Surreal Adravendi

The lake was high, had been quite swollen with the snowmelt, but it was going down. Summer would be nearing wakefulness in no time. Now, the land was full of flowers and herbs, and Celestial was settling into a rhythm. She had hopes that her single hunter, Varda, would lead the pack's first group hunt soon; something she would suggest to the Destruction female soon. For now, she patrolled the lake, thinking back on the memories that lay there; surprising Lyric in the water, encountering a trespasser, and so many other patrols. Now the lands belonged to her. When she had taken the lake, she had considered Druid's Moor, but instead, left it open. It would be there until another pack took it over, or until Celestial managed to secure a victory in a siege - Gods forbid should that actually happen, but you never knew with Alacritia - and expanded it's borders, filled with herbs that the healers could harvest to keep the pack lands from being depleted. She slowed to a stop at the water's edge, head lowering for a drink, though her eyes and ears were ever alert for intruders or approaching pack members. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Walk | Talk | Think Unhurriedly, the white wolf traveled toward the center of the Wolfpaw Lake territory. He carried himself in his usual manner, tail relaxed and head low, with his eyes watching his footing as he walked and thought about his current hunt for a den. His exploration of the Vericona Plains had gone well, everything considered. The territory proved to be spacious and very open, only dotted sparingly with a few scarce trees and the occasional stream of water. He liked it for what it was, but he had saved the lake for second. He had an inkling he would end up settling here, but it seemed right to consider all of his options first. Deciding to start from the center and work his way out, he walked straight toward the lake at the center of the territory, and was only a little surprised to see Surreal there, situated at the lake's edge and drinking from the water. Miksa halted, hesitated for a second upon seeing her. It was always so intimidating to talk to his leaders, no matter how considerate and approachable they made themselves out to be. He felt so eager to prove his worth to them, eager to pay back their kindness in letting him live within their territory, that it added a different kind of pressure to every interaction. Trying to set those worries from his mind however - attempting to sneak away would have simply been too cowardly - Miksa drew in a steeling breath and approached the lake. The expression on his face could only have been described as solemn and nervous, but he made himself speak so as not to ignore the grey wolf there. "Hello, Surreal."

Surreal Adravendi

The tread of paws, hesitant caused the Archangel to look about. She knew the tread to be Miksa's. Hmm, something to teach him, soon. How to move stealthily. As she met his yellow eyes, she smiled at his greeting, offering her own, "Dia duit, Miksa.", before translating the greeting to common tongue. "Hello, Miksa." She stretched, forelegs treading into the water as her hind end remained elevated. Completing this stretch, she turned to face her pupil with a grin. "How are you today? Settling in well?" She'd have to start that next lesson soon. Their spar had shown her where he stood. He had good instincts. All he needed was a polishing paw, and he'd be one to watch out for in the field of battle. She'd already noticed how strong his scent was in the borders. He was patrolling, perhaps even more than anyone other than herself and Regulus. If he kept up the good work, he'd probably be seeing a moderately swift rise through the ranks. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Walk | Talk | Think Surreal was friendly as she always was, smiling at him the moment she turned to look his way. His ears perked as she addressed him, but the words she spoke were foreign and strange to him, drawing about a soft, thoughtful frown to his face as Miksa considered their meaning. Thankfully she had taken his lack of linguistic knowledge into account and followed it up with something in their common tongue, something that he easily understood. What were those strange words she had used to greet him? He would possibly need to ask at some point. He stopped beside the lake as his leader stretched and turned to offer him her full attention. She looked quite happy and chipper as she inquired after his well-being, as well as how he was liking things in Celestial. He was very suddenly glad he actually had only positive things to say. "I'm fine," Miksa answered, "settling in okay." Which was mostly true, or as close to describing things as he could get in the moment. On a quick impulse, he added, "I'm trying to scout of den locations." That was true, too, and he hoped the knowledge would appease Surreal's curiosity and concern, if there was any.

Surreal Adravendi

His answers were good ones, and she listened with interest as Miksa added that he was scouting for a den. "Well, if you, or anyone else in the pack can't find one, you're welcome to kip in the alcoves at my den until you do. We've room enough, and you would certainly be close enough to observe Kavdaya work and further your healing skills." Her tone was thoughtful as she mulled over a niggling idea. Something to run across the snowy Master Healer. Her mismatched eyes studied the young male's eyes as she grinned, asking easily "Any good spots, yet?" The sooner she knew where everyone had chosen to hole up, the better; it would make finding them all in an emergency that much easier. The hill her den was ensconsed within was well above flood levels, and while this spring had been quite flooded, they hadn't seen too much damage. Not like the flash flood that had struck when she was a pup. That had been quite the event, and she often wondered if it had been that, with the death of Aislyn - the lead Beta at the time and Liberty's mother - that had been the catalyst that started the events rolling that had led to the Valhalla-Glaciem war. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Walk | Talk | Think Surreal generously opened her to den to him if he needed a place to rest, and though he was surprised by her offer Miksa was no less grateful for it. It said a lot about the woman's character that she was willing to part with some of her own personal space to make sure one of her pack was comfortable, and it further convinced him that he had chosen right in joining Celestial. It was that sort of consideration and selflessness that he desired in a pack, that he wanted in those he associated with, and he nodded his head in gratitude. "Thanks. I'll keep that in mind," Miksa answered gratefully, though he still held to his plan of finding a den of his own. It was nice to have a backup option though. When asked about his den hunting progress so far, the white wolf quickly considered the locales he had already scouted out. "I've found some," he answered honestly, "I'm just not sure they're for me yet. I was hoping something around here would fit." He shifted his bright yellow eyes away from the mismatched gaze of Surreal to look around them, glancing particularly at the lake and lakeside terrain. "It feels quieter over here." Or at least that was impression he had of it. Maybe he had only managed to visit the lake on a slow day. His eyes shifted back to Surreal again, wondering what her thoughts were on the subject.

Surreal Adravendi

While Miksa was surprised by her offer, Surreal was unsurprised by his surprise. She grinned at the young male as he thanked her rising and turning, offering to walk with him as she listened to his answer regarding his finds on a possible den. Her eyes cast around the surroundings as he remarked on their quiet nature, and a smile crossed her maw. "It is. Part of it is that this isn't the base territory." Her eyes returned to him. "I've noticed your strong presence on the borders. I'm quite pleased with that. Do keep it up. We need dedicated members willing to leave a strong impression that there are active numbers here who will fight back at opposition of our borders." It might be, in the future, that she, or Regulus, would end up being challenged. Perhaps by the time a challenge ever came, she would be retired, and Regulus, stronger, younger, would meet the foe in battle to defend his pack. But no matter. Miksa's dedication showed in his common patrolling, and she knew he'd be a good fighter with practice. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think