Moonsong Glacier the duty of every soldier is to protect the innocent

tags for reference! <3

he had departed a night ago with salted meats prepared for morningsong after speaking to @Solveig and reminding her of the promise he had made to the morning leader, @Dutch. many moons had passed since he had promised to visit the moonpack and feels a little more reassured that solveig and the children would be fine while he left to speak of potential alliances or sew the seeds of friendship at least, the könungr had prepared and departed with a kiss to each child's head and his wife's cheek; low whiskey steeped baritone promising he would return to them as soon as he could.

the morning sun painted the glacier watery colors of sunrise: oranges and pinks and purples; the air cooler as it radiates off the glacier.

the morningsong people were gone from this place. he could tell upon his approach, and while there lingered a scent here or there it was old. faded.

rusalka's steps slow and he lays his fur wrapped gift down to his paws with a deep frown; wondering what had happened, and whether it had been dispersal or relocation.

He had come back to search for Ulloriaq, who had never quite left his mind even after her departure. He was not sure where they might stand now that he was married, and unlike with Sulukinak, he could not in good faith insist on trying to keep her close.

But he still cared for her. He still couldn't stand the thought of her returning and finding them all gone without a trace. Oh, she would surely find them if she sought out any of the moon wolves, but there would still be a moment where she found herself abandoned. Whatever the state of their connection, Dutch could not abide by that.

So he was here, placing scent markers to act as messages more than boundaries. Already his last ones had faded, and he was busy pushing back against the worry that she had already come and gone.

The breeze carried another scent to him. He looked up, and trotted up to the next rise.

"Rusalka," he called out, hurrying forward. He was only pleased at first, and then he saw the pelt and felt another sweep of misgiving. "I'm glad I caught you," he said, just a little breathless in the shadow of the handsome leader — surely from the jog over! "I don't come back here often, these days. I should have sent word when we moved."

rusalka is surprised that the footfalls he hears approaching end up belonging to dutch, and does not bother to hide it as it settles upon his face. hello dutch, greets the leviathan in his thick, heavy whiskey steeped baritone.

i wouldn't expect you to, is what the sweep of his gaze says to the abandoned glacier, glad to know that morningsong has relocated and not disbanded entirely. in truth, he was curious as to what brought dutch back to the glacier at all — since ravensthorpe had moved and re-branded rusalka hadn't once been back to the coast himself.

but then again, he's never been much of a wanderer; contented to tend to his lands and raise his children and spend time with his fierce valkyrie wife.

it's not something i'd have expected you to do, rusalka gives voice to his thoughts, not meaning his words as anything other than simple. they had never forged any sort of pack relation with one another, in all fairness. i'm late bringing the gift from ravensthorpe, but he wasn't apologizing for it. though he is a second time father this year, it doesn't ease the heightened instincts to protect his own despite that he knew the pack kept dangers at bay and solveig herself was more than capable of defending their children.

even so, rusalka is a provider by nature and had settled much, much better into role of father and husband than his own father ever had.

it's not much with demanding little bellies to fill, he admits with a grin that is toothy and could be considered rife with cheeky affection. but it is some salted meats for you and yours. rusalka takes a step back from the small bundle of fur wrapped meats. how do you and morningsong fare? asks rusalka, his interest genuine.

The panther was touched, even though he assumed it was a largely very political gesture. Could heart and politics not mix? He stepped forward to accepted with a dip of his head and a murmur of heartfelt thanks.

"It is more than you were asked for!" he replied with a sweep of his tail. "I appreciate your thoughtfulness, my friend." For they must be friends, if they were to exchange such gifts.

As for Morningsong — Dutch did not correct the man on the name of the pack, for he would surely find them asking after either name.

"We fare well," he said, pun intended, as he looked to the glacier as well. "It was getting too big for us. Our numbers dwindled. I grew lonely for the company of my brothers. Now we life between them in the deepwood. Close to the villages of Moontide and Moonglow."

He turned more fully to Rusalka.

"But you still have friends among us, if you ever have need of them," he assured the man. "I can see that you are a man with a great heart for his family. For this alone, I feel moved to extend such an offer. And for this!" He nudged the gift. "How can I do otherwise when my wife and my niece and my nephews will enjoy this meat tonight?"

He gazed intently at Rusalka.

"How does your family fare? I'd like to hear their names, if you have the time to share them!"

tags for reference! <3

a last glimpse is given towards what he can see of the glacier, unable to help but wonder how viable it had truly been as a place to sustain a pack, but that was neither here nor there and he chased the thought away.

a smile, perhaps a bit bashful in it's nature — at odds with rusalka's very being surely! — tugs at his lips at the comradely he feels it shared between the two of them. husbandhood and fatherhood had been very good to rusalka, though had only reenforced things, had also helped to smooth out some of his most surly tendencies. being the father to his children he'd wanted for himself as a cub had helped to heal old adolescent wounds. generational wounds, even.

well, rusalka says on a breath. my oldest children departed some moons ago to find their own way in the world, and though his heart yearns for their safe return back to the ravens hearth at some point, he also understands the need. it ran in his own family line and he does not doubt solveig's as well.

@Leifa, @Baldr, @Nazair, and @Granite are my eldest bunch, he says their names with pride and affection. my youngest are @Hilda, @Tyraxes, @Arrax and Zireael. though he does not mention that the youngest and smallest of the litter was sickly and seemed slower to develop than her littermates and that he worries over her day and night. that wasn't anything he is keen to share with anyone outside of ravensthorpe.

and my wife @Solveig. though he may have mentioned her before; but just in case he was throwing her name out there again.

rusalka noted that dutch had mentioned a wife, and asks, do you have any children, dutch? for if there was two things that rusalka was eager to bond with other men over: it was husbandhood and fatherhood.

Dutch filed each name away with care, wanting to recognize these young wolves if he ever ran into them. It might prove important, one day! And it was a marvel to hear how many of them there were, and to imagine himself in the same position in a little over a year's time. His eyes danced with shared joy and his own private wonder, and when it was his turn, he sucked in a breath that came out as a huffy laugh.

"They are on their way!" he groused in a way that jokingly plead patience from the other man. "My wife, Simbelmyne, grows more round and more lovely with each passing day! We have spoken only a little of names."

He'd told Towhee about his first litter, and he'd told Simbelmyne about his shared blood with the seal hunter pups — but he did not tell Rusalka about either.

"I will teach them your name," he said to the man, "And perhaps in the summer time, we can arrange a play date. We would be happy to host you at Morningside — ah! My surname. Since we no longer reside at Moonsong, we've dropped that from our pack name."

an expecting father, then!

congratulations are in order then, to you and your missus. rusalka booms, tail swaying with joy for the other man's coming fatherhood. being a father is like nothing else, rusalka offers his own experiences on the subject, though it had not been asked for. i am almost unrecognizable from the man i'd been before fatherhood. but it had changed the leviathan for the good, forcing him to do a wild three-sixty that made the two rusalka's before and after two totally different wolves.

i'll speak to solveig about it, but i think it's a fantastic idea. rusalka replies to the suggestion of a playdate and offering a small noise of acknowledgement as dutch informs him the pack has dropped 'moonsong' in favor of the man's own surname. and while rusalka finds this practice a strange one, he says nothing on it.

i do wish morningside the best in it's new location. he understood the need to relocate, sometimes for a change of pace, sometimes out of looming threats or out of simple necessity. the raven clan had done so once, already themselves.

The panther's breath caught; he wondered if this sort of metamorphosis might come over him as well, and what fatherhood might turn him into in the aftermath. He thanked Rusalka and then thanked him again, his tail sweeping wide and quick.

"Please offer her my congratulations as well," he insisted, hoping to make a good impression on this yet-unseen woman. "On your latest litter. They will be quite a bit bigger than mine, so I imagine it will be some time before we are ready to introduce them — but I shall keep in touch. Perhaps we four can meet again before the time comes."

But with Simbelmyne showing more and more each day, he doubted that it would be anytime soon.

"I wish Ravensthorpe the best where it stands," he replied, taking a step back. He was sure Rusalka needed to get back to his family. "Thank you again, my friend."