Silverlight Terrace I'm not my season

The warrior cursed into the wind. 

Foxfur had lost the scent of the boy and had not been able to reclaim it. Frustration coursed through him. Gods damn the rain, he thought with shrewd upward. Clouds already appeared to be moving to block out the sun. The masked wolf knew that he would be forced to stop for another evening. 

The scent of a group was carried on the winds from the north. Foxfur wondered if their numbers had seen the princeling. Brown eyes searched the rocky mountain. 

Moments passed and Foxfur was still undecided. The wolf turned instead to hunt for a meal.

Bridget didn't mean to wander so far, but as she was on the prowl for more to add to her supply, the drive sent her further and further with a restless need towards the mountains. The break would be good for her.

Since their quarrel, Bridget hadn't tried to push Teya to reveal anything further. She watched her friend instead drift towards others... her travels and a new man, the one who had once been Towhee's mate. She wasn't sure what to make of that friendship but she was glad that she seemed to be opening her circle. If there was a slight taste of bitterness to that gladness, she buried it well. She couldn't and wouldn't begrudge it just because she felt passed over.

She wondered if perhaps she just needed someone to talk with. Thinking that @Izumi would have some advice for her, she'd already made the plan to seek her out once she returned.

Something that might have to wait, she thought, looking at the sky just as another nearby noticed as well. She might want to find some shelter in the cliffs if she didn't want to be drenched here shortly. With a huff, she set off at a jog, unknowingly setting herself on a course that would intersect his in due time.

The cool kiss of air made promises of chillier days to come. As the warrior wandered beneath the looming clouds, darkening swiftly with their increase in size and speed, he wondered how well the Starsea would fare in a land like that.

A violent rumble of thunder and a sharp stretch of jagged light illuminated the heavens. Foxfur drew his gaze along the formations ahead of him, catching sight of the cave and darting toward it on adept paws.

It was only when he had entered the mouth of the cave that he realized there was another. A woman who had seen the same opportunity for shelter and had attempted to grasp it.

Come, seek shelter from the rain, Foxfur woofed out to her, shaking his coat clear of droplets and frowning to the skies.

She wasn't planning on inserting herself into his space when she realized the cave was taken, but he certainly didn't have to tell her twice. Bridget hurried to the entrance and shook herself, vigorously, with a smile before ducking inside. Thank god it was summer; her winter coat really would have been miserable in this rain.

Appreciate it. I wasn't expecting to be out when this hit. She looked out at the grey curtain that obscured most of the surrounding landscape, then turned her muzzle round to get a good look at her current company. Bridget. Nice to meet you.

The woman accepted the invitation. She would have been a fool not to have with the increase in downpour. The rain was like a blanket of grey on an otherwise warm world. It would do the land well, he thought.

Autumn will be upon these lands soon, the warrior remarked with a small nod. The weariness in his brown gaze swung to meet her as she offered an introduction. Bridget was a name he had not expected, but he was no stranger to the ways of the outsiders and their names.

I am Foxfur. It’s nice to share the storm with someone, Foxfur offered her, tone still heavily melancholy.

Bridget settled in fairly quickly, sitting down and making herself at home a short ways inside the entrance. She glanced out again, then looked back at him with a somewhat amused smile. Don't sound too excited, there, Foxfur. A girl might get ideas. She chuckled, but there wasn't any mocking to it. She understood that it wasn't her. Clearly something was bothering this guy and the jest was a light attempt to knock a smile back on his face.

These lands. Sounded like he wasn't planning on sticking around, and like he wasn't from around here. His name was different from most in Teekon, and from any she'd heard. Though there were a few in her area that had animals for names, and she wondered if he had any connection with Towhee's bunch. That'd be a wild coincidence.

Oh, please, no-

When the warrior spoke, hoping to remove whatever assumptions had been made, he had not initially realized that the woman had been jesting with him. Foxfur looked to the strike of auburn on her nose and then found the lavender shade of her eyes before he issued a snort of a breath through his nose.

It’s been a long while since I have been able to journey from my home. We are a formal group, where I am from, Foxfur explained to the woman with a tired smile. I am not a stranger to the lax ways of outsiders, though. The warrior did not wish for her to have the wrong impression of him, not so soon.

Dont worry. It was a joke, not an invitation. Bridget laughed at his reaction, which was both awkward and endearing. He seemed like a quiet guy, and a bit of a stiff, but Bridget liked him immediately anyway.

Lax ways. Seems like you know a few things about us outsiders, and honestly, I can't argue with you there. God, imagine - calling a wolf like Eljay 'lax'. Who had he met? Now Bridget... she fit that bill pretty damn well, just not quite to the extent he seemed worried about. Nothing to worry about from me she thought, still amused.

You decide to leave that boring life behind and try dipping your toes in the wild ways of us outsiders, then? She continued. It was an over exaggeration of his previous words that she was happy to lean into.

The question ruffled the warrior. This woman wished to know if he had vacated his role in search of a life enriched by the unknown. Once, when he had been younger, he might have thought the premise to be thrilling, even tantalizing.

Quite the opposite, in fact, Foxfur said. The worn way of his words was like a pliable leather that had been bent and broken over the back of a horse one too many times.

I’m looking for a young boy who carries a rather important position in our home. He has run away.

When Foxfur looked to the woman, he did so with a knowing expression. What the warrior had never admitted was that he understood the princeling and his need to escape. It was a defiance, against all the things that fate dictated.

Wow, not an ounce of cheer to him, was there. Bridget shut her mouth and sat back, but watched him with a glimmer of amusement of her own. She didn't mind, honestly. It took a lot more than 'stoic' to dissuade her from making a potential friend, especially when this was the only shelter for a ways.

Wish I could help, but the only younger boys I know are all locally sourced. By the way he worded it, it sounded like he wasn't too worried for their well-being. If he'd chosen to leave that made sense, and she wondered at the fact that he'd be sent to retrieve him. Imagine that! Hard to, when she'd been practically driven from her own home. Still by her own choice, of course, but must be pretty different there. The stodginess felt familiar.

And you want him back to fill that position, even with running away? She let out a low whistle. Must be some kid.

Bridget was a cheery sort. She reminded Foxfur of the apprentices back in the Starsea and their eagerness to grow. It felt like more than three years since he had been just a boy, waiting to be granted his mentor and train to be a great warrior.

When the girl stated that the only young men she had knowledge of were those who had been born in the area, Foxfur bowed his head. The ginger-touched ears fell to his head.

Bridget had gone on to say that the runaway princeling must have been an important member of the clan to inspire a search. The warrior nodded his head softly, offering a tired smile to the wolf who kept him company.

He is a seer to our clan. He helps us to translate visions of fate, of destiny. Do you not have anyone like that within your numbers?

oh god <3 mind if we wrap this?

Bridget had to think on it. We've got a few who say things like that, but pretty sure when they do they're just telling stories. I don't think we have any that can actually read anything, she replied good-naturedly. Bridget didn't dismiss the notion as impossible, but she also didn't have much fear of the subject. The future had never really been much of a worry for her.

Sorry! I'll try and keep an eye out, if it helps. The poor guy seemed pretty disappointed to hear she couldn't help. She wondered briefly how long he'd been searching, but didn't bother asking. Didn't really matter, did it?

No problem. ^^

The girl stated that her pack had wolves who could tell stories, saying that she did not believe they could read anything of the future with these talents. Foxfur nodded his head, understanding what she meant. The Starsea had their own storytellers, but it primarily consisted of the elders who had lived through a good number of large events and could share a retelling. The future belonged to the stars and those who whispered to them.

Bridget said that she would keep her eye out for Crowfeather. The warrior was grateful, bowing his narrow head toward the ground. Thank you. You may call if you happen across the boy. He’s dark and slight, and he will answer to the name Crowfeather.

It was about time he left the woman to her peace. Foxfur regarded her for a moment before he turned his lips into a weary smile. Thank you again, the warrior said. He offered a stiff bow of his shoulders before he slipped from their seclusion and into the wilds. The hunt returned to the forefront of his mind.