Northstar Vale heal your frays

The mist that had settled over the vale and the cloudy heavens insinuated a different type of weather in the coming hours. Arika was unaware of that however, blinking harshly as she adjusted to the white lighting, stepping out of the den. The girl shook her coat out at the frigid autumn chill, sighing afterward.

She quietly looked around at the ruddy leaves, the death of them bringing beauty. Arika sat down outside the den, content to have the fresh air with how much she'd been confined to their small home. Her health was no longer on a decline, but she was significantly smaller than she should be and keeping weight seemed to be a struggle, catching up to the others seemed to be stretch. Regardless of her initial longing to be play alongside her siblings, or the other children in Epoch, she had let it go. Arika was a grouch of a child, or perhaps just introverted, her affable nature reserved for her mother, seeking her praise and affection with enthusiasm. Perhaps it would grow for others with time.

The red-hood had journeyed far from their family home, into the vale until he had happened upon a scent. The boy had followed this scent in a twisting path through his lush home. The trees sparked with firelight colors – orange and yellow and red. As he walked beneath them, through the leaves that had fallen and littered the ground, Antigone felt the first surge of desire to explore.

It was a surprise when the scent led to another child. Eyes that grew darker blue with each day looked upon her. Antigone was not certain that he was supposed to be with other children. His father had talked about playdates, but nothing had been decided yet.

Hello, the young boy greeted in an airy voice.

Arika's ears titled towards an unfamiliar voice, turning her attention towards the boy quickly. She took in a sharp breath as she looked at him, she hadn't spent any time speaking with others outside of her own family.

❝Hi.❞ Her voice finally cut the silence, a small stir of her tail.

Arika hadn't thought much on the concept, but she'd probably see much of the boy as she grew. The pack she would grow with, and he would be the first she'd seen of them, that she would remember that is.

The girl was dark-furred, save for a few highlights around her paws and chest, the tip of her tail, and in two strange markings at her eyes. For the young man who knew only the redstone colors of his family, she seemed to be something entirely new – a fantasy. Antigone remained calm, composed. There was a steadiness in his young figure. The boy lifted his head and waved his tail.

She offered a soft greeting in return. It was good to hear that she could speak. She did not appear to be too young, though she was just younger than he was. Antigone wondered if her parents would be nearby, ready to spring to action against any intruders.

What is your name? the red-hooded pup called out to her.

❝Arika.❞ She responded, wanting to ask for his but just hoped he would say it anyway.

She didn't move, she didn't know how these interactions were supposed to go. He was bigger than her, which wasn't a surprise, but even larger than her siblings. The boy must have been older than them. Though the situation seemed awkward, her tail still wagged, stirring the dust beneath her again. Arika appreciated his demeanor, he didn't overwhelm her with energy and was more her speed it seemed.

Arika was her name. She had offered it to him without any kind of barter. The young boy thought that she was simply being kind, that she might have found non-familial company to be a rare surprise. The only thing he wanted to avoid was being caught by her parents. If they did not want her making friends just yet, the red-hooded pup would get in trouble for intruding so close to their home.

I am Antigone, he offered simply in return.

The young boy moved closer to her, sniffing to see if he could pick up the scent of any others. He wondered if she had siblings, if there was a whole family inside the den that he knew nothing about. It felt strange to meet someone new in his home.

Blue eyes studied her. Antigone was careful to keep a small distance between them.

 ❝Antigone.❞ Arika, repeated his name, drawing out each syllable slowly.

She was relieved he had offered his name without any question from her. Company outside of her family was new, and it was probably increasingly apparent as the conversation, if it was one, had progressed. His steps forward were watched carefully as she sat in the same spot, her own head extending slightly to sniff at him.

Arika liked the color of his fur, it was different than the shades she'd become accustomed to. The red boy reminded her of the color of the leaves, she wondered if his family looked like him too, hers didn't so she had no idea what to think. She noticed his glances behind her, turning to look back at the den before back to him. Her family was probably sleeping.

❝I have brother and sister.❞ Arika said to him, wondering if that was what he was inquiring with his stare as she nodded her head towards her small home. ❝Mom in there too.❞

The girl was about to continue, but stopped herself. She did not know where her father was, or him.

Arika explained that she had a brother and a sister inside her home. The boy wondered if all children were born in the same batches – one boy and two girls. She said that her mother was inside, as well. There was no mention of a father. Antigone wondered if he was on patrol or if he had died as a soldier. He did not imagine that it was proper to ask, not when they had just met. The thought was stored away for a later time.

I have sisters. Zosime and Zulema, Antigone offered in exchange for the information she’d given him. He thought to mention his mother and father, too. They were important members in the family. The young boy had not experienced a single day without them. It made him think of her father again and how she had not mentioned him in her small mention of family.

The blue of his eyes stopped scanning the den behind her.

You will not get in trouble?

She would remember those names for a later time. Arika's slowly wagging tail, had came to a stop at his question of whether or not she would get in trouble. At the way he pulled his eyes back to her from the den she assumed he meant her mother being upset. She wasn't prone to misbehaving and spent most of her time with her mother anyways.

❝No.❞ Arika shrugged.

She wanted to ask why, perhaps he got in trouble with his mother before? Instead, she pushed the question away. Her mother had never warned her on speaking to the others here, so if that's what he had meant, she was not worried.

❝Your sisters, they look like you? Red?❞ The small girl was still fascinated by the likeness between the boy and the dying leaves, so much so that she asked if his siblings were the same.

He hadn't mentioned his mother, she wondered on that for a moment but waited for him to continue, not speaking on it.

When she said that she would not be in trouble with her mother for talking to him, Antigone eased. Her unasked question about his home life would have had a pleasant answer. The boy merely didn’t know how welcome strangers were to her home. He did not think that he wanted to be held accountable for a scolding, though he was more likely to get nipped for creeping too close to another family’s den.

Arika asked if his sisters were like him – red. Antigone blinked, glancing down to inspect the warm tan fur at his chest, then following it to his ribs. He did not know that he wore a hood as deep red as his father’s coat. Zulema and Zosime had colors from both of their parents, painted in a different design.

They do. Our father is red all over. Mom is this color, he gestured to his ribs for reference. Do your brother and sister look like you?

A small smile graced her features, something rare for Arika, even though she was so young. His family was red just like him, a fascinating color to her. The mention of his father lingered in her the back of her mind for a moment longer though. Was it normal to know them, what did hers look like, was she supposed to know him?

❝No,❞ She gave her small answer again.

❝My siblings are...❞ Arika paused, trying to think of a way to describe their complicated markings and ash colors while her head slightly cocked sideways again. ❝Gray?❞

She wondered if that was a proper way to describe them or if he would even understand. Her brother had a hood of almost blue grays and black, sister too, with white bellies. Unbeknownst to her, Arika received the shades of brown from her father, but a darker hood and oddly marked.

❝My mother is too, but lots white and some brown. Real pretty.❞

Gray, she’d said… or, asked. He had not missed the inquisitive tone in her voice.

Like stone.

The boy’s answer was simple, quiet. He knew gray. He had seen the mountains with their rocks of ash-color. The clouds, too. In the first breath of winter, Antigone had noted that the skies were considerably darker. The bleakness of that had been difficult to adjust to. It looked as though it ought to rain but it never did.

When Arika spoke about her mother, she described her as pretty. Antigone blinked, ears perking. It was a word that he had heard his father use a number of times. The red-hooded wolf thought it interesting. Feeling as though he should add to the conversation or make himself relatable, the boy cleared his throat.

My mom’s pretty too. How far can you go? Do you want to see the lake?

Arika nodded her head as he reffered to his mother as pretty as well. She wanted to see the others he had described, but that would be for later she figured.

❝Yes, I want to see.❞ Arika responded, glancing back to the den before getting up and peeking into the entrance with a lowered head.

❝I think I can go.❞ She responded, ears tilted towards him for any sort of response as she turned back to him with another small wag of her tail.

Her mother had never scolded her about straying from their home, so she figured why not. Arika wanted to see the lake, a word she unfamiliar with, but had heard from her mother's descriptions of the vale.

❝Can we?❞

The girl said that she would like to see the lake. Her head turned so that she could peer into the entrance. Arika thought she could go. There would not be any problems on a small trip like that. Antigone wished to assure her, but he didn’t think it was necessary. They were only going to go to the water so that she could see it.

I will take you, the red-hood said with a small nod. Dark blue eyes shifted to a path that he had walked a few times to the water. Then I will bring you back home. That seemed assurance enough, did it not? Antigone had no wishes to stay out late or to test Arika’s mother’s patience with her absence. If this trip went well, she would be able to go again.

Come on. The tone was plain, but Antigone wagged his tail and gestured with his snout that she should follow.

That was plenty of assurance for little Arika, she stood up after his reassurance and padded towards him with a still wagging tail. She was finally going to see her home thanks to the kindness of this young boy. The descriptions from her mother would finally be seen by her eyes. Her family had seemed to be rather reclusive, so beginning to explore and venture out was exciting.

The young boy was content to walk in silence for a while. He took Arika through the path that he had used, twisting through the trees on their way to the water. The light from overhead was softened by the many trees and the mountains that stood guard around the vale.

My father calls it a paradise, he said after a they had almost reached the edge of the lake.

Antigone glanced toward Arika before nudging his way through a thick bush and onto the rocky shore. The lake was beautiful, too. Birds floated out in the center of it. To the east of where the young wolves stood was a deer that had come from the trees to drink. It was beautiful and peaceful, their home.

❝Paradise.❞ Arika slowly sounded out after Antigone.

It was a pretty word to young girl, and was now how she would define their home. The silence they had walked in was comfortable, the red boy being an easy presence for her. Her walk through the vale only nurtured a growing appreciation for her home, even for the ones she shared it with. Arika continued to remain quiet as she looked over the lake they approached, her eyes sparkling with wonder.

❝What's that?❞ Her gaze had fixed on the creatures beside the lake as well within a second, turning her attention away from the sheer beauty.

Her voice was quiet, and her steps unsure on the gravelly shore. A small anxiety quelled inside her at the sight, the curiosity shifting to a timidness. Her mother had spoken of deer, but the little girl had not pieced the descriptions together at the sight of them.

The girl’s sharp eye caught movement near the water. She asked what it was, drawing Antigone’s attention toward the creatures who drank. If he had not been shown the hooved animals, he would have been at a loss. Arsenio had taken the boy through the vale and taught him the names of each prey animal. He had said that he hoped his son would become a hunter. Antigone did not have the interest of one, but he retained all of what his father had taught him.

Deer. Food, for us. My father says that there are herds that come into Epoch and that they will return if we do not hunt them often.

Antigone watched the deer beside the lake. He wondered what kind of things Arika had learned from her mother. Each wolf was different, he had found. Tamar’s knowledge was not shared with Arsenio’s. The girl might have learned something extraordinary from her parent.

What do you and your mom talk about?