Bonesplinter Ravine when we find ourselves back at the start

White-tipped feet carefully weaved between the bones jutting out from the ground, each paw fall gracefully managing to find areas of dirt between the ivories that seemed to resemble stiff plants from a distance. A heavy fog hung in the ravine like a white drapery, obscuring the scorned Deorwine like a ghost moving through the macabre decor. Seemingly unhindered by the surroundings and smells of death in the air.

Lio was not with him at the moment, figuring it was for the best as this didn't seem like a favored area for them. Why he was here... His fire-lit eyes were in search of something. His stoic glance dances among the bones looking for a specific shape, occasionally extending a claw to overturn one here and there.

Antlers were what he sought, but for what reason one might wonder? Only he himself had the complete answer, and it would remain sealed within him. He may be far from his god, not yet knowing that the manifestation of his holy one lie in a forest over the crescent of mounts to his west- shrouded in secret by his own ilk, but he was still bound by love and loyalty to the Great Elk, especially after his life had been spared in the cleansing. A quiet worshipper among many who'd deemed him punished by the very god he'd been devoted to, he's clearly formed a different opinion of the diety of his homeland- and it's thoughts of him.

Her steps came in little hops, the shining whites of creatures that had once been gently grazing against the damp fur of her paws. Just barely avoiding wounds, just barely out of reach. With the scent of cadaver abundant here she rarely cared to conceal herself, trusting the stench to guard her far better than a roll in the mud ever could. It took a hearty nose to survive the stench anyway, or so she thought at least. 

Despite her almost morbid playfulness in bounding about the dead, her journey here had...more or less been with a purpose. She hadn’t expected anything of this place in all honesty, rumors not having done it much justice. She’d expected a bird skull, perhaps a fallen hare, something of the sort. Simple little things. Yet the further she walked into the ravine the more lost souls greeted her. She stopped on occasion, red eyes examining the dead thoroughly, as if judging them by some unknown standards. In truth...Minah was here to begin a new hobby of sorts. As...ill mannered as it may have seemed to some, she planned on dragging a few long since picked clean skulls home, back to Akai, back to her den. Not for decoration purposes, she wasn’t that cruel, but simply...to have...was that truly too odd? She mulled the question over, grumbling arguments back, and forth as she went about flipping skulls. 

They had to speak to her. Right? That was fitting? She nodded weakly, as if agreeing with herself, before going stalk still. 

Off in the hazy beyond she could make out the barely there shape of a creature. At first she wondered if her eyes were playing tricks or if some unfortunate creature had survived their fall from above.  Briefly, the thought of spirits crossed her mind but she stomped it away without a second glance. No spirit would ever willingly remain here...right? She backed up a little, giving the creature before her some room before continuing her trek onwards. If it was another wolf..well, she had no reason to fight for meager rotting scraps. That was hardly what she was after anyway.

Another ghost had entered his realm, orange eyes vibrant against the fog as they flickered upward to see the white woman perceiving him oddly. His head lifted slowly, even as she ran taking in her presence with great thought. Odd wasn't it, how the Great Elk kept putting blanched wolves in his path, hm? For one it may be a sign of ill fate, but in his mind, he'd found it a sign of reassurance that the path he now found himself setting on was continuously just.

Either way, he wasn't so keen on letting the stranger just gawk at him and leave. Fine morning, isn't it? His voice came out loud and honey-smooth against the silence of the dead. Never mind the fact in itself that it was also odd to call the morning nice in what was essentially a foggy graveyard for creatures who'd made a grave mistake trying to climb the treacherous peaks.

I doubt you're just a beautiful specter lingering around for no reason. Looking for something?

It seemed as though her newfound company was far from an unfortunate beast, his form slowly melding into the familiar shapes of that of a wolf. His voice only confirmed it and despite herself a gentle laugh followed. “A fine morning for gathering indeed.” The gods had surely made this quite the meeting place, hadn’t they? It was probably something near poetic, to meet upon a pile of the dead. It brought a faint smile to her maw as she padded ever so closer. Not enough to come face to face with the stranger but enough so that she could now make out his coat at the very least. Curious. Curious. 

White?

She chanced a quick glance up to his eyes, a fiery orange. She only gave his face but a glance, her eyes instinctively shooting to the ground once more. Skulls. Skulls. This wolf was too white furred to be Kingslend was he not? This wasn’t land that they would chase her from was it? The thought nearly made her laugh, to be chased through such a dreary atmosphere. Could a wolf as thick headed as the one she’d met prior even have the agility to avoid such dangerous terrain? Would they have labeled her a thief for taking skulls? Were skulls property? She hummed softly as she bussied herself with her own thoughts, some song she had heard somewhere. Where, she could no longer remember. 

Beautiful specter.

She froze, going as silent as the very bodies near her. 

Beautiful?

She raised a brow, curious to see if perhaps she had been wrong and this male was merely poking fun at her…The lack of a toothy grin or anything else to indicate his words were far from genuine confused her but she smiled weakly regardless. “You needn’t lie or give false compliments to a stranger.” Her words were detached, a mere afterthought. She turned away from the wolf, eyes once more on the precious belongings on the floor, “If it truly is of any interest to you, however, I am on the hunt for a skull or two, maybe more. Of what creature, that I have yet to figure out. Though, it would likely be of something light enough to carry a great distance, you see - ? ” She looked up, gazing at the stony outcroppings above her, had he told her his name at any point? None came to mind. None at all.

She shook her head quickly, going back to her task, “I’m not from around here.” Not that she meant this ravine of course. This was no place for a wolf such as herself. Not when she had Akai not when Kingslend lived nearby. Curiosity returned again. A deadly thing. A dangerous thing. “If I may, what brings you here? Perhaps, I can be of some assistance as, if it doesn’t bother you, I plan on staying until I find what I am looking for.” There had been some meat back in the other direction, rancid most likely, but one could never truly be picky, could they? She would have taken a bite for herself had she not known Akai likely had prey waiting for her back home.

A soft smile lay on his maw; not taunting nor condescending in any way, but dripping with genuine charm. He in fact meant what he'd said, but perhaps some clarity was needed to put her at ease. Not false, not from me. I could have mistaken you for a graceful ghost floating in the fog. Her pelt was as white and as immaculate as untouched snowfall with red eyes utterly vibrant against her pale skin, it was a sight very unique and mystifying to him. However, he held no further intentions than to compliment her on that. She looked young, like Lio.

The elken man simply allowed her to explain herself, ears perked politely to listen. He was pleased to hear she was on a mission very similar to his own, and at her mention of assisting each other, of course, he would nod in agreement.

Well we're looking for the same things then. Sort of. I'm looking for a deer skull- antlers, namely. Shed or still attached, it doesn't really matter. An elk is preferable but I doubt an elk would be foolish enough to find himself here. A disciple of His truly wouldn't lead his herd to such dangerous heights, perhaps only if he was for some reason alone. Maybe old and dying, seeking to fall into their King's arms from up high. Seemed like an honorable death, but he couldn't say he knew how an elk thought.

I've seen a lot of nice skulls so far, most completely stripped of meat, just need to be bleached by the sun. Of which there wasn't much of in this ravine. But, anywho.

I'm not from around here either. I'm still getting acquainted with my surroundings. What's your name?

She listened with a strong mixture of curiosity and amusement as she couldn’t fathom anyone else finding the very notion of a ghost in these parts anything but horrifying. There were likely already many ghostly spectres wandering about without her unneeded intrusion being added to the mix. Despite her thoughts on the matter, she kept them to herself, namely out of respect, partly out of the need to avoid conflict over trivial things. Not when it wasn’t interesting and not when she didn’t know the potential outcomes. The kindest of wolves could often be the deadliest after all. 

A mild feeling of deja vu permeated the air as he spoke of elks with some level of respect. Of course she had no way of knowing for sure if the wolf was a follower of….what was it that wolf had called it? The high elk? Even now the words brought a small glint of amusement to her gaze. High elk. How many of these wolves saw elk as godly? Was that simply a custom of the land? Did others outside of here know of this godly being? Who had started such a belief? Why were its followers so loyal? It peaked her interest to know of different faiths aside from her own, to pick the minds of devout believers. 

She casually flipped the remains of a lower jaw absently, eyes finding his with a glint of playful mischief in them, “I am Minah. A traveler, a wanderer, cursed by the gods above, or so say those who have quite a spot in their hearts for a pelt such as….mine.” At the final word she struck an exaggerated pose, tail held high, paws firmly apart. She spoke with such a serious tone, one that did not match her face at all, only to dissolve into a gentle fit of giggles the further she went on in her charade.

“I wouldn’t be opposed aiding you in attempting to find your elusive elk, though I can't guarantee finding one.” Not that she had much to do once she found her own skulls aside from return to Akai. If he wasn’t even home by the time she got back she’d simply have been left for hours to sit around alone and toss toads about. 

That was when it utterly dawned on her that perhaps….this wolf was one of the few she had properly met aside from her father. The Kingsled wolves didn’t count since they saw her as a plague or something of the sort. The revelation, while disheartening, was also a cause for excitement in the young she-wolf’s eyes. “Why is it that you search for deer or elk specifically?” The question was simple enough, right? “Do they hold an importance to you? That’s why I’m being careful about what I select from here. I want...something that means something to me. Something I can protect and care for despite the soul having long since left this earth.”