Whitebark Stream Return

She had turned westward when she'd seen the smoking mountain, and though she was attempting to continue northward (albeit along a detour) as she walked something about this place was becoming more and more familiar.  The snow had shifted to freezing rain as she walked along the banks of the partially iced-over stream.  The trees along its bank provided some cover, and her thick coat provided the rest of the protection she needed from the elements.  Sure, it wasn't fun but she was going to keep moving until she either found a clear route or figured out why something was nagging at her.

Skydance wasn't usually the sort to forget a place (or a face) but why wasn't she remembering this one?  Maybe she was just near somewhere familiar.  That made a bit more sense, but it made her curious -- if the only place she was heading was home, there wasn't going to be any problem with her delaying a little longer just to check this place out again.  She'd been gone over a year, another few months or whatever weren't going to cause the end of the world.  Heck she was already gonna have to go out of her way, so yeah, make it fun at least.

She spotted a slightly denser copse of trees up ahead and she pointed he paws that way.  She could get out of the storm, clean up, and wait for things to clear a bit before continuing on to this new adventure.

Kiwi paced the taiga slightly less as her search expanded, but she still traversed it frequently.  She kept an almost obsessive eye on the comings and goings, mainly because she knew her time was short.  Winter was here at its heaviest and by the time the herds returned with spring she needed a hunting party.  She would ensure that they thrived.

That day, as luck would have it, fortune saw fit to give her an opportunity.  She saw the other woman and made an immediate beeline for her, adjust from her previous course (which led back to the mountain).  The weather had caused her to turn around, but this was more important.  Besides, this way led to shelter.

You! Who are you?  She called out, lifting her head and tail with a confident smile as she hit the cover of the trees.  She didn't introduce herself just yet... she would wait.  She didn't approach too closely either.  This woman was larger than her in size, one worth recruiting if she had the brains to match.

Ah, cover! She shook out her fur, plopped down and started grooming some of the grit and snow out from between her toes. She was doing so daintily until she spotted the other wolf approaching, hum. A second of pause and she continued, finishing what she was doing and placing her paw back on the ground.

Oh, bold one from the sound of it? Honestly she wasn't entirely sure if she was trying to be dominant or just proud -- the two overlapped at times in more ways than she cared to parse. Skydance tipped her head like a curious bird, replying in a tone that didn't seem necessarily offended, but more bemused at the abruptness, My, not one for small talk and proper introductions then? I generally request that those planning on sharing my trees be a bit more polite about it, but I suppose there's a bit more room here than some. She was... probably(?) not being too serious.  A shrug and she continued in the same tone and a slight tilt of her head the other way, Though you may call me Skydance if you want to cut to the chase.

It was immediately clear that Kiwi would not receive the level of deference to which she was accustomed (she never did, it was unrealistic).  Small talk is useless.  And no one requests anything of me.  No one who was a stranger. Kiwi had a bad habit of forgetting that recruitment required certain niceties.

I am the queen of Skairipa.  Are you looking to settle in the north, Skydance?  She was still clipped in tone, but at least she wasn't pushing aggressively forward.  She hadn't outright insulted her yet.

Okay, that was deserving of a little over-the-glasses style look.  So definitely ego-related.  Her first sentence was slightly flatter, If you're not keen on names, Queen of Skairipa, then my title is Tine of the Spire-Crown.  But then it was back to her previous cheer and expression, Sounds rather dreary if you're in such a rush all the time though.. You don't mind missing half the fun of being a bit nosy?  The world was much more interesting when you could get yourself into trouble of your own choosing...

And apparently the terse responses weren't going to keep Skydance from being just as long-winded as she so wished, And I can't say location has anything to do with where I may or may not settle.  I find it best to choose based on the people.  She continued with a smile that had a slightly devious edge, I've found some wolves aren't to keen on the sorts of quite harmless trouble I'm good at finding.  This younger woman struck her as potentially one of those wolves.  It was far better to find that out sooner than later -- if she didn't have a sense of humor about it, Skydance wouldn't be particularly appealing, would she?  Though it was sometimes amusing to see them flounce off when she wasn't readily impressed by their lack of charm -- usually it was boorish men, though.

Besides, if she found Skydance annoying enough, she'd probably leave and go find some different trees and Skydance could see if any more amiable company arrived before the weather cleared.

Just by dint of being who she was, Kiwi was immediately skeptical when she came back with a title of her own.  Her aim with every stranger so far had been to recruit, but she was not willing to do so if the other was a potential rival to her claim.  She did like the way her title rolled off the woman's tongue however.  Queen of Skairipa.

Strangers never have anything worth being nosy over.  She answered back, but this time with a small smile forming despite herself.  This stranger had an odd mix of pride and respect and, while she didn't fall over to please Kiwi, her use of her chosen moniker vaulted her in the girl's good graces.  Suddenly she was feeling rather friendly.

I'm not interested in trouble that makes trouble for the pack.  That she was firm in.  But I don't care one bit about anyone outside it, if it's really as harmless as you say.  Trouble rarely was, usually it brought some kind of retaliation.  I'm looking to build something powerful, something that will last.  She wanted esteem, but she also wanted a family that she could rely on.  One that was hers, by choice, not by blood.

The fact this young queen didn't entirely give up and attempt to shoo her off actually surprised Skydance a little.  Maybe she wasn't a total lost cause -- might be close, though.  Questing for power certainly wasn't Skydance's thing, and she wasn't sure what that entailed in this case.  Again, it sounded like something some egotistical man would do.  Surely there had to be more behind it?  But again, she'd already seemed to have relaxed a little, so it might be a little fun to not push too hard and see if she could figure out what was beneath that rather terse exterior.

First thing was first -- okay, technically it was the second, but it was the easiest to clarify (maybe). She was certainly very dismissive of the trouble she'd mentioned as being anything serious, Oh, certainly! The ones who cared were wound a little too tight for their own good.  They'd probably find a reason to be offended if you sneezed too loudly.  Again, it's all about the people.  Of course, nothing was ever that simple, but from her eyes it had been clear cut enough that she was not at fault.

Sometimes it was better to play a little stupid and see if they'd tell you the answers.  But the queen knew what she wanted from her own pack, so it wasn't exactly a stretch there either.  Perhaps there was some sort of trick she'd figured out that Skydance hadn't known of, And really, nothing?  How do you go about getting wolves in your pack without being nosy?  Wouldn't that be risking letting someone in who happened to be completely batty once you got to know them? She asked it innocently, certainly doing her best to avoid seeming judgy.

Hmm.  Kiwi wasn't sure if she bought it, but it was as plausible as anything else, so she'd let it pass.  If this woman did decide to join her, she could always be chased out later if her 'trouble' proved to be more than her worth.  Silently, she let that thread drop and instead followed up on the second one.

This conversation bored her, mostly because she did not want to defend her own view.  She hated small talk not because it was useless but because she was no good at it, and learning the inanities of others didn't interest her one bit.  Even now she was growing impatient as Skydance explained her point.

As long as they are loyal, why do I care what they do?  And if they aren't loyal, I'll exile them.  She said simply, as though it were the easiest thing.  She knew that this only counted if she had enough behind her to enforce it, but she was convinced she would be a strong leader.  She was born for this.

And with that things had gone from "maybe a little sketchy" to "if this doesn't implode I'll eat a hat."  That may be a bit dramatic, but Skydance wasn't thinking it had a particularly positive outlook in the long term unless this nameless queen had a particularly sudden change of heart. Honestly, she was pretty sure that moving on would be her best bet -- there wasn't even the lure of fun on this one, this girl needs someone wanting to attempt to fix a particularly dire case.  It wasn't like anything tied Skydance here, and she'd done well enough on her own that she wasn't desperate for a pack and could easily find someplace else that didn't preemptively give her a headache.

Outwardly, she allowed herself to be uncertain, but shyly so.  Can't disagree with royalty, after all!  Of course, it's your right as Queen to do what you think is best, but I was always taught to avoid going to those lengths, as it was said having to exile wolves more than once in a blue moon meant that it would likely reflect on the leader's ability to properly build a pack.  Word does travel around after all, so preventative measures were always encouraged so you may have neighbors that don't regret your existence.  A very small shrug, possibly remorseful that she was bringing it up and speaking against the way she was planning to rule.

But hey, Skydance wasn't the one who barged on over to this batch of trees...

At the words properly build a pack Kiwi stiffened.  She took immediate offense to the inclination that she saw in the statement... that she would fail in what she looked to do.  What was she even talking about, neighbors?  Her pack had nothing to do with any other, that was the whole point.  Besides, she didn't even know her.  There was no way she could know better how Kiwi should go about ruling.

Strong leaders don't have to worry about it often because strong leaders have loyal wolves.  Anyone dumb enough not to take advantage of that is a danger to the pack and should be kicked out.  Kiwi responded, and the edge that now entered her tone indicated her irritation.  But I don't need to explain it to you, because obviously, you don't get it.

It was a complete 180, but in her mind warranted.  Kiwi turned and fully intended to find another patch of trees, one with strangers less offensive to share with.  She didn't need to sit here and listen to this woman tell her she couldn't lead (despite the fact, she never said that).

Could something be going down in flames without even taking off in the first place?  What wolf would want to follow such an abrasive wolf?  Probably others of similar attitude, but Skydance was pretty sure that a lot of those would turn out to be wolves who would be big brawling warrior types who might chomp this diminutive royal without a second thought. How good was she fighting?  Not really gonna ask.  She was just going to sit prim and proper and probably continue to prove they weren't a good match by what she said next.

Skydance seemed to be roughly quoting something from the way she was talking, including that whole sort of vaguely-stare-just-into-space look, Strong leaders are born not just from physical and mental strength, but by the patience and care directed towards the ones they rule over, for that is reflected in the loyalty of those who follow.  Without that foundation, there will be cracks, and those that should be kept oft slip through to others' paws. Blink, and back looking towards her, normal again.  Assuming she hadn't stomped off or something.  Skydance wouldn't be surprised with the way she was acting.  But at least she couldn't be accused of not trying to help.

This wolf was so condescending. Wow, bullet dodged. Kiwi couldn't imagine putting up with this all the time in her ranks, she really didn't know how to keep her muzzle shut.

Oh gosh, how silly of me.  I'm so glad I was able to meet such a wise wolf to set me right, she answered in an obviously mocking tone, then snorted.  What a load of bullshit.  Are you kidding me?  Loyalty is different for everyone, and who the fuck do you think you are? She bared her canines at Skydance, then whirled with her head lifted and a flick of her tail.  

Have fun with whatever that just was.  I don't have time for this.  She began to stalk out into the rain, back towards her distant mountain.

Wow that was way too easy.

Skydance was completely unphased -- she'd expected this reaction, after all. Yep.  Not the pack for her with that wannabe-tyrant trying to rule the world. She still spoke totally chipper and friendly, A Tine of the Spire-Crown, of course! By all means, feel free to do things your way. Best of luck out there. And a dip of her head. Was she being entirely sincere? The Queen probably did need the luck...

Skydance held her same amiable expression until the little Queen started stalking away, but after a few strides she cracked a little, biting her lip to prevent her now-Cheshire grin from devolving into snickering. The only thing that would have been better was if she could go into the future to see the girl's realization that what Skydance had said was reasonably true -- that expression would be glorious of that she was sure. Assuming she even survived that long. Far too easy.

Either way, Skydance wasn't leaving her trees -- enjoy the weather!

Fortunately for Skydance (and likely, fortunately for Kiwi) the sound of her snickering was lost in the wind and the weather.  As she walked, Kiwi fumed, though her anger slowly gave way to burning resolve.  Skydance joined the chorus that was everyone who had thrown doubt her way.

They'd have her compassion, but not until she had their pledge and proof.  She wouldn't throw her trust on those who hadn't earned it, and she had no interest in wasting it on wolves who would come and go like the seasons.  Her mother had chosen her path and she'd died.  Kiwi would survive.  She would thrive.  And her mountain... her mountain would prosper.  That would show them.

The walk would do little to calm her.... by the time she arrived at the peak she'd be sodden and flaming, ready to pick a fight with anyone and everyone who doubted her ability to rule it.

last from me! Diva out <3