Heartleaf Creek Cold Summer

A misty dawn had settled upon a placid creek where a vagrant had spent the night beneath the safety of a juniper thicket. Babbling waters kept the air sounding busy when all the songbirds had returned to their nests at night, and aided the sleep of a wolf well-worn. Lochlan had traveled far — a good ways from Chinook, and even farther from the coast of his birth. He regretted leaving the fertile crest of Iona's seaside eden... the fragrant salts and rich aspens where Beryl Forest had been established. But now, on his own, the Inisfree son traveled alone. Having no responsibilities was freeing, but it also felt like a life half lived.

So far, the waif had managed to avoid incidentally traipsing upon a pack's territory (probably by sheer luck), and though he didn't intend to linger for long, Lochlan found this riverside hideout kinda nice. The platinum wolf emerged from his bed, and lipped a few dark juniper berries into his mouth to sate his appetite. Hunger was a wretched side effect of travelling alone, and the reedy man seemed to always be plagued with it. Carrion had been his saving grace throughout the lush spring, too tired and clumsy to bring down smaller game.

He stretched, before picking up an old and dried sprig of lavender — the last precious totem from his motherland, and continuing on his way Northbound.

Before the sun had had a chance to bring light to the land and stir the mists from the dew, Sagacity had left the pack's borders on legs which felt stiff and in need of a good stretching. The scout, who now realized her main role was that of a leader within the pack- though unofficially so- had let Chulyin know that she would be out for the day so that she could get a bit of peace and set her wanderlust to rest. As soon as the borders were breached, she set off at a sprint, leaving the gnarled, dark woodlands behind and stretching out into a full gallop as she allowed herself a bit of freedom. She knew it was only a temporary fix, and that she would have to return to the mundane role of guardian- for a pack which rarely ever had visitors- but it was enough to soothe her soul and quiet the demons which had long been stirring within her.

Eventually she slowed to a trot, but it was a gait the otterlike female could maintain for a long stretch of time, allowing her to cover ground without tiring herself out too much. She found herself most content when she was moving along the creek which came down from the mountain, through Ghastly Woods and further out into the neutral territories- perhaps it served as a reminder of her son. The last place she'd seen him had been along the very same creek, and Sagacity still held onto a fragment of hope that she might find him there again, and bring him back to the Keep. She knew how unlikely it was, though, and so she'd abandoned the thought as much as she possibly could.

It was when the creek made a sharp turn South that she caught the scent of a lone wolf and slowed her pace to a quick walk. It was a male, and from what she could tell he wasn't in ill health. She continued forward, making the uncharacteristic decision to continue and even meet him, if their paths crossed, as she was currently coasting on a high from the run she'd just taken. She felt more optimistic, more open. More like herself- though she'd forgotten that this was who she'd used to be.

Her head lifted when she caught sight of him- and she was captivated by his striking looks. His physique itself was notable, even if he hadn't sported such vivid markings. He was very tall and narrow, and his sides sank in at his hips giving him the whiplash look of a greyhound. His colouring was not too unlike hers- though his face was darker and he had a dark mask whereas she simply had a thin stripe up the bridge of her nose. And like a collar around his neck was a thin line of black, dipping down into a V at his brisket, where the hair was breezy and curled by the wind. In his mouth he carried a sprig of a plant- Sagacity, not knowing her herbs very well, didn't recognize it until the scent hit her and made her nose twitch. Lavender. It reminded her of something, but she couldn't remember what. The memory was quite faint, but for some reason, it called a specific landscape to mind, one with cool wind. "Where'd you find that?" She asked, gesturing to the twig in his mouth.