Quaking Vale Come Up to Meet You

Back-dated to April 16th.Overcast.Late Morning

@Kino if you'd like to join in at some point...

So this was Quaking Vale. It was indeed a far brighter place than Umbra Copse, as Larkspur had said. It was something of a relief to Kuwindwa, though it had only been a day since her arrival in these woods. The previous day and night had not found the woman sleeping much, so she had settled for wandering some of the forest, learning aspects of her new home, wondering how she might be part of this place. When she had finally settled for the night it was on the fringes, where only her disquiet could keep her company.

Passing like a silver ghost through the trees, the bronze-eyed woman swept her gaze over her surroundings once more, taking in the quivering branches, the scent of aspen, of other wolves.... The warrior's spirit was a bit better this morning than it had been through the night, but it was clear Kuwindwa had not slept much. Her thoughts had kept noisy company.

Everything had happened so suddenly to Kuwindwa. Yesterday she was an exile, today she stood as a member of a pack. It was the first time she had been part of a pack by her own choosing; past experiences had involved the pack of her birth and a forceful take over – she had never had to petition for her place. She just wondered if it would be everything she wanted – and needed – it to be. Today she would seek answers, and she believed the best way to do that would be to present her queries to the more approachable of the two alphas: @Sahalie. Catching a whiff of a scent trail just a little fresher than the rest, Kuwindwa's path veered in a new direction.

"Sahalie?" called the giant woman when she did not find the lass immediately.

i am SO SORRY that i'm a total potato and let this sit for 2+ weeks e___e I promise I'll be better. struggled so much bleh

Sahalie did remember offering to show the new woman around—what was her name again? It was too many syllables and awkward sounds that the girl was not quite sure if she was recalling it correctly. Kwinda? Kawinda? Wiwnda? There were definitely two "wuh" sounds in there but she didn't know where to put them. Maybe Sahalie ought to come up with a nickname? To ask for the woman to repeat it would surely be a death sentence for her respectability. There wasn't going to be an organic opportunity for the name to come up again, though, and the only alternative would be for the girl to lurk in the bushes as the woman eventually introduced herself to the other packmates—which seemed like a pretty extreme plan.

At any rate, all this wondering and amusing sense of shame kept the girl from sticking to her original intention of meeting with her new packmate in the morning. She awoke late—which was typical—rolled around on the ground to itch her back, saw that @Larkspur was unavailable for bothering at his log, then picked a random direction to explore. Her home was still new to her, after all, and even after nearly two years she had continued to discover new things about Oak Tree Bend and the misty woods that wreathed it.

What she missed most of all, though, was the sense of history.

This place had no stories. None that she knew, anyway. Oak Tree Bend had stories at every turn: big ones like the Three Sisters, or small ones like the den that had been snowed in, Spieden's birthing den that Mako and Marina had nearly drowned in, or Chinook Coulee where Sahalie had first learned to fish. How long would it take for there to be stories here? Would there be old stories for her to find? Did other wolves live here before her? It seemed silly to think that they might have been alone out here, south of Oak Tree Bend—to her, the final bastion of civilization in the valley—a bright spot in the dark forest.

But at some point the calling voice tugged her from her musing and reminded the dark, plump girl of her prior arrangement. "Shoot," was all she breathed before trotting back closer to the heart of the forest. Neither the girl nor the woman were that far out, and only a few minutes separated them. Sahalie offered a jovial woof in greeting when at last the woman came into view. "It's really hard to see you and not think of..." she paused, trying to shake the vacant, spacey mood from her mind, "A friend of mine. The woman that raised me. She was large like you, had a lot of scars. Much darker though. Just..." she sighed, her face falling into an open, gentle smile, "You remind me of her is all." Spieden seemed as uncertain as this wolf, too. Was that just her newness, though? What stories did this woman have?

You're fine. x) I've been so busy lately my response would have been a wait too. Btw, Sahalie is adorable. xD

Kuwindwa didn't expect an immediate response, nor did she receive one. Sahalie's trail continued and so did the warrior's easy gait until, at last, a low greeting reached Wind's perked ears and her head turned sharply toward the dark little female. Returning the greeting with a polite inclination of her head, she took the moment to note Sahalie didn't look like she had been awake long – perhaps she had slept in? Not a luxury Kuwindwa had ever been afforded, even in her younger days. She'd been kept on a tight regime, and even then she had never been comfortable lazing around. Now grown and aged, she didn't sleep as well at all and still tended to rise early. She was going to looked grizzled and grey faster at this rate...

"Good morning, ma'am." That was how she had called higher-ups in the old days. Would that work here too? It felt strange to call someone so small – so youthful – ma'am. Kuwindwa mentally shrugged. Nothing to be done for it now.

"It's really hard to see you and not think of..." That seemed an odd way to begin to Kuwindwa, but it also explained why Sahalie had so readily trusted and accepted the giant woman, why she warmed to Kuwindwa quickly. That could be a dangerous trait, one that could lead to trouble for the young alpha. Was she always so open, so friendly?

Kuwindwa's head tilted as she listened, considering as quietly as she had when she'd sat statue-straight before the girl yesterday. She didn't smile, but her eyes seemed to warm, arching kindly. She remembered the young wolves back home, frolicking, teasing, asking questions... they'd had their own mother of course – not Kuwindwa – but she wondered if any of them had seen her this way? It warmed her heart, however briefly, to think maybe they had, that Sahalie might. But it was too early, to uncertain to tell, and Kuwindwa closed herself off quickly. Now was no time to reminisce...

No, now was the time to press the young woman, time to learn, time to see where she could fit in. "I wished to speak with you a little more, if you have time." She was as direct as she was the previous day, her gaze intense and full of questions behind the stoic mask.

A young deer has been separated from the rest of its herd. Hunt Opportunity