Mount Apikuni i got a heart that don’t speak to me anymore

@Marten

So it’s been established that he wasn’t too fond of the Courtfall wolves nor were they of him. Well, not all of them hated him but Star certainly did. She didn't take kindly to his blunt attitude. Oh well, few did. It didn't bother him. He never asked anyone to like him anyways. 

When morning's light touched Courtfall, Cupid was nowhere to be found. Rather than being in his usual spot, he had traveled to the neighboring mountain just hours before. He stood upon the northern edge, staring at the barren slope.

marten strayed from the borders of uaine gorsedd again that day, though not too far... as if he had any business climbing mountains. he just needed to stretch his limbs, and it seemed this territory was victim of his wandering today. 

he took to the slopes, though they weren't as dramatic as the towering mountain north of them. the winder landscapes around him was quite pretty, he notes, but he isn't sure winter is as nice as warm spring, when prey is plentiful and he isn't worried about freezing to death all the time. hah. interrupting his nature walk and inner monologue, marten spots a dark wolf, handsome at least from a distance, but starkly standing out against the white. he pauses, staring forward, ears flicking forward as he observes.

The observer blended in quite perfectly with the surroundings, cause it took Cupid awhile to notice he was being watched. When he finally does take notice he believes it's the old woman rather than a complete stranger. Did she follow him all the way here just to nag?

He turned towards the silver and glared. Oh great. Come to bother me again you old hag?

at the comment, marten's ears flicked backwards in a bit of disbelief -- did he call him a hag? but the pieces fell together quickly, and the pale young thing shook his head, voice probably revealing his true identity -- that of a stranger. hardly a hag, he says with a sarcastic tone, though sarcasm wasn't marten's strong suit. 

his ear flicks forward, now. i think you have me mistaken for someone else, he shares, in case the stranger didn't catch the hint.

His stomach folded in on itself as soon as he spoke. Oh shit. Nope, he definitely wasn't the old woman, not a woman at all. Just another dude wandering just like him (or so he assumed).

Oh, uh, yeah. His eyes bounced around to and fro, anywhere but the man. My bad. You just look a lot like her—er—well, kinda. You're not old. 

Cupid took a deep breath and returned his attention to the stranger. Ah, whatever, forget about it. What are you doing up here?

as the stranger stumbled over his words -- something that didn't surprise marten too much given the circumstance -- he glances down at himself. he sure felt old. ages old. but he was probably younger than this guy. his gaze falls back on the dark male, his nose twitching. he doesn't recognize the scent that the man wears, but that doesn't say much since marten had barely seen more than a small portion of the valley below. 

walking, says marten with a flick of an ear, i live in the woods below, looking to see if i could find any abandon caches or resilient herbs... he trails off, and his empty paws signify that he hasn't been very successful. 

i'm marten, he says.

Cupid was curious about this forest he spoke of. He lifted his chin to smell the scent that wafted towards him. It's nothing he could name specifically, but he knew there were wolves. Another pack and so close by. How did he not notice before? It was a bit strange, were groups usually so close to eachother?

It's hard finding anything right now. It was always hard for medics this time of year. It seemed like things were more difficult now. Not a plant in sight. The only thing I've managed to gather are cobwebs. And they can only do so much.

Cupid realized that he was preoccupied with this herb talk. He'd almost forgotten to introduce himself. Cupid, he returned.

marten noted the confusion -- or concern -- or perhaps a mix of both, and offered a small smile. we recently formed -- rather quickly, too, he explains without prompt, but didn't share too much about the pack otherwise.

to hear the other start to talk about herb gathering in the same demeanor that he had brought a reaction from marten, his ears pricking upright as his gaze fell down the man again. there was an abandoned cache -- probably by an old pack -- with some leftover supplies... not much, but good enough for me. but that's about all i've managed to find too. 

cupid. seemed ironic to marten, who knew of stories of a man named cupid. he always pictured the god to look paler... maybe with a rosy nose. but those were just stories, after all, this was an actual wolf before him. where are you from, cupid? he asks.

Seemed like this was a popular spot for wolves. A few weeks ago he wouldn't understand why. It was harder to travel up here, colder too. He still stood by that now, but the mountains have grown on him slightly. It was much more peaceful up here.

An abandoned cache sounded real useful right about now. If anyone in the court were to injure themselves or fall ill now, they'd be shit out of luck cause he barely had anything. Maybe there was another cache hidden around these parts. What a lucky find that would be.

I'm from Courtfall. It's over there. He gestured to the distant mountaintop with his nose. Do you know anything about it? It was a bit of a strange question to ask. But hey, maybe this stranger knew more about the residents then he did. It wasn't out of the realm of possibility, Cupid wasn't the social type.

marten follows the mans gaze, his lips turning into a frown. ah -- no, he says with a shake of his head, glancing back at cupid, should i? the question holds more weight than he means for it to, but he plays it off with a smirk of a grin that fits weirdly on his face. though marten always prided himself on being knowledgable of others -- emotions, expressions, motives -- he finds that, after indra's death, he is much more awkward than he means to be. ugh. at least, he feels awkward, perhaps it doesn't come off that way. 

you're their healer then, right? he asks, trying to keep up the conversation.

@Marten I’m going through my threadlog and closing old threads so I’m gonna tack on an ending to this! if you want me to edit anything or revive this lmk

Nah. Part of him wished he did. Part of him wished he knew some big secret of this group, something that'll give him an excuse to leave. Oh well, he'd spend another day suffering up on that mountain. 

Yeah, the one and only. As far as he knew of anyways. Saying that out loud shakes him a bit. He's never thought about that before. The one and only... that meant his injured packmates would run to him if they were ill. How unfortunate for them—having a closed off wolf as a healer. If only he could have Marten's attitude. Seemingly bright and spry, perfect things for a caretaker. It made him a bit jealous. 

In an effort to cast the feeling aside he asked, What's your home like?

They continued to speak to eachother, sharing little details of there home here, some herb knowledge there. It was a nice way to keep his mind off his troubles, but of course it has to come to an end. Cupid eventually exused himself and made his way back to Courtfall.