Two Rivers Isle blue dream

Please wait for @Fjall to post before joining!

 

Their night in the Shadewood had been uneventful. After catching their dinner and eating, they turned in for the night to wake up with the sun and get an early start for their trek. Ariadne didn't expect to make it back to Moonglow today—even with the full night's rest—but she did not damper Fjall's enthusiasm when he mentioned it. "We will see," was all she could say. 

Their trajectory trended south—much further than she had initially anticipated. It was hard to navigate with the lush canopy overhead, and she struggled tremendously to keep them on track. She was quiet as they walked, focusing more on their path and surroundings than her company.

She had come across a pack-scent about a mile back and stopped abruptly as the smell became more pronounced; she had been following the invisible trail instinctively and without thinking. 

"We should be careful," she warned. "I think we might be close to another village." She studied the river through the treeline, silently wondering if the pack would be willing to point them in the right direction. She watched her friend, wondering what he made of their proximity.

Fed, well-rested, and anticipating their arrival at Moonglow any minute now, Fjall had a buoyancy to his step that had not been there before. This gait was still accompanied by a hindering limp in his hind leg, attached to the bruised hip he could feel quietly moaning beneath his fur, but the boy was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed: a far cry from his worried-looking travel companion.

Ariadne cautioned him, and he looked out over the river in an effort to spot any movement on the isle ahead. I smell them too, Fjall agreed. We should stay on this side of the river to be safe. Then he began to speculate out loud. Maybe they are a peaceful village? Should we meet them? It would be nice to return to Moonglow with new friends.

she would be upon the duo first. and for a moment, one could say that they were lucky that a friendly face would greet them. but with a bit of thought, it was soon a realization that everyone in the isles was a friendly face, even to outsiders so long as they did not mean harm.

she would come from the treeline, burly muscles crushing the snow and moving the debris away from her. When she looks upon the two who have yet to cross their rivers, the girl stands tall but not threateningly so. the river has quieted down a bit with the recent traveling chunks of ice, so the water cannot roar as loudly as it once did.

"this is two rivers isle," she calls to the others, "why so near?" her English has yet to become any faster and more fluent, but perhaps when springtime finally comes, iseul would sound a bit more familiar with the native tongue. her tone does not try to scare the others away, but simply asks for an answer to her question; nothing more and nothing less.

”I agree. I do not want to cause any problems.” There was no need. ”I do think that we should,” Ariadne agreed, ”And if they are not, we will leave.” It would be unfortunate, but they could not risk souring a relationship with a potential ally. 

When the stranger began to pick through the snow and debris she adjusted herself accordingly by lowering her gaze, flattening her ears, and tucking her tail between her legs. They smelled of the packlands. She meant no harm, and she hoped her body language was legible to the other wolf. 

”This is Two Rivers Isle,” the stranger said. ”Why so near?”

”This girl greets you,” she said, bowing her head. ”My name is Ariadne, and this is my friend, Fjall. We are from a village in the mountains called Moonglow.” 

”We are trying to return home, but the forest has made it hard for me to follow the sky’s directions.” She glanced at her companion before continuing. ”I was hoping that you might be able to help—as you know these forests better than we do.” 

She didn’t say anything else; if a friendship were to form, it’d happen organically.

An agreement between the two travelers came quickly, and yet there was a figure materializing on the other riverbank before either of them could make the call.

Fjall studied the figure, while Ariadne made the proper submission and introductions. The wolf was tall and healthy-looking, a proud, attractive creature to his young wisteria eyes. But it was her accented voice that provoked his interest more than anything else about her, causing his ears to press forward tautly to catch her every word over the river’s rolling music. Belatedly, he bowed his head in greeting and wagged his tail low against his hocks; not as formal as his companion though hopefully just as non-threatening.

Conversationally, he had nothing to add, even if his expression brimmed quietly with youthful enthusiasm, as if restraining himself from something he wanted to say.

she did not expect the bow of the heads from both of them. it seemed to not be a custom in some parts of the wilds, yet here were these 2 younger wolves before her offering a motion of respect towards iseul. this would offer them more grace with the girl.

she offers her own meaningful head bow back to them before speaking. her gaze was not hard, though it did soften more for the duo before her. she felt pity for the duo being a bit turned around in the wilds, though iseul was no veteran in these parts either she'd offer the knowledge she knew, and perhaps seek out Ulrich for his knowledge of the land if it helped.

"two rivers isle is far from mountains," she would come to say to them, "day or 2 travel, in ah- that way." she would come to point east with her muzzle, as she could not remember the translational words for directions quite yet. though, this would not be the right set of mountains the pair needed to travel in.

when the stranger mentions the trees blocking the sky, iseul does at least feel some sort of confidence in knowing what piece of land they were mentioning. the shadewood was a formidable opponent to even the most experienced navigator. without the stars, it was often hard to find which path was best.
 
"those woods," she begins, thinking hard of the word she learned from Ulrich recently, "danger." it sounded more ominous than she intended, but the girl lacked the ear to realize this. besides, the duo was better off finding their way home through the isle rather than being lost in that forest again.

"sky helps, yes?" this might be a bit difficult to interpret, but iseul means to ask the girl if the sky helps her navigate, and if so, she may let her pass through to a clearing.

Sorry for the awful delay! I lost a pet on the 9th and have been out of sorts since then. I should be back to being active now!

"Two Rivers Isle is far from mountains," Iseul confirmed, "day or two travel, in ah—that way." Ariadne followed the other woman's beckon. "Oh," she replied through a frown. "I didn't think I had gotten us that lost." Regardless of the news, she was grateful for the help. "I thank you, for your guidance." 

She wondered what Fjall made of the news; she hoped that his expectations would be adjusted accordingly. 

Her ears fell back when danger was mentioned, and her eyes widened. "What sort of danger?" she asked. How scary—she silently chided to herself—she had to be more careful! She knew they couldn't take their luck for granted. 

She nodded when asked about the sky, but only after a beat as she tried to understand what was being said. "Yes. If only the forest had shown me the sky!" They wouldn't be in the position that they found themselves in. But maybe this all happened for some reason beyond her current comprehension. "Do you use the sky to travel, too?"

At the riverwolf’s answer, Fjall looked to Ariadne, who expressed surprise at having gotten them turned around. He pressed his side into hers, reassuring the young scout that he didn’t blame her. The woods they’d been in were the thickest he’d ever come across. It stood to reason that this was the cause of them drifting off course, and he wasn’t worried in the least. He did, however, have to rein in his excitement about reaching Moonglow by evening.

The stranger offered a word of warning about the woods then, and again the boy turned lavender eyes to his travel companion for confirmation on how they should feel about this. Were they in danger now? Should he be worried? He deferred to her on these matters, as he was in no shape to do any protecting or even prolonged running.

Once past this, Fjall’s tail started to wag again when the nameless she-wolf asked about the sky. He nodded as Ariadne answered aloud, tilting his head at the kind, accented riverwolf as he listened for her response.

no problem <333  tagging for reference and also invitation for leaders to crash! @Ulrich and @Adylaide

the duo was turned around, perhaps more than one would care to admit. however, iseul has had her fair share of blunders and going in circles, so she is not one to judge others. the only regret she has is finding wolves from this area who need her help when she is of such little value! she is not a born native to these wilds, yet she is being tested on knowing where important things are.

"shadewood dark," she comes to say to the pair, "no stars, no ah-- travel." it was certainly easier to get turned around in those woods than the others due to their intense foliage. stars were perhaps the best way to navigate, yet the leaves refused to let the sky come into view while underneath the woods. "i travel with stars." she knew their importance.

"come," she would invite them, beckoning towards the narrower part of the river, "i show you way out, to, uhh, skip shadewood." she would act as a guide to escort them through the territory. iseul would at least be able to get them to where the rivers met near the slough, and by then, the pair would have a better chance of getting back on the right path. 

she'd come to try and perhaps guide them towards the narrower part that they could cross. but before such, she would send out a howl to her leaders to let them know of a message. "iseul is leading lost wolves through isle to the slough." just in case anyone could smell the foreigners and perhaps be worried of invaders.

she hoped she wouldn't lose her tail for such a bold act!

since our thread partner has gone inactive, we can wrap this up. sorry for the wait! you can post once more or just archive it - whichever you'd prefer <3

The Isle wolf was generous to the two young wolves, empathetic to their plight, and with her halting grasp of the common tongue, she guided them to a pinched section of the river that would take them in the right direction after crossing. Fjall’s worries were practically abolished by the end of this short encounter, and they thanked her profusely once he and Ariadne had crossed the freezing waters, shaking and shivering on the other side.

Th-th-thank you, a-again! Fjall spoke finally to the Isle wolf, his teeth chattering. He shook out his pale coat once more and pranced on his toes in an effort to chase the cold away. Ariadne, too, was ready for them to run and re-warm their bodies. Please, tell us your name. Wuh, we owe you f-f-for your kindness. And i-if you are ever p-past the mountains, M-Moonglow will welcome you.

After a cheerful goodbye to their guide, the girl and the boy loped headlong towards their destination, spirits lifted and laughter full of gratitude.

not a problem! archiving here <333

the stinging bite of the river was certainly strong enough to wake up any sleepy individual, polar plunges were not something that iseul often enjoyed doing in her newfound home.

so, she would make light conversation with the both of them and send them in the more correct direction towards home. when one asked for her name, the girl smiles and offers it kindly, "iseul, of two rivers isle."

it had a certain ring to it!

and once they made it to where they could cross again to get to the slough, iseul wished them both safe travels and invited them to visit anytime they were down south [so long as it was intentional and not by being lost!]. and when the skipped towards the general direction of home, the girl pat herself on the back and went back to her patrolling duties.