Her daughter was seemingly vanished -- everyone had searched for her, and yet Karina had managed to elude them all. Kisla would have felt anger at the girl's blatant display of disrespect, and given she had been gone for months, could almost assume she was no longer a pack wolf to Hearthwood River.. but all of that was lost in her grief.  Had she been such an abhorrent mother to deserve a daughter who longed for nothing more than to do everything against what she asked? Had her request to stay away from Round Stone Crest been so terrible that Karina had determined to disown her family?


More importantly, did she even accept her daughter back in to the ranks if she tried to return?


Spring began to warm the lands now, the snow beginning to melt across the landscapes. Kisla's heat had come upon her, and she had gone in avoidance, allowing Lachesis to procreate this year. She had not wished to place the stress on Maksim, nor would she have any other but her loving mate. He was still not up to normal strength, and she worried for him greatly -- one more concern to pull at her mind.


Nosing along the fjord, she flicked an ear in the direction of a song bird, a gentle smile finally pressing to her strained lips at the sound. Winter would soon melt away - that was the only comforting thought she could hold for now.

She should have known better to traverse past her pack lands so soon before spring heat had fully died down, and yet the itch of her paws had offered no other options. Not when her mate was injured and healing, and the pack’s Second would produce their litter this year.


It stung. And yet there was no one to talk to regarding this – even the dragon, @Kjors had seemingly been missing from their lands the past few days. It was just as well she avoid all males for now, though, and so solitude was a very welcome thing in the moment.


But it would not last, and a stranger’s scent would drift to her – unfamiliar, and yet something teasingly familiar about it. Had the wolves of Round Stone Crest still lived within the Timbers, she likely would have recognized what pack he had come from – but too many changes had occurred, and so he remained completely unknown to her.


Her tail flickered idly down, curling closer to her so as to not release the last of her pheromones toward him. Her bright green eyes regarded him quietly – a rugged male, handsome in his own sense, but larger than her. Around her age, perhaps.


His intent remained unknown to her, and so she made to rest the waters. “Hello,” she offered then, her tone soft as she continued to openly regard him.

They studied each other, and for a quick moment, she wished she had the ability to perceive another’s thoughts better. Her perception of others was perhaps lacking, but the way his eyes lingered upon her could have brought a blush to her cheeks if she did not believe he was only staring at her given her sudden appearance – and perhaps her scent. It was only her mate that ever looked at her as something more – and pressing the fluttering thought away, she gave a light cant of her muzzle to his leisurely words, appreciating the casualness that he portayed.


“Kisla, of Hearthwood River.” She paused then, her bright eyes drifting from him to the direction he had come from. “Were you just.. sprinting through?” Playing upon his own words to portray that she too desired casual conversation, the honeyed woman shifted her weight then, noting that Relic Lore seemingly had quite a few new faces these days. It would seem spring encouraged travel, and she briefly wondered if the male before her sought a home.


Or even then, if her mate would perhaps feel threatened by his presence, if his lingering gaze had anything to offer. She was almost certain she overthought it – unused to attention. She had been quite foolish to wander past her borders this time of the year.

If something had changed within the seconds it took him to respond, she did not pick it up. His casual response stirred her wolfish eyebrows to arch in mild surprise and mild confusion – had he not just described himself as a sprinter?


The russet wolf sat – and while Kisla imagined it would have been polite to indicate she was in for a longer conversation by mirroring his actions, she remained still, her tail still tucked downward in an attempt to keep her scent from becoming too overwhelming. He was a polite stranger thus far, and she found her own muscles easing slightly. Still, this was a lesson well taught given the season – not to stray from home, as it was impossible to tell who one would run across.


She had met her own share of wretches in the past – the Lore crawled with them. The thought would have once stirred an ache in her heart from the past, but now it only served to fray her nerves for the future -- @Karina was out there, somewhere, unprotected. And it would be her own daughter’s first season as well.


Giving a nod to the male to maintain their casual nature, her green eyes studied him quietly. “Are you from around here?” It was best to keep the conversation casual – and best to use it as a distraction to the true reason she had wandered from the borders of her home.

His words stirred a gentle smile to her features, and in turn, her eyes drifted from him to sweep about the scenery. The Fjord was not a place she had visited in her more youthful years – but the Heartlands of Relic Lore, where she had been born, were what held her heart, despite the memories that also shadowed her. “Yes,” she answered simply, the warmth of her gaze shifting back to study the male before him. If he was a loner seeking a home, she wasn’t opposed to offering hers – and thoughtfully, she tilted her muzzle slightly.


“If you’re considering remaining in the area and my co-leader approves, you are welcome to join our pack,” she offered then, attempting to keep the conversation casual. She wasn’t one to extend offers lightly, and with a careful glance she waited for his reaction to her statement – no doubt, Lachesis would approve of the cinnamon wolf, if he was not putting an act on for her now.


Her words paused then, and her honeyed shoulders lifted in a gentle shrug. “But I can also understand the desire to explore further – to see entirely what Relic Lore has to offer you,” she noted then, in turn offering him a ‘get out of jail free’ card should he stumble to find a way to deny her offer