He could remember running. He couldn’t remember what he was running from but whatever it was he knew it would hurt him and not in the familiar, burning pin of flesh wounds. No, whatever he was evading carried a pain that he knew he would never recover from, a pain that would render him helpless for an unforeseen amount of time until he simply couldn’t function anymore. It was the pain that put the fear of god in the hearts of every warrior, a pain that couldn’t be mended. The raw pain of emotional loss, of heartache, and of grief. That was why he ran.   He awoke to the sound of strange birds chirping, and insects buzzing amidst a choir of bull frogs. How he had come to the pond was a mystery although in the faint recesses of his mind he could remember the stinging burn of exhaustion on his legs the day before. He stretched out his paws in front of him, letting his joints pop and snap as he worked the sleep from his body. He still smelled faintly of brine and fish, although he had spent a good portion of the previous day following the river and had even stopped once to wash himself since coming ashore. He drank from the pond and shook out his fur, a hungry yawn climbing from his jaws as he did. Since arriving in this strange new place he hadn’t seen hide or hair of another wolf and for a moment he began to wonder if this place had met a similar fate as his previous home; slowly abandoned and left to rot by vagrants until nothing remained. “No” He assured himself, the scent of wolf was far too strong and far too prevalent to be abandoned. Rather than wait to be met he tossed back his head and howled a deep, low moan, calling for anyone nearby to make themselves known Find Me He sang Speech

Faite had found herself growing bored within the confines of her borders. Lirim was quiet and Faite was content to let it be so for a little while longer. There was no exciting or new information to share as of yet and she wanted to ensure that her members were settling in before she bothered them to kick their asses into gear. She wanted the pack to be productive - both within the borders and with other packs, but she knew patience was the key. She wanted everyone to get to know each other before she started pushing for everyone to work together to help grow as a pack. At first she'd been reluctant to leave her family as well. Her kids were over a season old now and Zell was a more than capable parent. While she didn't want to be that mother that wasn't around her children at all, she also didn't want to deny herself of her old ways. She missed exploring and going on the adventures she used to and she knew she couldn't let her children or her pack hold her back from that. After all, she'd already made it known that her pack wasn't there to hold anyone back. It was meant to help others grow and pursue new things. She wouldn't be setting a good example if she didn't follow that belief. Granted, going only one territory over wasn't exactly her idea of an adventure, but it'd been a while since she'd been to the place. With spring in full bloom everything was green and alive once more and the prey had already begun to make a swift recovery. She'd already spotted a few hinds with their fawns in her own territory which was a refreshing change from the bleak winter they'd had. The entire past year had been rough and it seemed as though she'd created her pack at just the right time. She wasn't sure how such a new pack would handle situations like the year before. Her walk had been quiet for the most part until a howl rose up from ahead of her. Ears pricked forward curiously. She hadn't exactly been expecting to find company, but she wasn't opposed to the idea either. She followed the direction of the sound towards which led her to a pond. She steered clear of it and soon spotted the wolf who had let out the call. She scanned him over for a brief moment, focusing on the interesting markings, before smiling and coming to a halt a respectful distance away. "Looking for anyone in particular?" Walk, "Talk" Think

He smiled at her as she approached and tipped his head cordially in greeting. “No one in particular, no.” He said, his voice a low rumble like a distant thunderstorm. “I’ve only recently come to this place, so far you’re the first wolf I’ve seen.” He looked her over briefly and felt a visceral lust rush through him before it quickly faded away. She was quite beautiful, and carried herself with an authority he recognized as being dominant, he kept his head at the neutral length of his body, not submissive but not daring to stand over her and claim dominance. Females with power were unfamiliar to him, but the faes of Clout Rube’s army were preferred to be strong, to breed strong pups. This female however, despite her obvious confidence and authority lacked the bulk and thick legs indicative of what was considered strong in the mad king’s army. She was slight and lean, looking more like a fox or a deer than the hulking wolves of his home. “More like Cricket?” He thought to himself, and while the comparison stung it was in fact accurate. “Would you be so kind as to tell me where I am?”  He asked, his eyes never quite meeting hers for more than an instant. Speech

The male seemed instantly friendly as he smiled at her and dipped his head in a respectful manner. She offered him the same inclination of her head, finding it only fair, before her ears flicked forward as he responded to her question. She honestly wasn't very surprised by his response - he wasn't the first foreigner she'd come across and honestly he seemed a little out of place. The fact he'd called out, without even knowing who he was calling for, was about the only truly intriguing thing about him. She'd met some friendly loners, but not many who would invite just about anyone over. "We're in the western region of Boreas. This area is known as the whistling willows." Her present company was calm, he seemed so at least, so Faite found it easy to relax in his presence. She let her haunches sink to the moist earth as she studied him for a moment. She'd noticed how his eyes would drift up towards hers occasionally, but he never held the gaze. She didn't find it overly concerning, but she was used to eye contact. Had she been questioning him she probably would have assumed him a liar, but then again he wasn't being interrogated. "Do you mind if I ask how you got here?" Walk, "Talk" Think

He looked away from the woman and heaved a sigh. “I don’t know exactly.” He said solemnly. “One second there’s death and famine the next I find myself here.” He explained. “It’s all a blur really.” The place he had left had been lonely. He had stayed with a pack and made acquaintances but had no one that he missed terribly or if he did they had surely died when all the prey disappeared. The exact nature of his time in his old lands had been, in a word; inconsequential. He sat, his chest rising and falling with another heavy sigh before he looked to the female again, she had no trouble staring at him directly, but for Church that was hardly unusual for someone with authority. “I suppose it was fate that brought me here, perhaps even destiny.” He said, mostly to himself. He smiled at the woman, once again avoiding direct eye contact. “Do you believe in such a thing ma’am?” Speech

Faite's head cocked to the side curiously as the male looked away and let out a hearty sigh. His answer was equally as confusing and rather heart-wrenching. Both death and famine were ... well what they were was obvious. Neither of them were good things and she could tell it wasn't a fun subject for him which made her instantly regret asking in the first place. Whatever had happened had clearly been a traumatic experience. She listened to him sigh again and she frowned softly. She hadn't meant to upset him. “I suppose it was fate that brought me here, perhaps even destiny.” Destiny? Coming here due to death and famine certainly wasn't exactly something one could control, but Faite didn't put much stock into it. She smiled softly as he asked her if she believed in such a thing before she shook her head. "Not entirely. Maybe the things out of our control, but I believe we have the power to forge our own paths and do the most with what we can for our lives. Things thrown in our way, whether they're good or bad, are merely just obstacles. Things to test us and either make us stronger, or weaken us if you let it." Walk, "Talk" Think

He shifted slightly and raised his head. “An interesting outlook, if I do say so myself.” His chest rose and fell again with another steady breath and he rose from the ground. “All of this talk and I don’t even know your name. Forgive me for that.” He cleared his throat and bowed, chest sinking to the earth, one paw outstretched and the other tucked toward his chest, just as he had been taught to do in Clout Rube’s court. “I am Church Ballister” He said, his voice a low rumble. He had given the same introduction to his then future wife and had promptly fallen to the earth, succumbing to his various injuries. Once he was well enough to speak she had remarked that it was an odd gesture, and the two had laughed about it at the time. She had made him forget his old ways as time progressed but now, in this strange and foreign place the mannerisms held by Clout Rube’s armada returned to him easily. Speech

Faite Ethereal Adravendi “An interesting outlook, if I do say so myself.” It probably was an interesting outlook, but Faite couldn't see it any other way. She'd worked this hard to get where she was, how could she not believe in choosing her own destiny? She half expected him to go further into the matter, but instead she watched as he rose to his paws. A sheepish grin drew across her face as he mentioned that he didn't even know her name. Typically she was pretty good about introducing herself, but it seemed as though it'd slipped her mind this time. She allowed him the courtesy of going first, but was surprised when he bowed his chest low to the ground and gave her one of the most formal greetings she'd ever seen. This would be the second time one had introduced themselves in such a manner and to be honest Faite couldn't see herself getting used to it any time soon. She smiled at him all the same and felt inclined to at least dip her head towards him in her own semi-formal greeting. "It's a pleasure to meet you Church. My name is Faite Adravendi." "Speech" I like to imagine That you smile when you hear my songs