Sunspire Mountains Southbound

AW but let @Wynter respond first!

Home is a funny concept.  A concept that the ragged wolf was just beginning to understand.  Is there a difference between home and where you lay your head? Is it just some abstract perception that keeps the masses from moving from place to place, or is it more than that? Tangible.  Something to hold on tightly to. The befuddled bastard didn't know what to make of it.

Home was gone.  Nunya.  No mas.  The Sound was but a fresh and bitter memory in Reek's head.  A fleeting concept that was once, home.  Caiaphas had failed them all and tricked, no, manipulated the ragged wolf into fighting a war by dangling the carrot of family before his salivating lips and naive mind. Home.  Anger welled inside the pit of Reek's chest as he clambered up the precarious trek through the Sunspire Mountains, and far, far away from Ankyra Sound.  He found himself yet again on the road... but this time around, the purpose was gone, no goals, nothing to see or do.  There was no sea to see, only wandering. His decision to leave the coast wasn't one made lightly, but when no one remained behind except Wynter... well, there were no other options.

"You holding up ok, Wyn?" he asked as he struggled to find footing on the steep face of the mountain.  At least he had her.  A familiar face to keep his spirits up.  Reek couldn't help but shoot his traveling companion a slight, half smile as he looked back at her.  "When we get to the peak, we should figure out where we're going to go.  We should have a high degree of visibility up there."  

Reek took another awkward lurch forward.  It had almost been a month since his shoulder had been reset, but all the walking he had done had aggravated his condition.  He winced as his shoulder shot warm bursts of hot ache that radiated through his leg.  At least they were close to the peak.  Rest would come soon.

Wynter was frustrated. She thought she was doing the right thing for once. That she had a permanant home. One that was worth fighting for. Apparently she was wrong. She had misjudged the grey wolf whom she used to respect. She would have done anything. But for what. Only to have her leave a month later. 

At least there was something left of what used to be. Most of the wolves had split up. Gone their own ways. Reek however. He had stuck with her. More she had followed him. He didn't seem to mind however. Neither did she. To be quite frank she enjoyed his company. 

She smiled slightly as he glanced back at her. "I'm holding up, how about you?" she asked with a  slight tilt to her head. Her paws ached but no where near the extent of what it was a month ago. Shortly after the battle. "I can't believe she just left,"she said with slight anger in her tone. 

Wynter nodded as Reek made a good point about finding somewhere to go. "Your right, the view up here will allow us to pinpoint perhaps a place to stay for a while. Another pack or just someplace." she stated. She wasn't sure if she would join another pack. She didn't want to feel what she felt when Caiaphas left, ever again. The dissapointment and betrayal. She'd quite happily start her own pack because she knew she wouldn't betray them. For now though. She would just let the future bring what it had in store.

Hi, I'm just looking for new threads and figgered I'd join your AW one rather than making a new one.

Her decision to climb the mountain sprung out of nowhere, and yet Saena heeded her desire. It wasn't for the view, for she'd lived her whole life appreciating the flatlands from above; it wasn't for the vantage point, for while she was alone now, she didn't feel all that unsafe. Call it a whim, but Saena had no reason for ascending the Sunspire other than a vague premonition that she would find company in its craggy arms. A light wind tousled her fur and whispered across the jagged stone, and trailing a few feet behind her, the ghostly bear that sometimes accompanied her followed.

Of course, she was the only one who could see it, or at least she had yet to meet anyone who could see it. It seemed to come to her in times of loneliness. By now, Saena understood it embodied the spirit of her mother, although what made her come to that conclusion, she couldn't say. It was like a shadow, now, and welcomed as easily as one. Even now, as she cast a glance over her shoulder and spotted its pale outline shimmering against the cliffs, she didn't feel alone.

It wasn't long before Saena heard voices, and suddenly she knew she wasn't alone, for real. Like other loners before them, the white-furred vagrant approached readily, padding toward the male in the lead with a neutral stance save for her ears lifted alertly. Her half-tail hung down against her hocks, barely reaching the point where her body split into her legs, without tension.

A quick inspection of them was all she needed to know they'd been to hell and back recently, with the strong scent of the ocean clinging to their bodies and healing wounds littering their hides. "Did the cannibals get you?" she asked, wrongly assuming that all lone wolves knew of the cannibalistic dogs that roamed the wilds.

Crapola! Ghost posted!

Wynter was doing so well, she walked alongside the bastard without complaint and kept up like a champ.  On the other hand, Reek had set a meanderingly slow pace due to his physical state and was probably slowing her down. "I'll be fine when we get to the top," he responded tiredly while attempting to make a large stride up rock face.  The pinnacle of the mountain was in sight and the bastard beamed in excitement at the thought of resting at the top. The final stretch was at hand.

She was angry, her tone gave it away. She had every right to be after what had happened. Reek too felt the pangs of betrayal in his heart, however, given Caiaphas' situation he understood her reasoning behind her desertion.  Her mistakes had piled up like a wreck on the freeway and the pack was DOA.  What leader could face that without shame?

"You know, I really can't blame her though," he began, glancing back at his agouti friend. "Yeah, she fucked up, but she lost her son.  That would just about kill any parent, biological or not."

Another wolf approached from ahead to Reek's surprise.  Her scent had not been carried in on the wind as it was blowing in the opposite direction.  Cannibals?  Reek shot the unfamiliar wolf a quizzical glance.  "No. No cannibals," he said with a laugh.  "Just poor leadership."  The other wolf didn't appear threatening due to her posture, and Reek found himself in a relaxed position after breaking the ice.  "And you are?" he added quickly, tail eagerly swishing from side to side.

Wynter realized after all the walking they had done Reek's muscles were probably sore. Even though it had been a month. He was injured pretty bad. She didn't mind walking slow it was easier that way anyways. Plus they had more time to talk. "Almost there," she said with a warm smile. 

She listened as Reek sort of defended the ex leader of the Sound. She realized he was probably right. Caiaphas had lost her son. She had never intended for that to happen. She just wanted the other one back. However ill prepared we were for battle. "That's true," she said as she glanced down at her paws watching carefully to make sure she didn't trip and fall. That's the last thing either of them needed right now.

Her had snapped up however when she heard the voice of another wolf. She glanced to see the white wolf standing at the top of the hill. She couldn't figure out what this wolf meant by cannibals. Was there something the sound had not been made aware of. Reek seemed fairly quick to trust. Then again the wolf appeared non threatening. Wynter remained alert and listened as she waited for the wolf's response to the question Reek beat her to asking.

Having not heard anything of their conversation, Saena latched onto Reek's questioning look and asked, "you didn't know?" It seemed puzzling that a single wolf such as her should run into cannibals on multiple occasions while others passed them by without even realizing it. "There've been problems with strange looking wolves—they call them dogs—that attack and eat wolves." Of course, wolves were no prey animals. No doubt several dogs had fallen to the teeth of their ancient ancestors, but Saena didn't know any of those cases. Her eyes wandered ginger agouti female just behind him. The Blacktail recognized that the other woman was wary, and she planed her ears to the side in an effort to appear less threatening.

Reek went on to explain that they were leaving behind poor leadership and, eager to leave the topic of cannibals and dogs behind, Saena chuckled. "Escaping poor leadership as well," she jokingly answered his question. Waiting a beat, the female laughed and said, "just kidding. Not so much about the leadership, though. I'm Saena, formerly from Blacktail Deer Plateau, now out to make something for myself."

"So what happened with your leaders?" Saena conversationally asked, again passing her gaze over Wynter in hopes that the other female might speak as well.

"Noted," Reek said with a nod. In the way, way back, back when Reek initially wandered from his original pack he had unfortunately met with an unwelcome visitor... a stray house dog. "I knew a shih tzu once. I think that's a dog.  Yippy little fuck.  I didn't particularly like him... don't think he'd eat me though; he don't got the teeth for it."  Reek laughed heartily at the prospect of being ripped apart by that ferocious little ball of fur.  Wouldn't that be a story?

"Well met Saena," Beamed the bastard as he slightly dipped his head in greeting.  "You can call me Reek.  And my friend over there," he added.  "That's Wynter."  

"So Blacktail's got their leadership issues too?" He asked inquisitively as he slowly took a seat on a rocky outcrop close to the peak. "Must be a damn epidemic!"  The bastard cracked a sly simper in Saena's direction. "My friend here can probably explain why we're here better than I can, she was with the sound longer than I was," He said as he nodded to Wynter.

Wynter watched as the wolf introduced herself. Wynter liked the name it was pretty. She felt a little more comfortable around this wolf as the stranger seemed to notice her discomfort and flattened her ears confirming she was no threat. Wynter chuffed a little when Reek mentioned a Shit Tzu.

"I can introduce myself you know," she muttered with a small laugh. "I'm Wynter, but you already know that," she said glancing at Reek for a moment then returning her gaze to the white wolf. She smiled as she listened to Reek shoot yet another joke. She found his sense of humour entertaining.

"Yes I think I can fill you in," she stated figuring out precisely what to tell this wolf. "So," she began. "The leader of our pack had, i guess you could say, pup-napped, a couple young wolves a while ago and had taken them in as her own. She raised them into the pack. However one of the pups was taken back by its birth pack. Making Caiaphas mad. She led us into a battle we couldn't win in the hopes she could get the pup back. In the process however not only did a lot of the wolves get injured," she continued glancing briefly at Reek who had it the worst and then briefly round at her shoulder. 

"The queen also lost the other pup during the battle. So she kind of left us because she was too ashamed of what she had done. Hence why Reek and I are now here," she finished glancing back at the wolf who was still standing in front of them. "The end," she added with humour returning in her tone.

She felt that pretty much covered it. Perhaps Reek too understood a bit better now. Why she had been so mad at Caiaphas. The pups weren't even hers. Duskfire had the right to keep that pup for it was their own.

OOC: My last post for the night. Ill post again tomorrow. Perhaps Saena will actually get a chance to reply first haha. :P Night peeps

"A shit shoe?" she asked, clearly confused by the term. She understood from Reek's explanation of its behaviour that it must be an example of a dog, but what a ridiculous name! If Saena knew that dogs came with names that could be easily ridiculed, she would've found it hard to be afraid of them. Unfortunately, Saena had met their teeth long before she could learn of such classic names as poodle and schnauzer, and had a healthy amount of fear for what they could do.

"You could say that about Blacktail Deer Plateau, yeah," Saena noncommittally said, following with, "nice to meet you," to ginger female when she was introduced. Her gaze skipped questioningly back to Reek. It was a very strange name. She was just about to ask where it came from when Wynter launched into a really messed up account of a pack whose leader had, by Saena's standards, been a madwoman.

"That sounds... really screwed up," Saena said slowly when Wynter finished. She couldn't help but knit her brows together and said, "no one cared that she just stole some pups from other packs?" She didn't mean to accuse them with this, but it was nevertheless implied, intended or not. It was no secret that Saena had strong opinions, and thinking that wolves who willingly followed a puppynapper were equally insane was one of those, though she was very careful not to say it aloud. "No offence, but I'd have a pretty hard time sticking around even if she hadn't left.

Speaking of which, Blacktail Deer Plateau's nothing like that," she quickly amended, remembering that she'd compared their troubles with her own only to realize it was very different. "I wanted to be a leader there someday—I was born there, my dad and mum were Alphas there, so you could say it runs in the family—but the other leaders are... well, they're huge pushovers. You can break a law right under their noses and they couldn't care less. I've been on the receiving end of some pretty major disrespect despite working hard for a good rank, and nothing's really been done about it. I guess you could say it's a free for all, and there isn't a lot of discipline there at all." It sounded like a dream come true to most wolves, but not to Saena, who believed in the law of the wild and in wolf instincts. She was unaware that Koda's disrespect had come back to bite him; she'd left by the time that discussion happened.

"I couldn't lead a pack like that. I can't even really handle living in a pack like that anymore. I guess I believe that actions have consequences, which they don't really seem to think. So I left. I'm planning to start my own pack," she said, carefully gauging the loners now in case there was any way to entice them into considering it as a possibility for their own future, "but I need to hear back from my sis in the north first, since she said she might come back here to help."

Wynter's revelation on the origin of the pups came as a baffling shock to Reek, who had up until this point believed both Kevlyn and the other had been born in Ankyra.  Even though he knew that the coywolf couldn't possibly be their biological mother, the naive wolf simply believed she had taken them in as her own out of necessity. Perhaps a pack mate died in childbirth due to complications, leaving Caiaphas to step in as their pseudo-mother.  Learning otherwise only added another nail into the coffin where the respect for his old mad alpha lay buried.

"Wait, What?" He directed at Wynter, brow furrowed and ears pinned back in surprise.  "She just took them?"  The ragged wolf didn't consider himself above petty theft: usually, he found himself taking what he pleased, but pupnapping? That crossed into a moral gray area that the bastard refused to touch with 20 foot pole.  Even with his skewed moral complex, the act of taking a pup crossed a line into uncharted territory.  Reek's standards for moral conduct may have been low, but something like that would far exceed his capacity for bullshit.

"If I would have known —" The ragged wolf spat in an acerbic tone that could cut steel, but he quickly decided against it.  The past was over.  The pups were dead.  There was no use to getting angry about it now.  His head sunk and shoulders slouched.  "Nasty business Saena," he said cooly to the other as he tried to quell the coiling tightness in the pit of his stomach. 

Her description of Blacktail didn't sound too bad.  Sounded more like an anarcho-libertarian's wet dream instead of an actual issue.  Leniency was a beautiful thing, and with Reek's penchant for finding trouble, a lenient pack was needed.  The only law Reek listened to was his own... and that was only a faint whisper that was usually ignored like the wind.  "Blacktail don't sound that bad to me, but to each his own I guess.  How far north are you going?"      

Wynter nodded to Reeks very startled reaction to her story about the two pups. "Yes, the pups had strayed a little bit far and Caiaphas was nearby. When she found the pups instead of taking them back to their mothers she brought them to her den," she said feeling slightly relieved that Reek finally understood where she was coming from. 

Reek seemed annoyed now which meant he really had no clue this was what Caiaphas had done. She shouldn't have fought. She knew she shouldn't. At the time though it almost seemed like the right thing to do. She was just being loyal. Just to the wrong wolf. Wynter brushed up against Reek in an attempt to calm him down.

She listened then as Saena talked about her pack and how she wanted to be a leader of that pack someday and how now she was interested in starting a pack of her own. Perhaps Reek would offer for them to join. It wouldn't be a bad idea. She seemed like she could be a pretty good alpha if she tried hard enough. She knows what she values. 

"It sounds like you would make a great alpha," Wynter said to the white fae with a smile. Then she paused waiting for her reply. 

The pair engaged in a brief dialogue that indicated to Saena that not all members of their tribe were enlightened about the source of their cubs. She supposed if she joined a pack, she would assume that the cubs there were born on its soil. It was an easy mistake to make, although the revelation that an Alpha could hide such a thing in broad sight twisted her paranoia dial up a notch. It was unlikely she would ever assume that a puppy belonged to their pack ever again without solid proof of the fact.

Reek lamented having not known, and when he spoke her name, she shook her head gently. "Anyone would make that mistake," she told him. Wynter was another matter, but for whatever reason, Saena couldn't find judgment for the other's loyalty. Perhaps it was a truth she'd learned recently, and besides, Saena would've previously followed her leaders on principle, no matter what they did. If not for her ambition, she would still be doing it.

Reek opined that Blacktail Deer Plateau wasn't too bad, and Saena smiled lightly. "It's not that bad," she told him, "but I was raised to respect authority, and, well... when a woman comes back to the pack pregnant with a stranger's pups without having the Alpha's permission and faces no consequences for it, or when a male can talk down to me as a hunter because I don't have family jewels, I guess it just crosses a line for me." Pausing to beam gratefully at Wynter for her compliment, the girl concluded with, "I like things laid-back, but there has to be some hierarchy, you know?

I won't be claiming for a little while, and I'm not entirely sure where yet," she addressed Reek's question, "but if you guys haven't found a place you like by then, I'll howl for you, and you're always welcome to join me and start fresh yourselves," she offered, quietly hoping they would agree. Before she could ever hope to found a pack, she needed to find those who were willing to do it with her. Whether or not Reek and Wynter were such wolves was up to them completely. She understood that pledging to follow a yearling was probably a gamble, but at least she wouldn't steal pups, start wars, or run out on her pack.

Reek could see where the situation Saena described would cause some waves within the pack, especially when she described the pregnant woman's situation.  Being a bastard child himself, Reek knew exactly what that entailed.  The life of a bastard was a difficult one, but that entirely depended on the pack.  Perhaps those pup would have it different, but the ragged wolf couldn't help but feel compassion for the unborn.

"That's understandable," he said with a slight smile as he addressed her qualms.  However, no pack was without it's glaring issues. 

Though she was only a yearling, she seemed to have her wits about her and would probably make a fine leader.  Plus, she offered a home. Something both him and his traveling friend desperately needed.  "Will your claim be close?" He asked, no holds barred. "I know I can't speak for Wynter, but I'd gladly pledge to your pack.  When you howl, I'll be there."

Wynter thought about it for a moment. She didnt want to be seperated from her travel companion by saying she didnt want to join this pack. She also didnt feel like entering a pack full of strangers. "Ill be there too," she said glancing at Reek. "You ain't getting rid of me that easy," she smiled and chuffed slightly. Then looking back at Saena "I want to be in a pack where i at least know some of the wolves. Ive met you so thats good," she stated "And Reek obviously." 

She waited once again for the white fae's reply to Reeks countless questions. She looked out down at the flatlands below. Strangely the heights didn't bother her. Wherever this wolf settled she prayed it wouldnt be near water. She hate hate hated swimming. 

OOC: I reckon. this is the last post from me until i get back from Spain. You two can post but please please please wait for me until i get back. Sorry if i'm holding you two up its just i'm really enjoying this and would hate to miss out. :l

The topic of Blacktail Deer Plateau and its recent troubles seamlessly fell away, and both loners agreed to assist Saena in the founding of a new pack. She was about to thank them for their attention and tell them that there were no hard feelings, as the realization that they'd actually accepted was slow to dawn on her. When it did, she was stupefied, and then immensely grateful, that two total strangers would actually see something in her.

"Great!" she breathed, doing her very best to remain in command of her reeling emotions. She was still young, so sometimes that was difficult to do—she would prove to be a lawful leader, but a fiery one, at least for a while. "I don't completely know where I'll be claiming land, but I'll know it when I find it," she told them, hoping that her uncertainty didn't dissuade them from their potential future. "I'm hoping it will be close to here, though, maybe north of the mountains but not very far." It was impossible for her to guess, though, having not fully explored that area.

Giddy with the knowledge that there were at least a few wolves out there who were interested in a new beginning and who didn't oppose a yearling leader, Saena breathlessly turned to Wynter and asked, "what would you guys want to see in a pack you help found, anyway? If you're really serious about it, then I want to make sure it's as much for both of you as it is for me."

"Well when you find it we'll be there for sure," Wynter said with a warm smile. Then Saena turned to her and asked her about what she wanted to see in a pack. Wynter hadn't put too much thought into that question so she pondered for a moment. 

"I feel like we should be able to work together to hunt but at the same time we are allowed a certain amount of freedom," she stated still pondering the question. She wasn't sure she had made any sense but Wynter didn't know how else to say. Authority was a good thing but she also sometimes needed time where she could just be Wynter. She had a lot of respect for authority but it was nice to be crazy sometimes. That's why she had always enjoyed the banter between her and Reek because it gave her a chance to just be herself and not worry about who was watching. 

"I'm not sure that made any sense," she said then glancing at Reek. "What do you think?" she asked consulting her travel partner. It would be good to hear what Reek thought as well because that was something that had never come up in conversation anywhere. 

OOC: Before anyone says anything. I had permission from Reek to skip him for this round xD 

Fade out soon and such?  So excited to get Redtail Rise going!

Saena seemed extremely happy to see that the two refugees had agreed to sign on to become members of her fledgling pack, and Reek shared that same excitement. Upon leaving Ankyra Sound, those old feelings of dread and fear that were all too familiar welled up inside the ragged wolf, because of the uncertainty that the road posed, but these feelings were all swept under the rug at Saena's proposal, making Reek one happy camper.  

The fact that the yearling wanted the pair's input was already a good sign that this could be a proper home.  "I think she touched on everything, really," he said, glancing back to Wynter.  "As long as you can put up with my antics, I think we're good!"  Reek didn't deem it wise to look a gift horse in the mouth and make too many demands right off the bat, it wasn't every day that a pack magically appeared in his lap.

Reek's wily gaze shifted back to the yearling as he shot her a wide grin.  "We can start heading that way if you want, backtrack a bit.  That way you'll know where to find us."

Their feedback was simple and succinct, which was a happy thing for Saena. She wasn't able to promise the world yet or even anything more than an eventual home, but these were requests that she could easily fulfill for them. Saena valued her freedom as well, so much so that at times she did oppose authority, though rarely by breaking rules. She could hardly be a fit ruler, or really a fair being at all, if she held it against others to do the same as she.

"As long as you don't come back pregnant without permission," Saena joked, winking to ensure that Wynter knew the former Blacktail wolf thought far better of her already, "we're good. And don't worry about antics—I enjoy messing around every now and again, too. As long as you can put up with me joining in." All she could really hope for was that her wolves didn't go around starting wars, disrespecting their superiors and, all jokes aside, undermining the authority of the pack by making stupid decisions like getting knocked up. Everything else was up to them, and Saena had no intention of controlling any aspect of their freedom unless they gave her a reason to, which she sincerely hoped against.

"That sounds great," Saena said, falling in with the two loners. "Mind if I accompany you for a bit? I'll probably split off at the end of the pass and see what I can see out there. If you guys find somewhere awesome before I do, you can always howl for me. I should hear it." The north was a veritable echo chamber with mountains on most sides, something she could tell from their vantage point. Unless they howled out to the east, she would likely hear them no matter where in the north she was. "And if you think of anything else you'd like to see in your pack, well, let me know the next time we meet up," she said with a grin, fully willing at this point to give Reek and Wynter anything she was capable of to prove to them just how grateful she was that they were putting their faith in her.

Wynter laughed slightly at the pale wolfs joke. "Yea yea i know," Wynter replied jokingly. "Good thing you don't mind antics because he can be pretty crazy," she said glancing over to Reek with a sly grin on her maw. She was going to deny for now she had anyhting to do with any antics. Which was completly inaccurate. She had participated in banter amongst her friends back at the sound. Mainly Reek and Phantom.

 Wynter frowned for a moment as she remembered the mute white fae she had become close friends with. She remembered how excited the fae was when Caiaphas told her she could have pups. Whatever happened to that girl. Wynter hoped she was alright. That she had perhaps found another home. Somewhere safe. Wynter shook her head and snapped out of the thought and hoped neither Saena or Reek had noticed.

"I don't mind if you follow us," Wynter said "I don't think he will either," she added. She didnt see any reason that she couldn't follow them for a while. "I don't plan on travelling far now that theres a chance a pack will form near here," she finished. "We'll keep our ears on the sky for your howls as well," she said with a warm smile.

Last post for me! Thanks for the thread! @Wynter tried sending you a message, but it's telling me your inbox is full

"I swear on my life, I'll never come back preggers Saena," joked the ragged wolf while unsuccessfully trying to stifle a chuckle.  "I don't think you'll ever have to worry about that, from me at least."  Rules were alright here and there, but ultimately they were made to be broken.   Societal constraints were usually a bummer and a general damper on fun times to be had.  However, Saena seemed to be nice enough to be able to roll with bastard's occasional deviant behavior.  Hopefully Sheriff Saena would be would be a somewhat lenient Alpha.

"I'm not that crazy," he said with a slight grin, nudging into Wynter with his shoulder.  If anyone knew the nature of his antics, it would be her. They sure as hell spent enough time together.

"Yeah... yeah," Reek quipped after Wynter asked if he didn't mind he following them down the mountain. "You can follow us if you want to, I don't mind at all."  The ragged wolf turned on his heel to begin the slow descent down the mountain. "Ready Wyn?" He asked smiling back at his companion.  

Wynter chuckled at Reek swearing to Saena he wouldnt come back pregnant anytime. "You know i think that would be a little hard for you to pull off there Reek," she said with a sarcastic smile. "I won't either so don't worry about me, I'm not one for breaking too many rules. Not denying i haven't broken any before but that wouldn't be one id even consider breaking," she stated. 

She had broken rules back in the sound, or at least under the eyes of the sisters Leucothoe, Naesea, and Callantha. They were very enforcing of their religion so talking to Reek the amount she did and the way she did may not have been the greatest thing in their eyes. Perhaps even resulting in a small rivalry between her and them. At least out here there werent any rules to be broken. She could stay with Reek for as long as she wanted and not get into any trouble or have to worry about being caught. 

Wynter gave an amused smile as Reek denied his craziness. "It's an arguable case, " she mused. "I think your crazy but your just in denial," she teased as she too gave her dark coated companion a playful nudge.  She too turned on her tail and began to follow Reek down the mountain. She wasn't sure how this descent would be on her paws but she sure as heck wasn't going to complain. "Yea I'm ready," she smiled. 

Last post for me! Thank you guys for the thread and the spontaneous plot development!

Saena grinned broadly as the pair of lone wolves bantered between themselves. Their relationship was easy and laid-back, that much she could already tell from the limited time the three had spent together. It was a nice change from the plateau, where everything seemed to be business-like or begrudging. Maybe her memory was tainted by wolves like Koda, Finn and even Dante, who never seemed to open up to anyone but his Betas, but it seemed like the camaraderie between Reek and Wynter was more natural than anything she'd experienced in the pack where she was born.

She followed the two down the mountain. As questions arose, she supplied them with information, but otherwise she was content to remain quiet and listen to them. When they finally reached the base of the mountain, Saena bid them good luck and peeled off to the east with a promise to call them if she found anything of interest.