Ouroboros Spine winter (nocturne of ice)

All welcome, tags are just for reference!

There had been strangers. In their home. They had torn apart the sanctity of it, had ruined their kindness. And for what? Something to laugh about?

Vairë didn’t think it was funny. It was cruel. Those wolves were cruel. It made the relatively sheltered child ache from how hard her jaw had been clenched since learning of it. She had gotten big these last few months, fawn growing into doe, and with the smallest curl of what had once been memories stirring in her gut, of old doe and the struggles of managing a herd, Vairë sought out reassurance.

Vairë sought out @Kukutux .

She would know. Would smooth out the rough edges of Vairë’s thoughts, soothe the parts of her ruffled by such transgressions. She had to know the answers to her questions. So on she walked, nose to the ground, sniffing for the moonwoman.

Getting to know the village's children really made her aware of how much she missed her own. She kept up her diligent patrols while the leaders were otherwise preoccupied, though more and more her thoughts strayed beyond the spine. She worried about the youngest three, particularly Caracal. And what about her sweet grandson? Why had she allowed those two to go wandering off into the wilderness in winter? Of course, that's what nearly grown wolves did and neither Towhee nor Killdeer's parents could have really stopped them, but...

She didn't even realize how much she was dwelling until the sight of someone crossing her path dragged Towhee up and out of her funk. She blinked her orange eyes and focused on the unfamiliar wolf, another youngster. Her tail twitched and she woofed, trying to grab the girl's attention even as she approached.

-"Hunting?"- she wondered, having noticed the telltale tracking behaviors.

The sight and sound of a new wolf made Vairë tense for a moment, before she vaguely recognized the newcomer. More of scent than of face. This was a pack member. A part of the family.

She breathed out.

Kinda. She said after a moment, switching her weight between her paws.

I..don’t think we’ve met? I’m Vairë. She was trying her best to be proper, to be polite, but really the words were starting to jumble as she jittered in place. Maybe this adult would have her answers? If she could even begin to turn the questions into words.

That answer made Towhee's head tilt, an invitation for the younger wolf to elaborate if she wished. Instead, she asked a question of her own. It was more of a statement than anything. She also offered her name.

"Nice to meet ya, Vairë," the Redhawk replied, then made sure to sign the rest as she introduced herself. -"I'm Towhee. I'm pretty new here and I'm also pretty, ehhh..."- She held up a paw and flipped it from side to side, making a face. -"At hunting. But maybe I could help you track, if you'd like some backup?"-

Vairë stared at the woman for a moment, tipping her head to one side, before nodding, tail giving a little wag. She was hunting for Kukutux, technically, but there was always the thought of going to get food for the pack that made her feel warm inside.

She wondered where Foxfur was.

Sure, I wouldn’t mind the help. I might..need it. I’m no good at hunting.

Vairë said she was no good at hunting either, after accepting Towhee's help. -"Well, at least you have the excuse of being young,"- she said with a wink. -"Maybe if we combine our skills, it'll add up to one decent hunter, huh?"- She snorted. -"My brother is a much more gifted hunter and a brilliant tracker too. I'm going to borrow some things I learned from him. Come on, I'll show you..."-

Leading the young girl to an open patch of ground, Towhee halted and motioned for Vairë to do the same. -"All right, so when it comes to scent tracking, you can try the air and/or the ground. We can look for something in particular if you're in a certain mood, or we can just go with whatever scent seems the freshest. Once we pick something to track, I'll show you some other things to look for besides smells."-

Vairë tipped her head to the side, watching the woman. She was a little odd, perhaps, but she was in the pack. Kukutux had allowed her entry, so maybe Vairë was just reading her wrong.

She nodded to the words, lowering her nose to try and follow a trail.

I had a teacher, but I was very young then. Now that I’m older, the lesson has become..fuzzy. Like the fuzz-tube. Weasel. Whatever it was that she had seen that day, she couldn’t exactly put her finger on it.

I smell many things. But there is mink, fresh. I think.

Vairë mentioned a mentor, which piqued Towhee's curiosity. But the memory was an old one. Perhaps the teacher wasn't around any longer. Her lips parted as she considered asking, then she opted for silence as she focused on the task at hand.

She reported a myriad of scents—no surprises there—but selected a promising one in particular. "Mink?" Towhee repeated, having no sign for such a creature. As a matter of fact, she couldn't quite picture what a mink was. Was it the same difference as an ermine/stoat/weasel, that weird elongated rodent of many names?

Nodding to accept and acknowledge their quarry, Towhee sniffed until she picked up what she hoped was the right scent as well. -"Okay, let's follow our noses. Keep an eye out for paw prints in any mud or snow, droppings as well."-