Jade Fern Grove a graveyard of stars

fast-forwarded a few days. for @Kaertok

for his garden not yet made, kvasir knows little limits. he is interested on expanding what he already knows; interested in seeing if he can breed what he gathers, if it will produce some hybrid more potent than either initial parent. spring was the time, he knows. his aspirations he must reign in. they are too grand. too grand for someone that has no place for such ambitious things. it is the hunt that brings him to the emerald forest; shifting through the leafy fronds for the search of some sort of hidden flower or sprig growing beneath the protection of their larger, malevolent counterparts.

he noses 'round, setting his newly acquired rabbit pelt — taken from an abandoned den on his way — on the debris littered earth to better study the lily of the valley who's white, bell shaped blossoms catch his eye. confident that he has, indeed, found lily of the valley he then begins to root around the floor, searching for some sort of stone to break a few flower blossoms off with.

Thanks for starting this! <3

Kaertok still had his doubts about whether or not Legion would come to fruition before the puppies arrived into this world, but that did not mean that he would not do everything within his power to make Arbiter's dream a reality. His feet had taken him to the forest just south of Noctisardor Bypass, seeking out any loners (or anybody, really) who might seem like a worthy recruit. His own criteria was rather simple: strong of body and mind. He wasn't sure if Arbiter had stricter rules on who she wished to take in, but those who met the minimum would at least be taken back home if they wished to join them.

Her scent still engulfed him, and he would no doubt return for another dose before the sun set. But for now, he roamed as he had done for as long as his memory reached back. Black paw pads made their impressions in the ground, and Kaertok moved forward.

It wasn't until he caught sight of a wolf the same shade as himself that he slowed to a halt. He appeared to be looking at something on the ground, and considering Kaertok didn't smell anything of a fresh kill, he felt safe enough to approach with a sense of guarded optimism. Greetings, he spoke, though his presence was most certainly noted by his heavy footsteps as he approached.

no problem!

kvasir was not so wrapped up in his consideration of the blooms and how to safely remove them that he did not hear the heavy footfalls of approach. even so, it is not until the voice reaches out into the space between to emit the silence that previously existed that kvasir's head lifts and his attention — temporarily — shifts. mismatched eyes of the silencer spares the stranger a cursory glance, volleying between his current dilemma and the stranger before finally, coming to rest upon the stranger.

hello. in what feels like a small handful of eternities to kvasir ( though it was in reality a few seconds ) he finally answers; draws in the other's scent. foreign, but heavy with the scent of others. a pack wolf then, the silencer is quick to assume. unceremoniously, perhaps, he asks, did you happen to notice any sharp rocks on your path?

What a peculiar question to open with, but Kaertok was used to peculiar wolves. Not that he liked them all very much. The normal, non-peculiar ones were more his calling. Perhaps the stranger was merely trying to avoid any routes that might cut his feet, Kaertok reasoned to himself. That seemed the most likely explanation to the question. It would have been an easy thing to scope out, and it did not explain why he'd been staring at the ground before the Legion wolf had approached. Curious indeed.

No more than usual, he replied. Why do you ask? He refrained from launching into introductions and recruiting mode, if only because he enjoyed the vetting process before all of that. It often felt too forced if he went there right away, so waiting until he had a better handle on this wolf's intentions seemed like the best bet.

the answer of the pallid stranger left much to be desired; far from as fruitful as kvasir would've liked. it couldn't be helped, the silencer knows. most wolves did not spend their time looking for rocks which might prove good at splicing thru skin and flesh of plants. would he not have lost his primitive tools during his altercation with the firekissed man ( kratos ) the question would have been unnecessary. but. here he was. his mouth is the draw of a bow string; taunt and slightly disappointed. i need one to sever blooms from stems. he gestures to the lily of the valley he'd been examining upon the other man's discovery of him. they're very poisonous, you see. and he did not have the antidote or the time to find them, especially when ingesting the lily of the valley would bring about terrible stomach cramps, vomiting, blurred vision, seizures and potential cardiac arrest.

Kaertok gave a little, I see, at the explanation. If the flower was so poisonous (good info to know, of course), why was this wolf messing with them at all? The Tartok wolf had always been taught to leave deadly things alone. Not avoiding deadly things was a good way to get dead, or so his mother had taught him. Following her advice, Kaertok was not yet dead, so he assumed it was pretty good advice to be given.

Wherever you go looking for rocks, make sure you do not stray too far north of here. Legion, my pack,—yes, also Arbiter's pack, but Kaertok was feeling slightly more in charge now—does not tolerate strangers lingering close to our borders. This would potentially gauge the stranger's interest in joining, though Kaertok still refused to push the issue outright.

a flick of an ear is given; a volley of glimpses between the pale stranger and the lily of the valley. the stranger speaks of a pack, his pack — legion, he calls it — north of their current position that does not tolerate strangers lingering too close to their borders. kvasir does not point out that he thinks that is protocol for most packs. a noncommittal noise of acknowledgement is given. fair enough, he says after a moment, considering that he should give some sort of verbal confirmation that he understands. something more than a noise barely more than a grunt. i don't think i'll need to go further than this territory. the silencer adds. in truth, he doesn't want to stray too far away from his find and risk the potential of losing his own way.

We can continue if you'd like; this just seemed like the part where Kaertok would exit. :)

That much seemed understood by the white wolf, and Kaertok was satisfied that he wasn't one of the dumb ones. Considering the stranger also didn't inquire further about Legion, Kaertok assumed he wasn't interested in joining them. That was a pity, if only because Kaertok thought he might have made a decent recruit. Maybe not everything he was looking for (the wolf had been trying to touch poison), but he wasn't a complete idiot, as far as the Tartok could tell.

With nothing more to discuss, Kaertok moved on, eyes and ears peeled for any other wolves who might be of use to him.

their conversation is short and after affirming that he wouldn't need to stray too close to the stranger's pack, the other male seemed content to move along his way. if kvasir were more socially inclined he might've picked up on the hints that kaertok had been dropping but his focus was, more or less, on the lily of the valley. kvasir watches the stranger depart with mismatched eyes before he turns his full attention back to his mission at hand, eventually finding a rock to serve his purpose and as carefully as one can without opposable thumbs, collects the blossoms into his rabbit pelt for temporary safe keeping.