Athena had spent the time from the last pack meeting to now convincing herself of certain things. The first was that Amalia had left and wasn't coming back for the foreseeable future. The hardest part of that was the unknown. Why did she leave? Was she okay? Would she ever come back? It took a while to make herself okay with not having answers to those questions. The fact still hurt and the loneliness still stung, but at least she had convinced herself that Amalia was actually gone. The second thing she convinced herself of was that Jayne and Diana were out there somewhere and that they were fine. She knew Jayne had gone off to find her sister and she had to have faith that one day they would find each other and they would come back to her safe and sound. That was an easier and more pleasant thought to swallow. In the last few days though something else occurred to her. In just one season's time she would be eight years old. She had no way of knowing how many more years she would live, but she liked to think that she still had a few more years to go. For longer than she liked to admit she had considered her life over. She would probably never have children again. The children that she did have were scattered in the wind. It was unlikely that she would ever rule again or hold any real position of power. Amalia was gone. She had a hard time finding anything else for her to look forward to. However, in the last few days she started to consider, for the first time, what she would do with these next few years. Somehow this train of thought brought her to follow Ara's scent to the healer's den. She hesitated several feet away for a moment, almost reconsidering her whole plan. At the end of the day though, she needed a friend if nothing else. The last time they had talked it had helped her work through some of her thoughts so she hoped maybe Ara could do that for her again. With quick shake, letting her fur and bracelets settle back into place, she pushed herself forward. "Ara?" she called, keeping an eye out for the other woman. "Talk" "You" Think

Ara had long since grown accustomed to being alone again. For most of her life, she'd been an extremely solitary wolf, almost always existing within the safety of a pack - and more than willing to contribute to one - but she tended to keep to herself more often than not. For the majority of her life she had gotten used to being with Novel though, and then her sons, so when they'd left she'd had to become used to being on her own again. There were always others around, if she needed them, though she wasn't exactly one to reach out to her packmates for much of anything. Instead, she'd grown adept at internalizing her emotions and dealing with them that way. Athena was probably the only one recently that she'd opened up to. They'd gone through some similar experiences, and Ara considered her a friend - at least more so than anyone else in Fiori. Despite the fact that she'd had a good conversation with Athena - and she found her mind straying to her again after that day, though she'd be embarrassed to admit it - she was still surprised to hear her approach. She'd been resting in her den when she heard the shuffling of paws outside, drifting somewhere between the waking world and the dreamworld, and the sound roused her easily from slumber. She let her paws stretch out in front of her for a moment, though as soon as she recognized the scent - and then the voice - of the approaching wolf she stiffened and pulled herself upright more quickly. It took her by surprise to know that Athena was seeking out her presence, though she recognized Athena's loneliness as similar to her own, so it really shouldn't have been that surprising. Still - why her, of all wolves? Curious, she pulled herself from her den, moving to greet her with a soft smile. "Afternoon, Athena," she greeted her with a slow dip of her head, her voice slightly raspy from the sleep that she was still shrugging off. She was half-tempted to ask her what she needed, finding it difficult to imagine anyone coming to her simply for her company, though she refrained. "Enjoying the change in weather?" It was growing far warmer out lately as summer came full force; a welcome change for wolves like herself, as herbs grew more plentiful, though she knew Athena was from harsher lands and perhaps the hot weather could be a hindrance for her.

Athena's gaze searched the area around Ara's den, thinking that she might be nearby, but then as the woman started to climb out of the den her eyes refocused on her. She was a little bit relieved that she didn't have to search for her new friend, but she felt a bit guilty when Ara spoke and she realized she had probably woken her up. "Good afternoon, Ara. Sorry for disturbing you," she said with an apologetic smile as she came to a stop a foot or two away. She almost apologized again and insisted on letting her get back to her nap just to keep from being a nuisance, but luckily Ara spoke before she could do so. Athena smiled a little and settled down onto her haunches. Well, she was here now, she might as well enjoy it. "Summer has never been my favorite season in truth, but this year it seems to be much kinder than it has been in the past. I wish my coat wasn't so thick all the time so I could actually enjoy it. It's always so beautiful around here in the spring and summer." Her northern roots still showed from time to time, but she had to admit that the greenery and plants here were lovely. Living with Amalia had given her a new appreciation for herbs and plants and their uses. She never had the same passion for it that the healers did, but she certainly saw how useful they were. An idea struck her and before she could really think it through it left her mouth. "If I made a trip to the north would you want to come with me? I haven't been back in ages. Maybe we can go sometime this summer while it's not so cold." Of course even as she proposed her question she realized there probably wasn't much for Ara in the north. After all, it was cold and most herbs didn't grow well up there. She immediately felt silly for asking, but she couldn't take it back now. "Talk" "You" Think

The smile that painted her features easily was proof that she didn't feel the least bit disturbed. While it was rare anyone sought her out directly, it definitely wasn't unwelcome. Athena's presence was actually a quite welcome distraction from her somber thoughts, and would be much better than wasting the morning away dozing off.   "Nothing to be sorry for," she brushed away Athena's concerns quickly with a flick of her muzzle. Even if she had merely been woken up for a conversation and nothing else, she would be just as happy. She agreed with Athena's assessment of the weather. It had been a particularly mild summer so far, something that tended to make for the best herb collection; not that she'd done all that much of it this season. Either way, it was better for the temperature to be somewhere in the middle rather than on any extreme end of the spectrum. She opened her mouth to reply, to make some comment regarding the weather, but before she was able Athena was asking her a question. Would she want to join her on a trip to the north? She was briefly reminded of the journeys she had taking with Novel. While in some ways they had both been homebodies, they'd also enjoyed their freedom to travel and they'd taken advantage of it while they were able. While she was uncertain if Heather would be nearly as lax about leaving Fiori for a brief period, as Leo had been, she couldn't help but feel a flutter of warmth in her belly at the thought of going somewhere new again. With Athena, too. She wasn't sure why it made her feel slightly giddy and younger than she had in quite some time, but she didn't let her confusion stop the smile that grew on her face once again.   "I think that's a lovely idea," Perhaps there wasn't a huge variety of herbs so far north, but strangely enough that wasn't her only interest in taking this journey. Finding any unique plants would only be the icing on the cake for her. "Thank you for even thinking to invite me. When would you like to leave?" Perhaps waiting a bit closer to autumn would be a good idea, and checking in with Heather to be sure their brief departure wouldn't be an issue.