Luneshale Pass No one will ever

for @Bushtit

As of late she has continued to feel rather unwell, and yet there are things to be done. Her work had to continue.

She thought her task to be simple, until it dawned on her that she was not quite sure she had met Soto's son. She remembered Arslan spoke of him after arriving from his task, however, the mother too.

With the pack working to move back into the Lunshale Pass, she thought that she may find the young wolf somewhere between there and the Basin. Heavy, fatigued paws carried her forward as she kept an eye out.

It was not uncommon for her to be sick now, but she choked down her nausea. She could save it for later if it had to hit her. All she could think about now was finding the son of Soto, and ripping into a fat rodent afterwards.

Sorry for the delay, I lost track of this one!

He felt a little thrill when he woke up alone, though guilt made for an awful chaser. Bushtit unfurled and brushed some snow off his legs, then looked around and wondered what the hell to do with himself. He laughed, the noise jarring in the morning stillness. Good problem to have.

He could see the pass from here, so he started walking in that direction. Soto seemed to like it when Bushtit helped mark the borders. He wouldn’t mind learning a little more Spanish as well. ¿Porque no los dos?

He spotted a wolf ahead, though it wasn’t anyone he knew. Without Towhee beside him, Bushtit felt suddenly bashful to the point of hesitation. He slowed to a stop, biting at his lower lip. He supposed he could simply approach her and introduce himself. He didn’t need his mom for that!

Hola, he said as he drew closer to the pale woman, who had cream fur, violet eyes and a little green around the gills. Hey, are you alright? ¿Bien?

It's no worry at all!

She thought it to be magic that by the time she lifted her head with clear vision, a young boy was in her eye line. He spoke the combination of Spanglish upon approaching, similar to she had when first being taught Spanish by Beau. She still did it a bit now, admittedly.

Letting out a breath, she offered up a smile. I'm alright. She says, her words accompanied by a nod as if to reassure him the she was being truthful. Are you Soto's son? My name is Leto, I'm a member of Verapaz. She offered her introduction, hoping that she was not incorrect in her assumption. There were not too many young wolves around here.

Looking the boy over, she had to wonder what his mother may look like - and where she was, at that.

She insisted she was alright, then asked him if he was Soto’s son. The question made his head rear back in surprise, though he quickly recovered and smiled a little. He didn’t necessarily think of himself that way but…

Si, he confirmed. Nice to meet you, Leto. I’m Bushtit.

He lapsed into silence that quickly grew awkward. He’d approached her, so he intuited that he should say something else. But Bushtit’s mind went totally blank. He just stared at her, the skin of his face slowly growing warmer.

Her assumption had been correct! A bright smile did little to hide her pleased mood. She would get straight to the point, then.

He says that you and your mother have a language you share. I was sent to see if you could teach me. She was rather interested herself, admittedly. Leto knew little to nothing of what it was but it never hurt to learn. If you're willing, of course.

Then again, she was not sure if she could take no for an answer here. She had been given a task, and so it must be completed. What sort of woman would she be to break her streak after only one successful mission?

She grinned at him, as if his name was the best news she’d heard all day. Bushtit cocked his head, blinking when she brought up the language he and his mother shared. His face immediately brightened, the tension leeching from his muscles as he leaned forward slightly.

-“You mean Ptero?”- he asked, making a point to sign the words as he spoke them. -“Yeah, sure, I can teach you. Did he tell you why we use it?”- he wondered.

He was willing to teach her! This was going far better than Leto had expected - her spirits were already way up. He didn't tell me much of anything. She responded, watching the strange getsures with questions practically filling her eyes. It was impossible not to be curious.

So, what's Ptero then? She asks with the tilt of her head. Now she only had to hope that this would not be too difficult for her - sure, she was smarter than she often acted, but language learning could be tough for even the most knowledgeable geniuses out there.

Her question stilled his limbs, a little knit appearing in his pale brow. Had she somehow not noticed his movements? No, he’d seen her eyes following them. Perhaps Leto simply didn’t make the connection. If he thought about it, Bushtit supposed that made sense. Most languages were spoken, after all.

-“This is Ptero,”- he emphasized with particularly punchy movements. -“It’s a sign language. Have you met my mom, Towhee? She’s deaf, which is why we communicate this way.”-

He did his level best to ignore the little tug in his chest when he spoke about his mother. What was she doing right now, he wondered? Was she annoyed with him? Or was she more worried? He didn’t mean to torment her. I probably should’ve said something… well, too late now, he decided, squaring his shoulders and pushing her from his mind.

Now she understood - she was pretty sure she did, at least. Oh! Alright, now I think I understand. A sign language. She says with the slight wave of her tail. She had never heard of such a thing. It won't be bad for me to learn then. With albinism being rather common in her family, the possibility of a deaf pup was always present.

Sitting herself down, Leto prepared to do her best listening and watching. Where do we start then? She had already learned one new language this year, so surely she could learn another. She was confident; there was no way it could be too difficult, right?

Leto didn’t say anything about his mother’s condition, though she seemed to recognize the merits of this silent method of communication. Her next remark made him think. Was she actually happy to learn of her own accord, rather than simply feigning interest because Soto had sent her here?

It didn’t really matter to him. Bushtit brushed these thoughts aside to join those about his mother, his brow scrunching thoughtfully at Leto’s astute question. He supposed they would start with the easiest and most common words, although he thought of a certain someone’s tried and true method.

-“Your best bet is to watch and learn. That’s how I picked it up: by watching my mom, starting at a very young age. It might take you longer,”- he said, flashing her a sheepish grin, -“but, oh, what’s the word? When you learn something by being… being… I feel like it starts with an ‘x’…”-

Watching an learning sounded easy enough. It was how most people learned their first language, so it could surely be a decent way to learn a second, or in her case a third.

A word that started with an 'x'... she was just as puzzled. ..Experienced? That starts with an 'x' sound. That was her best guess.

Leto made a guess, though Bushtit shook his head and replied, -“No, that’s not it. It means, like, you’re around something and kind of pick up on it because you’re…”- He waited for it to come to him, yet the term remained elusive. -“Damn, that’s annoying,”- he joshed with a dry laugh.

He hoped she understood what he was trying to say, in any case. As long as he and his mom—and possibly others—used the language in front of Leto, she would inevitably come to understand it. Of course, that was only to establish a baseline; if she wanted to become fluent, it would require additional effort to utilize it.

-“I guess we can just have a regular ole conversation. I’ll make sure to sign, then you can start signing as you pick up on it. Then rinse and repeat into infinity. Sound good to you?”- he asked with a boyish grin.

She had not guessed the word correctly and Bushtit had not been able to think of what it was, but maybe one of them would figure it out eventually.

Alright, just don't laugh if I mess it up. She said, though her tone suggested she was teasing. I'll do my best! For her own benefit of course, but to please Soto as well. It was in everyone's best interest that she put in a full effort.

She clicked her tongue, considering a question to ask. Well, tell me then; where are you from?

-“I’ll only ever laugh with you, not at you,”- he insisted with a boyish wink. -“I’m not from anywhere, really. I was born in my older sister’s pack in a place called Sun Mote Corpse,”- he explained, unaware that he’d bungled that name a bit. -“But I barely remember it, to be honest. My mom and me have been traveling together since I was old enough to walk more than a couple feet.”-

He laughed, a fond little noise that quickly died in his throat. He’d gone everywhere with her—and vice versa—until now. Bushtit drew in a breath as he grappled with a fresh wave of guilt. They were usually thick as thieves. He should’ve at least said something…

-“What about you?”- he asked, speaking a little loudly as if quite literally trying to speak over his own thoughts. -“Where did you come from and how’d you end up here?”-

She watched carefully as he spoke, copying some of his movements along the way. He was a traveler nearly from birth, she could relate to that; though the pack he mentioned sounded a bit odd. 'Sun Mote Corpse' felt strangely dark - were they vampires?

I came from far North - my birth pack. She responded, copying the movement which she had assumed to be 'I' from her observations. My mother wanted me to disperse, so I did. I was the fourth of six litters, so I can't blame her for wanting to free up space. I'm sure there's more to come this year. She was beginning to miss her home less as the months passed. There was far more to the world than her parents corner of it, she had learned.

He’d heard of the north in passing. If memory served, it was a place of colder climes and snow. Bushtit shuddered, distaste flashing across his boyish features. He hated the cold. While the rest of the world seemed to find snow magical, he thought it was bullshit.

He blinked loudly when Leto told him her mother had urged her to disperse. Cannot relate, Bushtit’s inner voice quipped. His stomach clenched as the guilt ate at him. Their mothers did have something in common though: prolificness.

I have a lot of older siblings too, he shared, forgetting to sign momentarily before catching himself. -“I’ve only met a few of them. I think I’m her last. Anyway, to answer your question, I don’t really come from anywhere. My mom took me traveling as soon as I could walk. Actually, I think she carried me places even before that. But, yeah.”-

Bushtit paused, reflecting on dim memories of being bundled in a makeshift swaddle and toted places. Towhee hadn’t really talked to him much about those early days, though he made a note to ask her about them when he saw her next. He swallowed and shoved that thought aside quickly.

-“Why Verapaz?”- he asked Leto before sharing, -“We’re here because Soto’s my dad. I—we—both wanted to get to know him a bit better, which has been a little tough considering we don’t speak the same language,”- Bushtit said with a chuckle. -“Hey, do you speak any Spanish? Maybe we can teach each other.”-

She understood that all too well. Before she had begun to learn Spanish it was a pain to communicate with Soto. He was already rather stoic, so being unable to speak with him at all was horribly difficult. He's stubborn, too. I was shocked that he actually wanted to learn the language you speak with your mother. She said with a snicker, amused by her own words. But yeah, I don't see why I couldn't teach you. I might not be the best teacher, though. She was still learning herself, after all.

It would have been far easier if Beau was here. He was a good teacher, and certainly far more fluent than herself. But of course she was not sure she wanted to see Beau anyways. Not until after the birth - then he could return. By then the puppies would belong to Verapaz.

What sorts of things do you want to know? She asked with a tilt of her head. Experience was well and good, but basic phrases could go a long way too.

She could teach him! Bushtit beamed at her as this agreement became mutually beneficial—not that he’d minded just teaching her Ptero. He took after his mom that way: he wanted to spread that language far and wide, if only to make it easier for the Towhees of the world.

-“I’d just love to be able to make simple conversation, really,”- he replied. He stilled, then went rigid and suddenly exclaimed, EXPOSED!

Leto lurched back at the sudden change in volume. Exposed? She asked, furrowing a brow. What did he mean by that?

Her head whipped around to check their surroundings. Did he mean that somebody was watching them as they spoke? Was that a bad thing? Kids were weird.

He felt sheepish when Leto started, then looked around warily. Bushtit coughed and cleared his throat, which tickled from the hollering.

That’s the word I was trying to remember earlier. Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you, he offered. But, yeah, if we just make an effort to expose each other to the languages we’re trying to learn, that’s how we’ll pick them up, I think.

His pale tail flicked. As if cued by the movement, his stomach rumbled. It was just a noiseless clench at first, before it gave a loud growl.

-“What do you say we start over some breakfast? What’s the Spanish word for breakfast?”- Bushtit invited, already turning to begin the search for sustenance.

Fade here? :)