Dragoncrest Cliffs merry of soul, she sailed on a day

Admittedly, she spent most of her time in @Njord’s company, particularly in the hours between dusk and dawn. But she knew it was important to continue melding into society here. Reluctantly, she withdrew from their warm nest and set out into the wintry January day, roaming toward the territory’s heart.

She spent a few minutes gazing into the water at Fall Rock, then glanced over a pale shoulder at the sprawling meadow just beyond Fireblood Stand. Meerkat stood and made her way toward the open plain, eyes, ears and nose peeled for any signs of her new pack mates.

@Jorunn :)

jorunn spotted her.

the woman who wore the scent of erzulie's trusted njord, the woman who was the newest among them. not that jorunn was an elder in standing here either.

so she greeted the woman as a mutual, shed the weight of her heart over asmodeus for these moments. a light sound of greeting built in her throat before she bumbled out a soft —

hello!

She saw a figure she didn’t recognize in the distance and began padding toward it, her tail waving. “Hello!” the woman’s voice rang out cheerily, coaxing Meerkat to hasten her step to close the distance.

Hi! she said, a little out of breath. I’m new here. My name’s Meerkat. She paused there, giving the other she-wolf an opportunity to return her introduction as she used her various senses to catalog her identity otherwise.

meerkat.

it’s a word that feels unfamiliar in her mind and certainly unfamiliar on her tongue, but she smiled for it all the same. entranced by the unusualness this woman brought with her. the same way erzulie had introduced her to unknown ways. so much to learn still!

i am jorunn. some warmth in her deep copper eyes.

what are you doing today, meerkat?

did the woman have an agenda? perhaps they could tackle tasks together.

Making friends, I hope, Meerkat replied with a slightly cheeky smile, her tail waving. I want to get to know everybody in the pack, for its own sake, but also because I’m an ambassador and coach by trade.

Tipping her head and motioning toward the nearby meadow in an unspoken invitation to walk while they talked, Meerkat asked, Will you tell me about yourself, Jorunn? How long have you lived here? What do you do for a living?

she was a gem.

sparkling and bright. jorunn hoped that this meerkat carried that with her always. perhaps the sea would protect such shine. although she found herself unfamiliar with the term coach, but she figured she would learn that soon enough if meerkat was here to stay.

not long, i helped erzulie away from here in her time of need. when i have a time of need, she welcomed me home.

i have not found a...living, yet, i think. how did you find yours?

all of this asked as she happily trailed alongside the other woman towards the meadow.

Meerkat wondered what Jorunn meant by “time of need.” She stayed her tongue until the other woman finished speaking. The frosted grass tickled underfoot as she absently scanned the open prairie before angling her face toward Jorunn again.

Mm, that’s a good question. I was very curious about other packs and traveling from a very young age, so I quite quickly picked up ambassadorship. Then I sort of branched out those skills toward helping others more directly, hence coaching and therapizing, she answered, not sure if the latter was a real word. But hopefully Jorunn understood the gist of it.

What do you mean, Meerkat queried in the next breath, when you say ‘time of need’?

jorunn wondered, however briefly, if she might be an ambassador too. she had spent her youth in a nomadic group roaming a mountainside and meeting others wherever they went.

she had attempted such here too until she had been bittered by lone men.

she welcomed the question to distract her thoughts.

her mireille was missing. i look for her in the taiga so that erzulie may come home and rest—

jorunn easily recalled the tired, frazzled state of erzulie. how she had left the seamother with gifts before they had parted ways.

then i find myself very angry, soured by mean men. i come to sapphique and erzulie welcomed me home, even if i did not find her mireille.

Jorunn mentioned assisting Erzulie in the search for the missing Mireille. Meerkat’s ears swept back at the reminder, nodding her head. She was sure the pup’s mothers and father had appreciated the help.

The talk of mean men earned a curious, sharp glance from Meerkat. She doubted her fellow Granite wanted to dwell on such things, though her inner therapist couldn’t resist reaching out.

I know we literally just met minutes ago, but if you ever need someone else to talk to about stuff like that, I’m a counselor, she reminded with a smile, tail curling and swaying side to side. I can possibly relate as well. Before I paired up with Njord and came here, I had some troubling experiences with men. And it made her ever so much more grateful for him.

it was nice, truthfully. jorunn did not have many she talked to beyond erzulie. erzulie who had spilled the truth of hearts in jorunn. she wondered what good it would do her soul to have another woman to share words with.

thank you, she murmured softly before meerkat revealed that she too had bad encounters.

can i...know? what happened with your bad men?

it did not seem fair to only take words without giving some, but jorunn was fascinated by the experiences of others.

They weren’t bad men, Meerkat said quietly, but they caused me a lot of heartache. The first one agreed to commit to me and then ran off the very same night. He’d just lost several loved ones and had a mental breakdown, so I don’t hold it against him. But I never saw him again and that was very hard. I gave up on romance for a long time after that.

Her tail swished a few times as she mentally fast forwarded to the more recent past. When I finally gave it another chance, the man I fell for, he… She took a breath, pondering her words. He didn’t have feelings for me. And that happens sometimes, but he still seemed to want to claim me, fight for me, even, like I was a prize. He wanted me to mother his children, but he didn’t want me, you know? I’m not sure he had any feelings at all.

She knew that wasn’t entirely fair, yet it was Meerkat’s honest take. She let out a sigh, then glanced at Jorunn and smiled, saying, But Njord is wonderful. And I always heard a girl has to kiss a couple frogs before she finds a prince. She chortled, wondering if Jorunn would want to share any of her own experiences now.

they were not bad, but they caused heartache.

jorunn had only ever known the two to go hand in hand. heartache was bad. heartache was not necessary when there was so much goodness to be shown in the world. yet she would never speak out of place to suggest someone might feel something else.

she spoke of a man who broke.

another who had nothing but all but still wished for her.

now she had fallen into the embrace of njord.

jorunn tumbled into her own story without little warning to either of them.

i...i do not know what happened. or maybe i do. she laughed, soft and bittersweet. we met few times in different places — like magic. shared each other those times as well and...he came to the coast. he sung his song of love— a hitch in her voice that she was keen to ignore.

i think i wanted more than he would give. his heart, words with...emotion.

Jorunn did open up to her. Meerkat groaned lightly in empathy. It sounded quite a bit like her dealings with Issorartuyok. There was one big difference, though: whereas Issorartuyok had been straight with her, it sounded like Jorunn’s man had led her on.

That sounds confusing and painful, Meerkat sympathized. I hope the experience doesn’t put you off romance, though. She thought about how she’d mostly subconsciously avoided it for so long following Atlas. Men like Njord are proof that there are good guys out there. They just take some time and trouble to find, I guess.

She smiled briefly and glanced idly at their surroundings, mind wandering through Sapphique and its members a moment before her attention returned to Jorunn and she quipped lightheartedly, There’s always women.

time and trouble.

jorunn supposed she had plenty of time and the ability to handle trouble. even if she did not exactly wish for the latter. such things didn't matter! because meerkat brought up something that practically melted jorunn.

this was not her first time hearing such things, but still she burst into soft giggles like a young girl.

i did not know this until here! she laughed with almost disbelief in her voice. i feel such a fool when i heard this. i told erzulie that i wondered who i had missed!

voice higher pitched as if they were suddenly gossiping instead of confiding in one another.

Sapphique was definitely unique in its gender norms, she’d come to realize. Meerkat couldn’t remember if she’d ever come across a same-sex couple before Erzulie and Rosalyn, though she had never really batted an eyelash at that sort of thing. It probably had something to do with her own unconventional upbringing. Maybe it was strange that Meerkat’s own preferences were as traditional as they were.

Do you find women attractive in that way? she wondered. Meerkat couldn’t imagine how any same-sex pairing coupled, yet she assumed chemistry and sensuality were still important factors.

i do.

she had thought back on faces she had seen and thought were just pretty. not realizing it had been in the same way she had seen men and fancied them too. nor had she realized that those women may have felt the same.

opportunities missed merely but knowing they were there in the first place.

have you ever? before your njord.

No, Meerkat replied, smiling at “your Njord.” I mean, I notice when another woman’s particularly attractive, she said, thinking immediately of Chacal, but I’m not attracted to them, if that makes sense? She hoped she was expressing herself correctly; she didn’t want to offend.

Nudging the spotlight back to Jorunn, she said, Perhaps it’s time to seek women as romantic partners, though, for you? I try not to generalize… or stereotype… but perhaps you’d find a stronger connection with another lady. It might be worth exploring, in any case, she concluded with a shrug and a good-natured grin.

we can wrap up here or keep going, up to you!

jorunn liked to think she understood. attractiveness did not mean attraction.

she could look upon meerkat and admire the features of her, but that did not mean she was attracted to the woman.

although meerkat's words weighed heavy upon her, it was not in a bad way. instead they were deep and impactful. a meaningful reflection upon what might come next for jorunn.

i think you are right. she answered, an appreciative smile on her lips. thank you, meerkat.

the woman had certainly opened her up to important conversation. a necessary thing to heal from asmodeus.

Fade here and another sometime soon? :)

Jorunn thanked her. Meerkat dipped her snout and waved her tail, glad to be of service, truly. She just hoped everyone else in Sapphique would give her the same opportunity to utilize her trades for her comrades’ benefit. It was so rewarding.

Speaking of exploring… the Granite said in the next breath, I know you said you haven’t lived here long, so maybe you haven’t found one yet. But will you show me to your favorite place in the territory? If you don’t have one, maybe we can search for one together?

perfect! <3

she found new joy and clutched onto it with a tight grip, content to spend further time with meerkat. perhaps she would gleam more knowledge from the skilled woman.

come, we will find something together.