Poison Path outsider

Restless. That word was perhaps the most precise summation of how he felt as of lately. Jethro hadn’t quite been able to tear himself away from the lake, yet, though he hadn’t exactly been social, either - lingering beyond pack borders most often. He was ready to leave, to keep going, pervicacious in his belief that he could never belong here. But he also couldn’t depart for good - not without talking to Nori first. She deserved at least that courtesy. For now, the dark one had occupied most of his time by observing and exploring what went on beyond the marked areas of the cove.

His wandering had carried him first along the lake, and eventually towards some particularly well worn, but curiously desolate collection of pathways that seemed to snake higher into the mountains, away from the cove and the area the lake was tucked into. It certainly appeared as if others had frequently utilized these pathways to traverse the mountain at one point, although whoever had once been here was long gone by now.

Which was exactly how he preferred it. With little else to occupy his time, Jethro set his sights upon the paths, intending to proceed upward, though he was momentarily distracted by the plethora of plants that populated the area. Small, green berries were beginning to sprout from their stems, and though he’d seen similar things before, he couldn’t recall if he’d ever seen this species. Were they edible? Medicinal? Such knowledge would be useful to have. Briefly captivated, he leaned forward to sniff at them.

Being with her family was much better than Nori had ever anticipated it being. She'd enjoyed getting to know the mountain wolves and being social, and found that her personality fit in here a lot better than she'd thought it would. They liked her, and Nori had always craved being liked and appreciated and wanted.

But there was a problem. And that just so happened to be a sulky demon boy that she'd dragged all the way up here.

Nori hadn't had a lot of time to spend with Jethro recently - he stuck to the edges of the borders and preferred to keep to himself, which was fine, but she found herself missing the boy. It was embarrassing and weird, and she understood that, but she still wanted to be around him. So, she'd decided to follow him out today, trailing his scent in the hopes that he'd have some time for her.

The girl padded up the path her companion had taken, and it didn't take long to catch up to him. The dark wolf was bent down, sniffing at a plant of some variety. Nori's brow arched and she trotted up to him, close but not close enough to touch.

"Whatcha doing?" she chirped, eyes on him rather than the berries.

There wasn’t really much of anything to be gained from the scent of the stuff. Like pretty much everything else it just smelled earthy, and like... a plant. Which meant, the only way of finding out right now whether or not it was harmful, would be to ingest it. Curious as he was, even the dark one was not stupid enough to try that. The last thing he needed was to get sick because of some dumbass plant. No - the logical approach would be to ask someone, maybe Chan, for he seemed to be the one that knew about these kinds of things. Jethro made a mental note of it, and then promptly turned away, intent on proceeding upwards.

But something else interrupted that plan. The voice might’ve startled him if it hadn’t been familiar. One he’d found himself longing to hear again, though his pride made that difficult to admit. Her question was a simple one, though he did not answer it right off.

”Nori. It’s uh.. nice t’see you again,” Jethro offered, though unlike with some of the others, the statement was not merely made out of courtesy. There was a surprising amount of truth within it. Still, though, he couldn’t help feeling... inadequate. Nori had been busy with her family, which he was not a part of. Sure - he’d agreed to help Chan with some things a few days ago, but that didn’t magically make him one of them. Nothing ever could.

Separation at some point seemed imminent. Unlike before, the dark one was not so sure he wanted to return to his solitude, now. But there didn’t seem any other long-term option.

”I was just.. exploring. Was gonna head up these ridges here,” he spoke again, gesturing with his nose to the trails that snaked through and up the slopes of the mountain, before glancing back, left brow arched in an almost mischievous fashion. ”You wanna go?” Surely they could explore, and have a bit of fun before discussing the.. less appealing things.

Yeah, Nori wasn’t big on plants. Her grandparents had been better in that department, but they weren’t keen on teaching her. Still, she doubted it would be a good idea to eat random plants you found growing on a mountain path - some of them could make you really sick, or even die. Or so she’d been told, at least. It was kind of hard to believe the little green berries might be able to do that, but she wasn’t about to test it.

If she’d known Jethro’s insecurities, Nori would’ve worked hard to make sure she at least tried to dispel them. That she was just as new to this whole family thing as he was, and that it didn’t really seem as though these wolves prioritized blood over everything else. Hell, neither did Nori. Jethro was just as important as they were, in her humble opinion.

It was nice to know he missed her. The girl felt her face warm beneath her fur, and she offered him a pleased grin. ”We live at the same place - you can see me whenever you wanna,” she offered, her tail swishing once behind her before she gave him a gentle nudge with her shoulder. ”But it’s good to see you too.” And that was honest, as well. He was her first friend, after all, and she found herself craving his company more often than not.

He invited her on his little excursion up the mountain, and Nori perked up, a bright grin of her own crossing her maw. ”Well, I couldn’t let you do that all by yourself, could I?” she enthused, overjoyed to be included, though it was likely a bit difficult to tell on the outside. Still, some of that bravado and protective veil she placed over herself had been dropped along the way with this boy. There was a sort of comfort there now - he didn’t berate her for her emotions, so she didn’t feel the need to conceal them as much anymore.

Funny what a couple weeks could do.

”Do we have a goal in mind here, or are we just sightseeing?” she questioned, bounding a few paces up the path before turning back to face him. ”Im down for anything, really, but I don’t wanna mess up your plans, if you’ve got any.” She wasn’t sure if there was an itinerary for this adventure or not.

They lived at the same place, Nori spoke, which meant he could see her whenever he wanted. While that was an undeniably true statement at present, it likely would not remain so. ”For now we do,” he cautioned lightly, not particularly wishing to delve any further into that topic for the moment. Did that mean she was going to stay here, then, and call this her home? In his opinion, it’d be silly not to.

The dark one tried to shake such thoughts away as Nori gave him a friendly nudge, though it was nearly impossible to do so. Jethro supposed that he could satiate his own curiosity with an innocuous-sounding question. ”Thanks. How’re things with yer family.. is it like you hoped for? They seem cool, and all.” He was curious to know and hopeful that things had gone well for the other. A pang of envy was still there as he thought of it, but there was elation for his company, too. He hoped she could and had found a place with them. Sticking around with his sorry hide for too long a time wasn’t an existence he’d wish on anyone.

A rather pleased grin emanated from Nori at the prospect of venturing up the mountain, an expression that had grown impossible not to mirror when he saw it, as time had gone on. It was captivating, entrancing. ”You could let me go alone. Wouldn’t be as much fun, though,” the dark one offered, turning amusedly at that, to observe as Nori shot forth with a burst of energy.

Jet was going to miss this dearly - a thought he still could not believe he was having. Hell, he already had, and at present they still lived in the same area. How was it going to feel when he was days, or weeks... away? 

”Just sightseeing. Keepin’ an eye out for anything.. useful, or interesting too, I guess,” he spoke again, trotting forth and looking upward to plan a route. He’d tried to become more vigilant as of late, keeping an eye out for things that might be useful - or to the contrary, threatening to the pack, as Chan had pointed out. Most of that had translated into just random patrolling or feeding himself, as he hadn’t spotted anything that fell into either category as of yet. Though he was looking forward to that expedition.

For now we do. Nori's pawsteps actually faltered. She hadn't considered that Jethro might be planning on leaving - after all, why would he have even joined at all? Was she boring him? Had she done something wrong? The best response she could settle on for the moment was a quiet hum, not trusting herself for the moment not to ask him a million and one annoying questions if she opened her mouth. It didn't seem like he wanted to talk about it now, anyway.

"Uh, yeah! Yeah, they're... they're super nice. I didn't expect them to be such good wolves," she responded to his question, pretending as though she hadn't physically stumbled a second ago. And she really did love these people - they were so kind and welcoming and wonderful. But not wonderful enough? Was that why Jethro didn't see this a permanent home? Surely they hadn't done anything to offend him.

She huffed out a soft laugh and shook her head. "No, if I let you go alone, you'll probably fall off a cliff or something. I don't want your death on my conscience," she teased, in part a bit prideful at the expression she'd drawn out of him. It was kind of hard to get Jethro to smile, after all. "It's just responsible of me to go, too."

Sightseeing... useful or interesting.

"Even more interesting than me?" she questioned, trying for something more playful, even if she wasn't really feeling it anymore. Still, she was nothing if not an actor, and she liked to think she was pretty convincing. "Though I've heard, in the winter, there are these lights up here in the sky. That might be more interesting." It was also something she was really looking forward to - she just figured she'd have Jet up there, too.

The girl turned her attention back to him and tipped her head to the side. "Have you made any... acquaintances in the pack?" she asked, offering him a small grin. "I mean, I know you and I are friends. Of course. I'm the best one anyway." He hadn't corrected her before, when she'd called them friends. So she'd kind of been doing it in her head a lot.

--tw for brief reference to suicidal thoughts in this post

The thought of having to discuss leaving eventually threatened to put a damper on any fun he’d hoped for, but he was determined to prevent as much of that as he could. Nori didn’t have a response for him, as far as that went. That was ever so slightly surprising as well as concerning, though perhaps it was not a subject she was keen on addressing, either. But had she.. stumbled, there? Jethro wasn’t quite sure, though he scrutinized his companion for a few moments, just in case, though she seemed fine, now.

He was genuinely glad, though, to hear that the other had taken a liking to her family. Jet agreed with the overall impression of them and nodded along with her assessment. ”I’m glad to hear it. You deserve this.” Very much so, he nearly added. Memories of their past conversations, specifically those just before meeting Nori’s family hadn’t faded away. The wish of his companion had come true, and even though it meant a return to solitude, he couldn’t have been happier for her.

That, in and of itself, was an odd experience. To feel joy for someone else.

If he went on alone, he’d probably fall off a cliff or something. Jethro arched a brow, struck by how closely that resembled something he might say. Awestruck for a moment, he couldn’t help a soft laugh, a reaction that was accompanied by a gentle shake of his head. ”Wouldn’t worry none about that. Not sayin’ it’s impossible, but if I fall off a damn cliff, y’can bet it.. probably was not an accident.” Either someone would’ve pushed him, or he’d have gone over intentionally himself. There’d been a few times he’d considered the latter, but not lately. Jethro did not miss those thoughts.

So if it happened, it definitely wasn’t something that should be on anyone else’s conscience. Unless Nori pushed him over herself, that was. It remained odd that a stranger should care more than everyone back at his birthplace had.

”Don’t think there’s anything on this whole mountain that could be more interestin’ than you. Not even those lights.” Sure, that sounded like a hell of an interesting thing to see, especially up here, but not more interesting than Nori. The one that continued to find ways to surprise him, and usually they were good, or amusing.

”Prettier, maybe,” he spoke contemplatively after a moment, a wry smirk tugging at the edges of his face. There was another of those odd feelings, admiration for someone as he’d never felt before. Arriving at a fork in the paths, the dark one studied both options for a moment, before angling himself left. It seemed to ascend higher than the right path. ”But even that’s a stretch.” Jethro admitted after a pause, supposing he’d miss even the vain commentary and teasing about her looks.

At the subject of acquaintances, he offered a small nod. ”Your uncle, Chan. He and I.. talked for a bit. I’ll be goin’ with him to bring.. uh, herbs and stuff, to some other pack.” He hadn’t the opportunity to interact with anyone beyond that, but Jet was fairly sure he’d have a chance when they went out to gather the herbs.  

He scoffed at the subsequent comment, but the voice there, urging him to run as far away from friends and relationships as he could, was silent. That left him unable to do much else aside from blinking thoughtfully. As the realization, and weight of it dawned on him, he paused in his stride altogether, fixing his gaze firmly on the other. ”Ain’t never cared about anyone like I do you. So I.. guess, uh, maybe we are. And you are,” he admitted quietly, humbly, for the first time allowing himself to think along those lines. A friend. Something he’d believed and sworn he’d never have - but here he was.

There wasn’t any use in denying it, though. Not with these weird feelings, and after the nature of some of their previous discussions. If all of that in tandem didn’t make them friends, he wasn’t sure what else was supposed to.

(This post was last modified: Jul 12, 2021, 10:50 PM by Jethro.)