Cedarwood Forest. Early morning. Scarcely a sound to be heard but for the faintest whispers as snow fell softly down. It was a wet, slick snow; it made the gentlest of noises as it collieded with budding leaves and needles. Not even the lightest breezes blew through the woods that morning, preferring instead to keep the silence and stillness of the forest. It might've been a dismal morning, but life moved on whether the forecast was clear or not.

In particular, one thing - one wolf - was intent on disturbing the stillness. A scruffy creature of brown and gray, Kyadi blended well with her forest background. The russet needles (now buried under a bit of snow) even matched her eyes! The she-wolf moved carefully, her head down and nose to the ground. A common enough occurrence for the woman, that was certain. A few nights ago she'd encountered a she-wolf here as well. In the woods, anyway. Kyadi hadn't departed right away, preferring instead to hunt down more goods. The forest was large - full of trees. There were plenty of coniferous varieties here, but Kyadi was seeking out one type of tree in particular: a tree whose bark was useful for aching joints and in healing small abrasions and the like.

Most wolves probably wouldn't be able to pick out the different scents of trees. They didn't need to! Heavens knew - there weren't many wolves like Kyadi. But her sniffer was keen and her eyes sharp, and she could differentiate the subtle differences between trees of all kinds. Well, at least medicinal ones. The rest were useless!

The steady shuffle of her paws stopped as Kyadi's head jerked upright to sniff the air. The slightest traces... "Aha!" came the softest of exclamations from parted lips and a smirk to match the glint in her eyes; it was the shimmer of one who had found what they'd been looking for... or at least knew where she needed to go to have a little more luck. Altering her course to head further north, the healer's pace picked up to a steady trot. She was a wolf with a mission in mind, and no one was going to stop her. Every now and again she stopped to sniff the air again before continuing onward or altering course to follow whatever scent she had found.

It was almost as if everything that lived and breathed in the Cedarwood Forest had vanished. Void of noise and movement, excluding the snow that drifted, it was as if the creatures that wandered through the trees had died in some unknown plague. It was strangely peaceful, hence why Maksim Baranski decided to take a trip further away from the Grizzly Hollow borders than in his previous excursions. There hadn’t been much activity in the pack—he prayed that would change soon—so he chalked his excuse of wandering a little further up to the fact he wouldn’t miss anything. If he heard Kade or Ava’s call, however, he’d go running straight back. For now though? He walked southbound.

Part of Maksim enjoyed walks alone. Chalk it up to memorising his surroundings or simply enjoying his own company, he just liked them … but only for brief periods of time. The loner’s life really wasn’t his cup of tea. He wondered, briefly, or Charlotte and Chetan, the two young wolves that seemed to have no pack. They certainly smelled like loners, much earthier and lacking that distinct scent of others. Especially Miss Charlotte! A yearling all alone! He just couldn’t wrap his head around how someone could be away from others at an age that needed interaction, needed to socialise. Then again, she was such a shy, timid little thing that Maksim wasn’t sure if she could even stomach being around the amount of wolves necessary to have a pack.

His attention was caught by a movement of colour, brown and tawny that seemed to strut past the corner of his eye. A wolf, obviously, stopped to scent the air as if looking for something. She seemed to be heading north … immediately he turned and picked up the speed. “Ma’am?” The Baranski slowed upon getting closer to her; they weren’t that close to the pack borders, he saw no reason to go in playing Mister Dominant. “Forgive me for interrupting your morning, but could I ask what you’re looking for?”

She was getting closer. It wouldn't be too long now; the scent was getting stronger every foot she traveled. She was sure she'd have a visual on her tree shortly. It'd be easy-peasy. She could use some of it for herself, and the rest... she could wrap it in something. Maybe a pelt or a leaf. She'd keep it with her. Still. A cave where she could actually store things would be nicer but... beggars can't be choosers, eh?

"Ma'am?"

Kyadi was stopped again, her nose quivering when that voice interrupted her; her Train-of-Thought went crashing into a wall. Ears perked and a stark expression upon her face, the healer's head turned with a quickness that made it a wonder her head didn't go flying off her neck.

"Forgive me for interrupting your morning, but could I ask what you’re looking for?”

It couldn't be easy, could it? All these interruptions! Okay, just one interruption really. But that didn't matter so much to a cantankerous older wolf with a penchant for sarcasm. She considered berating him - the look in her orange eyes would have told him so - but she didn't. Instead, she changed her mind, realizing he could potentially prove useful if he knew anything about these woods (which she suspected he did - he reeked of them). Snorting softly (she disliked leaving her scent trail be - though the tree was unlikely to walk away), she turned to properly face the gray man with a somewhat crooked smile on her maw. Forgive me for interrupting your morning indeed. Hmph. Hasn't even apologized yet, the oaf. She kept her posture neutral and let her thoughts chug on.

"Well I'm looking for a tree, lad," she answered at last, one brow quirked. Did she know how crazy that sounded in the middle of the forest? It was likely she did. Did she care? 100% chance she didn't. "Looks like a... tree- a pine." That wasn't helpful. "Oh nevermind. Can I help you?" Her tone was a bit sharp, betraying her irritation at being interrupted. Even her inquiry fell a bit flat in the genuine department. But she looked at him with at least a semblance of patience - for a few seconds at least.

She immediately, with great speed, too, turned her head to face him. Her eyes were a muddy brown and Maksim certainly didn’t like the look that was in them. He returned the older woman’s harsh gaze with a stare of his own, though a little less “look at this idiot” and more like “push me, I dare you”. It was like she was looking down her nose at him, judging him to be some sort of fool for daring to interrupt whatever it was she was doing. The Baranski didn’t like it, not one bit. First impressions of this woman were starting out poorly; she seemed to be rough around the edges and condescending. She snorted and the Grizzly Hollow wolf narrowed his gaze a little. What on Earth bit her nose then shat in her meal? At least she gave him her full attention now, turning her body with what appeared to be a smile.

She was looking for a tree? Well, there were a lot of trees around here. It was a forest after all. She tried to specify and only ended up growing frustrated and snapping at the the Baranski. He bristled ever so slightly at the sharp tone she had. Was there really a need to get so rude? Maksim might’ve snapped back, told her to hold her tongue and actually think before she spoke. Well, if she wasn’t older than him. He had been raised to respect his elders. He internally huffed. If this lady kept up the attitude, he might just have to stop being respectful altogether. He saw no point in giving respect to those who did not return it.

She demanded to know what he wanted and he was more than happy to speak up. “Originally I thought you were heading to Grizzly Hollow’s borders, but now I know that’s clearly not the case and you’re actually looking for a tree in a sea of them.” Why would she be looking for a particular kind of tree anyway? Was something of value by it? A meeting point? He’d had to follow suit if she told him to piss off, he couldn’t let her trespass the borders of Grizzly Hollow if that’s where the tree was located.

There were stony glares all around - some more annoyed than others. It was hardly a proper meeting. But then, Kyadi didn't give a damn what was "proper" and what wasn't - not any more. That perhaps made her behavior that much worse, for she was more often aware of how hateful she could be. It was almost deliberate. For the same reason, she did note the male remained patient with her; nothing he said piqued her interest like his civil demeanor. Thus far, anyway. She had to wonder how far she could push the lad before he dropped pretenses and chased her away?

She could try his patience better at a later time perhaps. For now, she still had a mission. And he could prove useful. So she cleared the severe expression for now to take new tone.

"Grizzly Hollow?" Both brows lifted as the woman echoed the pack's name. She ducked her head... then scraped at her nose with a dewclaw before returning her eyes to the boy. "Good Lupus! A pack!" It wasn't exactly the thrill of excitement in her voice. Not quite mockery either. She suspected many loners would be relieved or excited to hear there was a pack just north of here. Not Kyadi: she wasn't looking. "Yours I presume," she stated bluntly, then started to pad - slowly - northwards again.

Though she began to pad onwards again, her nose still twitching as she sniffed, she was far from finished with the poor boy. She kept him in the corner of one eye - and one ear - at all times even as she shifted. Kyadi was nothing if not an observant woman, and as divided as her attention looked to others, one would find swiftly her attention was rarely where they believed it to be. "Not just 'a tree' boy! There's nothing special about these," the she-wolf clarified with a bemused expression on her face as she motioned to their surroundings with a sweeping motion of her muzzle, "I'm looking for a very particular sort. It's squat, with silver needles." Kyadi's gaze was on him again and she'd stopped moving. She sought any traces on his face to indicate he might have an inkling of what she was saying. Whether he did or not, Kyadi was soon plowing ahead once again, both physically and verbally: "White fir. Not 'fur' - like ours-" she motion with a paw towards the male and with her head toward her own body- "'fir' as in the tree. With needles and cones. It's a particular tree. Has a purpose. Do you know it, lad?"

The healer watched the male closely again, her smile a little less crooked and her keen eyes slightly narrowed as she awaited a reply. Her tone had changed slightly - a woman divulging a most important mission to someone who may be able to help; a woman perhaps ready to educate another. But there remained a slight edge of impatience to her motions: a quick flick of an ear, a twitch of her head to look in the direction of the scent she followed... and also the distinct idea that she was either mad or knew exactly what she was talking about. Or more. Sure, she could come across as an arrogant old fool, but since when did she care? It got her into trouble before and would again. But before that happened she'd get to that tree and get what she needed!

This was hardly turning out to be a friendly meeting, and Maksim was feeling rather irritated about the whole thing, but, luckily for them both, the woman seemed to drop the critical glare from her face—for now—and raised her brows at the mention of Grizzly Hollow. He was just about to open his mouth to explain what it was but she seemed to put one and two together. Maksim’s pack? Ha. If only. No, he wasn’t quite at leader status nor was he even the second of the pack. Maybe someday he’d take charge of a territory; that’s why he had come to Relic Lore, after all. Make his name well known, bring respect to the Baranski family. That kind of stuff. “Not mine, but I belong to it,” he replied, following after the woman, her nose quivering.

Finally, the woman began to explain what sort of tree she was looking for. Nothing special about cedar trees, apparently, and she stopped to peer at him. The Baranski nodded, signalling he understood and she ploughed on, began to go into detail about the type of tree. His expression was rather blank when she tried to explain the difference between fir and fur. Yes, because Maksim truly believed that trees of wolf fur sprouted from the ground. Did she truly think he was some lumbering imbecile? He was raised in a forest of fir that stretched high off of the ground—hence the name ‘Tall Trees’—and he was certain he had seen white fir before. This woman seemed to think there was a white fir in this forest and he didn’t doubt it; it was extremely widespread. To cull this entire forest for one though? Maksim prayed her nose was a good one.

She asked if he knew of the tree. He hadn’t seen one around the Grizzly Hollow borders. “Yes, I know of it. Some sort of healing properties, if my memory serves me correctly.” Anzhela was the healer of the siblings, she just liked discussing what she learnt with her brothers. Maksim and Arman were grateful for the exchange of knowledge—it meant they learnt basics which could be applied in their respective fields of work—and did their best to share what they learnt with her, though Maksim wasn’t sure what she’d do with knowing how to work borders. He supposed knowing all the basics was always a good thing to have under your belt.

"“Yes, I know of it. Some sort of healing properties, if my memory serves me correctly.”

Oooh! Bonus points! But then, his answer was vague. He had no idea what the tree bark was for. Fine. Probably just dandy. She didn't need to explain it was for medical purposes. She was off again, trotting along with little regard for whether or not Maksim followed her, though the tilt of her head and ears betrayed her, even the wag of her tail that seemed to beckon him: Come, let's find a tree!

"Right you are," answered the mud-colored woman, her nose lifted and began sniffing again. She caught her scent quickly enough and altered course (still more northward but by now slightly more east) her keen eyes constantly seeking her prize. "The bark acts as a topical. Good to keep in supply." And it was good for aching joints - which Kyadi was not keen to say aloud at that given moment. She didn't need to think about her right foreleg and the trouble that little bump could cause her. Wasn't an issue this morning at least. "Someone can always use a little..." The last she mumbled more to herself than anything before pausing again, her nose quivering more as she lifted her head high and low.

It was likely a strange sight, the odd wolf and the younger man. The man who belonged to it - to Grizzly Hollow. What kind of name was that, anyway? Was it meant to keep wolves away? Really, why name a hollow after bears?

"Getting close." With that comment, Kyadi began to trust her eyes as well. She sought the distinctive blue needles among the other greens and grays of the forest. Her pace slowed. "Keep an eye out." The weather might make it a little more difficult than she might like. The soft pit-pat of snow meeting needles and earth wasn't a problem so much as snow on branches. But Kyadi knew what she was looking for. Giving her fur a quick shake (and dislodging some of the wet snow that had started gather at her withers), Kyadi turned her eyes back to the green-eyed man. He wasn't a bad-looking young fellow. If Kyadi had been a little younger and still interested she might've been more drawn in by the handsome, noble face the male possessed. But as it was, she was no longer looking. Gave up that life what felt like lifetime ago.

"So this pack you belong to," - she distinctly clarified this time. Her choice of words before had been poor - "North of here. Well, I'm not going there; you don't have to worry about that. I've nearly found what I'm looking for." the woman chuckled. Though she faced him, some of her attention ever-remained on seeking that tree... and she was fairly certain she could see it now. Nestled between two other trees - she didn't care to think about what kind they were - was her victim. Just a few paces away... she almost wriggled like a polliwog in her eagerness. But she supposed she should see to this man first.

The woman gave a droll wag of her tail—a moment ago she almost seemed like she was going to tell him to get lost or something with a little more force behind it—and Maksim couldn’t help but shake his head a little bit. Did she want him following her, did she not? She almost praised him for his basic knowledge of white fir trees, her nose quivering before her body suddenly altered the angle of its onwards march. She seemed to be singling out the scent of the tree, something that Maksim was actually quite impressed by. Such a vast forest filled with already strong scents … he’d try his nose at it but, frankly, he had no idea what he was looking for in regards to smells. Perhaps he should leave it to those who knew what they were looking for and not embarrass himself.

The older healer alerted Maksim to the fact that they were getting close to the final goal. He watched as she shook her coat, snow hitting the floor with a dull, wet sound. The Baranski didn’t mind the cold and snow at all; it reminded him of home, of Tall Trees and the mountains. There was so much space to run and hunt, more than enough for a pack as large as his! … His. The word tasted funny on his tongue. It was his father’s right now as Maksim had left home. Was it still promised to him? Was it Arman’s now? Or had Esfir birthed a new litter after his departure? Part of him wanted to know but his time in Relic Lore was not over. He would make his mark and then he would see if the call of his birth place grew too loud to bear. Shaking himself free from snow, he took note that the healer was looking at him.

She spoke up again, stating she would not trespass the borders of the Hollow and had almost found what she was looking for. The Baranski nodded—it was good news and, surprisingly, he was glad. It meant she would be able to strengthen her herbal supplies and it also meant that he had knowledge to return to the pack, if they didn’t know of the location of such a tree already. “I must admit, this tree has captured my curiosity. I would like the chance to see it and take note of where it is so I can relay the information to the pack’s healer.” Healer? Healers? Bah, it didn’t matter. Hopefully she wouldn’t snap his head off for daring to share the location of the white fir.

It didn’t take long for the tree to finally show itself, nestled among taller ones. Well, it certainly lived up to its name! White tipped needles almost blue in its overall hue. Most interesting. “So,” he began, slowing as they approached it, “what now? You just tear off some of the bark or is there a delicate procedure necessary to retrieve the prize?”

She didn't need to tell him "here it is" or any such thing. She'd found her tree and that was what mattered. She took a moment to circle the tree, a certain eager spring in her step in spite of her age. She stopped when she faced the boy again, her keen orange eyes remaining quite focused on him this time around. Either her impatience was gone or she'd managed to hide it with the fortunate finding of "her" tree. The stuff would be helpful to his pack, would it not? Kyadi wasn't going to be stingy with the tree. She'd like to say it really was hers, but she hadn't exactly cultivated it like a mother would a pup, now had she? No point getting in a quibble over a tree. Huffing softly, she shook her head before whirling to face the silver-blue tree.

"Delicate? Oh no," she chuckled as she trotted a little closer to the needles, nearly pressing her nose right into them as she took a good whiff, "The real trick is getting it. The branches are difficult to strip - work isn't always worth it to a healer," she explained as she began to carefully move aside lower boughs with her head and a forepaw, "Use the bark along the trunk." There was a pause and a growl as a needle nearly poked the woman in the eye. Then she was burrowing in again, her rump wagging a little unceremoniously as she pushed her way through branches and needles to the heart of the tree. The bark wasn't exactly the rough sort that came off easily. Indeed, it was fairly smooth and occasionally cracked. She didn't want to take too much lest she hurt the tree, but she'd need enough to last. It wouldn't take too much for her own needs, but... it was useful to have. She'd take it in strips... but she was teaching right now, wasn't she?

Pulling back (and ignoring the way her fur was pulled backwards and left to stick out at odd angles by the needle-like leaves), Kyadi fixed the pack wolf with those sharp eyes again, something of a grin playing on her lips. Silvery needles clung to her pelt in some places, but she looked to be in quite the pleasant mood... at least compared to earlier this morning. No doubt it could change in a flash, but right now luck was with her and she was in her element. "Care to see?" she offered simply, though she was fully expecting his help if he intended to harvest any of the bark. On the other hand, he might not be too keen to bury his face into hundreds of prickly needles... in which case, it was his loss.