Two Rivers Isle her own kimchi recipe

for @Ulrich <333

winter always looked the same to iseul. the trees lost their foliage and the bark would sometimes get peeled by scavenging herbivores in search of food. her parents would bring kills in from the caches, and her sister would sleep close by where her snores could echo through their den. the snowflakes were the same. and the wind still howled as it did before. the bitter cold nipped at her nose, and her breath plumed like dragon's smoke as she exhaled.

but the winter here was different, for iseul did not have her family with her this time. and truly, it scared the young girl to her very core. while she was certainly old enough to be on her own, she could not deny the comfort that was held in her mother's fur or in her father's gaze, or even in her sister's voice. everything that seemed so trivial and small was swept away, and the girl was left groveling for allowing herself to become ungrateful for all she had.

dewdrop sat alone tonight. and while snowflakes did litter the ground and her own coat, she did not waver. the clouds covered most of the sky, but when iseul found an empty piece of the night, she looked for the stars. and perhaps the last piece of comfort that iseul would have is that the stars were unchanging. even thousands of miles away from her family, they were looking at the same stars at night.

iseul sent her love to the stars and moon tonight, hoping and praying that it would reach someone in her heart.

It was almost time for bed, almost time to curl around Adylaide's body in their den and sleep in her embrace. But not quite yet. Ulrich decided to take one last trot about the Isle, not too far from the den, to take in the fresh air and the cold. His breath bloomed ahead of him as he went along, warming his muzzle with the heat from his mouth, and then chilled his nose as the condensation froze. He was really looking forward to going to bed and burying his cold nose in his wife's fur.

Iseul sat before him in the path up ahead, staring at the stars, her head tilted back. Ulrich hesitated, wondering if she wanted company or not. He shook his head--he was always hesitating--and drew nearer to her. Adylaide was constantly trying to convince him that he had more worth than he knew, that people liked him. He took a breath, and then stepped forward, clearing his throat softly to let her know he was there. Good evening. He kept his voice soft, not wanting to be loud in the quiet darkness.

the stars were silent. as they always were each night they were arranged in the sky.

some would take comfort in such silence. iseul was not one of those lucky individuals. the silence felt damning in a way as if the stars refused to share the message she so desperately wanted to send to her family. but in the end, stars were stars. they were not like the wolves who roamed, where silence was meant to be antagonizing and spiteful. they were silent as they had been for millions of years, and it was iseul who was left questioning why they were silent in the first place.

Ulrich greets her. iseul feels her ears swivel around to listen to him before she turns her head to look. a small dip of the head and a weak smile, an attempt to hide the recent thoughts that littered her mind. "cold tonight," she says to him, "snow keeps falling." a wiggle of her shoulders helps release the white blanket that had settled onto her parka. and as the snow clumps together behind her, the girl lets her tail thump a bit as an invitation for Ulrich to join her if he wanted to.

"does... ulrich like snow?" 

Yes, it is cold, Ulrich agreed, glancing around at the snow-covered landscape. I look forward to the spring. He saw Iseul's tail thump and smiled a little, coming to sit beside her. He supposed Adylaide would have to wait for a while; he did not want to be rude to this girl by ignoring her invitation, even if all he really wanted was to be curled up, warm and dry, in the den.

"Does... Ulrich like snow?" the girl asked.

Ulrich still found her speech patterns a little strange but made no comment on them. What would that achieve, other than by making Iseul feel bad for not having a full grasp of his language yet? She would learn. Perhaps he should return the favor by trying to learn some of her language, too.

He shook himself, realizing he'd gotten distracted. Overthinking again. I don't dislike snow, he said. I... prefer the warmer months to the colder. I'd much rather have no snow at all. But... the seasons will turn as they're meant to, and wishing for no winter seems futile. He paused. Do you like snow?

spring and summer tended to be everyone's favorite times of the year. the only voices she had ever heard in support of winter and even fall were the ones who came from lands of only ice and snow. the tundra-dwellers were perhaps better equipped for such extreme weather, however, and had more knowledge and experience when it came to survival in such a frigid place. but despite the rough conditions, they had learned to call it home and adapt.

this was something that iseul was still learning how to do at a young age, adapting to her surroundings successfully. it was difficult at first, with the language barrier remaining as the heaviest of blockades in her path. yet she persisted, the same as the others seemingly do when they must overcome something. perhaps this was what united all of them on the isle -- the idea that no matter what, they will persist and move onward, no matter the challenges they have faced so far.

"sometimes," she offered honestly, "snow comes before spring, it is..." here she struggled to find the word for a few seconds before popping up "needed. they balance." it was what her mother taught her, that the seasons must cycle through in order to give room for the other to breathe. 

"iseul met adylaide," she wondered if Ulrich was bored with the weather talk, "그녀는 아름답다." iseul always felt as if her voice wavered when she spoke, though it grew steady and seemingly beamed when she spoke in her native tongue. but upon the realization of who she was talking to, the girl made an audible fumble, a little embarrassed 'ah' sound realizing that ulrich probably had no idea what she said.

"beauty," she reassures him, "adylaide is beauty."

Ulrich nodded at Iseul's words about the balance of the seasons. Yes, he agreed. There can be no summer without winter. Briefly, he thought of the seasons back in his old home, when Adylaide was younger. They were the same four seasons wherever one went--well, unless one lived in a desert, like Goliad, or a tundra that was always winter--but somehow, the thought of the seasons back in that place felt different than here. Everything felt different here.

Iseul spoke again, distracting him from his train of thought. Ah, he said, with a smile, his tail thumping behind him. So you met my wife. Iseul said something in her native tongue, and he tilted his head to the side in confusion. The words sounded pretty, though he did not understand them.

"Beauty. Adylaide is beauty."

Ulrich smiled at his paws. He knew she'd meant that Adylaide was beautiful, but the way she'd said it made it sound like his wife was... the essence, the spirit of all beauty. He liked to think of her that way, a goddess of all beautiful things, surrounded by flowers and butterflies and things. But he knew that Adylaide would frown upon him thinking of her as a goddess, a title she had run away from. Yes, he said, simply. Adylaide is beautiful.

Feeling suddenly shy, he cleared his throat and looked up. Ah... your language. What is it called?

the idea had at least come across, she was happy about that. perhaps not the best wording, but the more time she forced herself to listen and speak in English, the better she'd get at it. although when she thinks about it, the girl often regrets not listening to her English lessons back home, taught by her traveling aunty who seemed to have touched every piece of land on the earth.

every time iseul encountered a word she didn't know, she'd smack herself mentally and hear her aunt's voice whisper in her ears. 'if you paid attention, you would know what it means'. and perhaps this was the only true sentence in English that Iseul 100% knew what was being said.

when he asks about her language, the girl feels her tail thump a bit in a happy manner. the wolves of this land always proved to be so promising, despite their different customs and tongues. "kujo," is what she tells him as the English version, "or 한국어. one might be... easier to say." a small laugh leaves her as she looks towards her leader, "does ulrich speak other languages?"

Kujo, Ulrich repeated, slowly. It was a short word, yet he feared mispronouncing it all the same. Of course, he was generally anxiety-ridden, so this was nothing new.

She asked if he spoke other languages, and his ears went back along his skull in a bit of embarrassment. Alas, no. I speak only this tongue. Where I grew up, it was all anyone spoke, so I never had any cause or opportunity to learn another language. He glanced away, hoping Iseul did not think him uncultured. Clearing his throat nervously, he said, Perhaps I may learn yours? At least... a few words. You are trying so hard to learn my language, I feel it is only right to learn yours.

He was a leader now, and no matter how uncomfortable that made him, it still made him responsible for those under him. And he would not be like the king who had been killed for his insolence. He would make his pack members feel welcome. What was more welcoming than acknowledging and embracing their differences?

he repeated the word to her, and the girl offers him a smile with a nod of the head. he had managed to at least get her name right, so that was already proof the man could at least pick up a few words. perhaps not full sentences, but words that he could use to convey his feelings, or perhaps even secret messages. and perhaps iseul would be able to use her mother tongue in her new home, which would bring about a sense of pride yet homesickness within her.

"Kujo is, ah, different." phonetically, alphabetically -- pretty much everything about the language was foreign in this land. she would hold no grudges against those who would try to learn, but maybe not flourish as quickly as they wanted. "but there are good things about it," she sounds a bit stilted trying to convey her idea but pushes onward, "others here don't speak Kujo. it is, ah, like secret." well, secret language is really what she had meant to get across to him, but maybe he'd pick up what she was putting down.

"first word iseul teach," she says with a little more confidence, "is 늑대.  wolf." perhaps not the most exciting, but being able to say what you are, or perhaps even that you see others of your kind is an important message to be able to say. "ne-ug-day." she would say to him slowly, as she knew the pronunciation was often the biggest hump to get over.

Phone post. Will be short probably.

Ulrich listened as Iseul talked about Kujo. How it was different. How it was… secret. But she’d said that there were good things about it. Did she mean it was good that the language was a secret? Did she perhaps not want him to learn it?

But then she taught him a word, so clearly she did want him to learn it. She taught him word for wolf. Feeling self-conscious, he repeated it back to her slowly. Ne…ug…day. He paused. Like that?

he says it, slow like she did at first. and as iseul listens, her tail thumps harder against the ground. a pretty strong first pronunciation for his first word on Kujo! she nods to him, though she lifts a paw up and motions to her throat. "it has deep sound," she tells him, "the uhgg comes from here." it was hard to explain the phonetics part of the language, as it was involved more "throaty" noises if that even made sense.

"try again, make deep sound." he was pretty much right on the money, but now it was just about refinement to her ears that would tie the word perfectly in Ulrich's mouth. 

"ne-uhhg-dae."

I looked up how to pronounce it in Korean just to sort of understand what Ulrich is trying to say lol. It sounds more like two syllables than three to me.

Iseul was supportive and kind as he fumbled his way through his first try saying a word in Kujo. Apparently, he'd done well, but not perfectly. That was better than he'd expected, at least. Trying not to feel even more self-conscious than he already did, he cleared his throat, glanced at her, glanced away, then looked back at her as she explained how to make the proper sounds. It was a more guttural language than his own, it seemed.

He repeated the word, saying it faster, and closing his throat around the "uhgg" sound, pulling it from his chest. Neugdae. He paused, then repeated, Neugdae. Then he looked at her expectantly, waiting.

it is! iseul is just trying to make initial pronunciation easy before she tells him to say it faster haha

he takes her advice into stride and pronounces it again, this time he receives a firm nod of the head from the girl. he had gotten it! honestly, now that she thought about it, it was kind of a hard word to start out versus the others that she could teach him. but what use would he have for such words? wolf at least held some sort of meaning to them all, something that could be said every day. 

iseul liked to think about these things with a sense of practicality.

"yes!" she would tell him, "ne and uhhg are together," she would tell him, "becomes ah, easier with practice. ne-uugh then is 'neug' for neugdae." but he seemingly got the message, and with ease as well. besides, ulrich was the only one to have shown any interest in her language. that fact was already enough for her to be happy.

"is there, ah... other word Ulrich wants to know?" perhaps he wanted a nickname for himself, or perhaps for his wife. wouldn't that be something sweet?

Apparently, he had done well. This relieved him more than pleased him. At least he had not made a fool of himself. He smiled, relaxing, not realizing how tense he had been, and rolled his shoulders. He really needed to calm down more often.

'Is there, ah... other word Ulrich wants to know?' Iseul asked.

He thought about it, but could not think of another word that was so important as wolf. Hunt, perhaps? he suggested. It was the first thing that had come to mind, and could be useful in the future, a quick command. It was something that did not really need to be elaborated on, for one could simply follow the scent trail of whatever one was hunting. Or... danger? Another good utility word. And then he realized something. Your name, Iseul... What does it mean? This had no utility, but was interesting to him all the same. Of course, his own name meant nothing in his language, or if it did, he did not know its meaning. But... perhaps her own name did mean something to her in her own language.

hunt. 사냥

danger. 위험

this man was quite a goal-oriented wolf in his way of thinking to iseul. everything held purpose, his actions and the words he choose to learn and speak. it reminds iseul of her father in a way, how he had always wanted to achieve something useful for himself and for the others whom he called family. secretly, she took comfort in the fact that the similarities were there, perhaps unbeknownst to Ulrich himself. it was as if home kept finding ways to integrate itself into her isle. 

when he asks for the meaning of her own name, this catches the girl off guard. she visibly perks up at the mention, wondering what made Ulrich question it. perhaps the man held more that meets the eye? after all, who was iseul to judge others on what they cared to know and didn't? but how could the girl possibly communicate the word 'dew' if she didn't quite know it in English?

she sucks in a breath, thinking hard for a second silently as to what to say.

"it means, ah, water--" she starts off with an anxious lick of her chops, "water on grass in morning." she offers a sheepish smile to the man as she says this, looking to the snow-covered ground underneath her. "sorry, I do not, uh, remember word for it." for a moment, she thought of asking if Ulrich knew the word himself, but she realized that she wouldn't be able to answer his previous questions if she did such a greedy thing. 

"ah," she'd shake her head in an embarrassed manner, "i didn't say important words in Kujo." her mother would have swatted her upside the head for her lack of manners! "hunt is sanyang, sahn-yahng, and danger, danger is..."

for the love of the god, iseul could not remember what danger meant. a paw reaches to cover her snout in bashful expression as the girl looks away with a growing heat upon her face. how could she not remember what danger meant? it sounded so important! in the quietest voice she can muster, she soon asks him "what... what does danger mean?"

Water on grass in morning, he repeated silently to himself, thinking. He imagined the Isle with beautiful green grasses shooting up through dark soil. In a few more months, the hills and forest would be beautiful. Dew? he offered. Dew collects on plants in the early morning, before the sun evaporates it all. He smiled. It's a beautiful name. Indeed, the sun glinting off the wet grass and bushes was beautiful in the morning. When everything wasn't covered with snow, that is.

She taught him the word for hunt, and he repeated it dutifully back to her: Sahn-yahng. Immediately, in his head, he repeated the word for wolf so he would not forget it. Neugdae.

'... And danger, danger is...' Suddenly Iseul looked glanced away, looking markedly embarrassed, covering her face in a way that reminded Ulrich of Adylaide. 'What... What does danger mean?'

Ulrich immediately felt horrible for making Iseul feel embarrassed, even though it was obviously not his fault. It--It's all right, he said, quickly, wanting to hug her, wanting to hide her from the entire world so that she could be embarrassed away from prying eyes. He knew how she felt, or close to it, for embarrassment and anxiety could be quite similar. Danger is... He furrowed his brow. How was he meant to explain it? Like, if a rival pack came to the Isle and attacked us, or if a bear came snooping around. Or if someone fell in the river and was swept away. That is danger. Danger means something bad or harmful could happen. The whole time he explained the meaning, he kept his eyes firmly away from her, trying to give her time to recover her composure.

iseul could not be more thankful for having such an intelligent creature as her leader like Ulrich. the man seemingly knew all the words she lacked, and yet spoke with gentleness to not drive the knife deeper into her heart and flay her from within. he may never know this, but Iseul would forever be grateful for the nature Ulrich maintained with her. it made her feel... understood and listened to.

dew. 이슬. it was her name. and when he speaks of it highly, her tail thumps politely against the snow. "thank you,"  she would say to him with a smile, " does Ulrich mean something?" it would only be polite to ask, anyways.

when she hears what danger means, as well as a few examples, her tail grows still. a bear. she did not recognize the name, but it did make her think of the tall, lumbering beast that chased her and her sister in separate directions. unknowingly, bear was the name of the terrifying mammal that nearly snapped her neck in half. iseul had to fight off a shiver that traveled up her spine at the thought.

"danger," she repeats this to herself, eyes squinting a bit with thought as she does her best to look through her mental dictionary of the words and their meanings, "is wiheom, wii-heom." 

I googled Ulrich's name out of curiosity and it apparently means 'a rich and powerful heritage.' Interesting! But he doesn't know this because his name is German and he only speaks English.

Ulrich blinked in surprise at Iseul's question. He had never even thought to wonder about whether his own name had a meaning. I... I have no idea, he admitted, and chuckled. It's not a word, like your name is. If it has a meaning, it must be in another language, one I don't know. It might not mean anything.

Ulrich noticed Iseul's sudden stillness, but didn't know what to attribute it to, so he did not mention it. Perhaps she was merely concentrating, trying to think of the Kujo equivalent to the word danger. She said the word after a few seconds. 'Wiheom. Wii-heom.'

Wii...heom, he repeated, making sure to say it slowly so as not to mess up the pronunciation. Wii...heom. Wiheom. Then, Sanyang. Hunt. Neugdae. Wolf. Wiheom. Danger. Best to repeat and repeat and repeat so as not to forget.

it held no meaning he knew of, but perhaps iseul would be able to come up with her own meaning for his name. it was a bit imaginative and perhaps even childish. but she had no reason to put away her childish things, they helped her see the light in her situation. even more so, they would help add meaning to things and significance to others when she thought of them.

"it could mean something that you want," she would suggest to him politely, "you make own meaning to Ulrich." perhaps he'd come up with something, or he'd just assume she was just being friendly with no suggestions of her own. either way, it was food for thought.

and when the man next to her speaks again, his pronunciation is strong as he repeats his words back to iseul. a proud smile etches itself onto her features. Ulrich may never know how refreshing it was for iseul to hear the words of her homeland in her ears from another. and perhaps the man would take comfort in the face that he knew words to bring himself closer to his civilians. "yes," she would come to tell him, "all sound correct. very impressive!" kujo was certainly one of the most difficult languages to learn, but with a few basic words Ulrich managed to sound a little more grounded in her tongue.

Make my own meaning, Ulrich repeated, murmuring the words quietly, and he smiled. He liked that, liked the idea that he was recreating himself, in a way, here, at the Isle. That he could be someone different from who he had grown up as, forced to act in certain ways in his previous pack. Maybe my name should mean, 'Kind but Anxious Man,' he said, and chuckled. It would certainly be fitting.

Well, thank you for the language lesson, Iseul, Ulrich said, seeming to come out of a daze. This has been fun; we should continue these lessons. Maybe get others involved, if anyone else wants to learn Kujo? He stood up. I hate to leave you, but pack duties call. He smiled at her, asking with his eyes for permission to step away.

I thought we'd close this up since it's old? <3

ulrich has my heart ehe <3 feel free to either respond or archive from here!

kind but anxious man. 

she didn't quite grasp what anxious meant. but she knew that the word 'but' was a change in the wording, a secret little syntax hint meaning that the first word Ulrich said was being followed by something different. maybe not the exact opposite, but the 2 words did not live in the same family together. if they did, perhaps he would have used 'and'. she'd ponder these little grammar things to herself later.

but for now, Ulrich says he must leave. iseul will not hold him down but instead nods her head politely toward him. "I like talking to Ulrich," she says to him warmly, "very smart and kind." it was easy to follow her leader's footsteps when they were so enjoyable to be around.

she'd offer him a 'good night' and perhaps stay there to watch the sky just a little bit longer.

Ulrich felt himself go hot at Iseul's words. The only other one who had ever given him such a compliment was Adylaide. He did not quite know what to do with the information that he was enjoyable to talk to, that Iseul thought him kind and smart. Well, he mumbled, embarrassed, and he began to shuffle away. Th-thank you. He gave her a quick smile and trotted off, feeling unworthy of her words, but secretly pleased somewhere deep down.

[Exit.]