The whole proposition of this journey was very much to Aleris' liking. She was always up for new places and faces, and this one promised both. It would be the furthest from home she had ever gone, and with Mom and Dad nearby there wasn't much they had to worry about anyway. She was sure that her father could scare off anything he wanted to. She liked to wander ahead, though not too far from their sight (as she had been reminded a few times). The great expanse of the so called “black berry fields” was unlike anything she'd ever seen. It was so flat and open. The pack hunted here once in a while, she knew, and they had even seen some deer there as they passed through. It was so tempting to try and chase them, but her parents insisted they continue.
She promised she would come back for them someday. Mom told them how she and Dad had lived near this place a while ago, before they moved to the mountains and then the Notch. The walk seemed to be taking forever when the dense woods grew up on the horizon. The foliage was so thick, nearly impenetrably so. It was worse than the patches of those bushes they'd tramped by. Apparently the wolves they were visiting, the ones that lived here, could get around the brambles without much trouble at all, just like she and Gent had learned to traverse the berry bushes. Aleris would have to ask the kids how, she was no good at it.
Once the adults had gotten the boring talking out of the way the kids were free to hang out. The eldest Lieris girl wasn't sure if she would like them, but she hoped so. Playing with Lucia and Ryker was fun, so maybe having more of them around would be even more so. At last they could really see each other, and Aleris watched with amusement as her little sister tried to 'stand her ground' so to speak. Everyone was taller than her, for sure. Ryker had done an admirable job of not embarrassing himself or being a general clutz so far.
She met Lucia's interested gaze, sure that she would probably have to be the one that started things. Aleris even opened her mouth to speak, but to her amusement it was Ryker who was boldest of all. She smiled, watching him introduce himself and act much like the grown-ups had just minutes ago at the border. It was so strange to be inside another pack's land. She kind of wanted to explore it soon. The other boy took well to her brother's words. It was remarkable how much he resembled their father, or, would have, had his eyes not been so much richer of a blue. Actually, this one looked just like his dad, who also looked sort of like her dad. Their moms were sorta alike too. Weird.
He was the bigger of his group, but it was the red one that caught Aleris' attention. Her hair was stunning, unlike anything she'd ever seen. It was so bright and rich! She looked like a maple leaf. "I'm Aleris," she announced to everyone once this strangely named boy had stopped speaking. "Aleris Lieris, and this is Lucia." She thought her name was pretty fun to say. The girl motioned to the small black fuzz at her side, wagging her tail as she did so. She waited then, glancing over the group for reactions to her 'pretty cool' name.