Oak Tree Bend rolling stones

for @Lena
making an effort for Aponi to spend time with every member of the pack, set to maybe a week after they returned from their trip to the mountains
Moderate snow 16F/-9C

In The Place That Feels Your Tears

Aponi had been worried the whole time her daughter was out of the territory, an emotion that she had kept under wraps. The time had come where she was no longer just a mother but also responsible for the pack. Her and Serach had debated long and hard before deciding to send the girls on the mission to see their allies and it had been both a professional and a personal one. Lila needed to see that despite their loses they were still strong and that she was respected as much as anyone else within their numbers. That and Lena being the closest in age and Serach's niece had made the decision final, it would be good for both of them to go.

Knowing all of this didn't make it any easier.

But Lila had arrived home safe and the mother had listened to all of her stories, laughing and smiling as prompted. It had been nearly a week since they returned and now Aponi made to seek out the older partner of the scouting mission. Not to ask about the quest itself but to thank her for being the friend that her daughter had needed in this time. Beneath the hard exterior that she portrayed the Donata truly did have a heart, even if it was reserved solely for her daughters and Serach.

While the air today was warmer than it had been in the recent season the snow fell freely through the air, finding its way between the branches and onto the already blanketed ground. It hardly made a difference to the thick coated creatures within the Spectral Woods but the alpha made note to dig out the entrance of the den later. The last thing they needed was another snow in like last year. Moving through the territory Aponi followed the fresh tracks of the yearling until the tawny form came into view and she barked a greeting.

The journey to Fallen Tree Cove had been … well, it had been something. “Difficult” felt like a good word to use, honestly.

Lena had decided, very early on, that she was just going to get on like nothing out of the ordinary had happened. So she got down to border patrols, hunting small prey, the little things that she felt would help out somewhat. Lena wasn't a master at any trade, not by a long shot, but she certainly had the potential to be, if only she could focus. Honestly, without all the hiccups and bumps, scouting had been interesting, as had meeting another pack of wolves in Relic Lore been. She didn't mind walking long distances either, she only hated the painful pads and ankles that walking for weeks on end brought.

Lena was definitely not a wolf built for a nomadic lifestyle.

Scouting wouldn't be half bad, but it kept her from talking with her uncle and grandfather, and those were definitely the things on the top of her “to do” list. Besides, wasn't that a job you only did when you were told to? It would be weird to pop off and have a chat on behalf of your leaders without being prompted. Maybe there was more to the job than just that? Perhaps she'd have to talk to Serach! But, what would be the point if she was going to return home come summer?

So she had busied herself with hunting instead, a snowshoe hare hanging lazily from her jaws as she clawed at the dirt beneath the awry roots of a tree to build herself a new little cache. She dug it deep, like her father had taught her, to make sure hungry scavengers struggled to dig it up with their smaller paws. She picked the spot perfectly, in her opinion. She had to slip beneath the roots, sure, but it helped keep the hare protected from the snow so that digging it back up again wouldn't be an exhausting effort.

Unfortuantely, it was when her head was half submerged, placing the hare down, that the bark of Aponi called out, and Lena jumped. “Fuck!” She practically squawked when her head collided with the thick roots, and stumbled backwards, out of the cache. Oh good. Aponi had seen it all, most likely.

SAY. SOMETHING.

“Erm, hiya!” She finally turned, forcing up a sheepish smile as the heat of embarrassment crept along her cheeks. “Sorry about that. What, uh. What can I do for ya?”

 

The Place to Lose Your Fears

The Donata woman had never been entirely tactful unless the situation direly required her to be. Be that as it was she held back the snort of amusement when she watched Lena not so gracefully whack her head upon the roots. Instead a smirk adorned her muzzle, a silent display that she had in fact seen the mistake but was choosing not to comment on it. The words that came from the yearlings mouth were jumbled together, a trait Aponi was beginning to believe was just who Lena was rather than the situations she was in.

The annoyance that she had previously felt towards the tawny teen was forgiven but had not been forgotten. Aponi was not the type of wolf that would easily forget when one of her subordinates implied that the situation would be better dealt with without her present. However, she felt no reason to drag it out any farther than it had gone, it helped that she was Serach's niece and a friend of Lila's. The thought of her daughter brought her back to just why she had sought out the Donata to begin with; their trip.

Smirk melted way into a warmer expression as she moved forward to close the gap between them until she was at a distance that was more comfortable for conversation. Sitting her rump into the snow she addressed the question she had been posed, "I just wanted to thank you for making the trip to Fallen Tree Cove, and for keeping Lila safe along the way." That was after all one of the reason's Aponi had wanted Lena to be the one to make the trip to their allies on the mountain; she believed she would be capable of keeping the pup safe.