and it’s wonders, I am... tired. Tired of running.”

In her listless state, she hadn’t realized the last little tidbit she’d tacked on until several hearbeats later. A flutter of blinks, and then she turned to Eastwood, her gaze a bit... rattled, but not towards him. ”Have you ever been... ahm, hunted?” Strangers they may be, but his presence made her feel more lax than she’d been able to feel in so long.