The earthen king had decided to return to the North. Back to the beginning where the Ancora's first reigned upon arriving in Ardent. This was where his mother had ruled. And before her, his grandfather. Dragon had heard all kinds of stories about Gargoyle and his roots. They were bold, kind, strong, merciful...but they also didn't take crap from anyone. They strove to help those who wanted to be a part of a family, and while the Ancora's didn't adopt others into their namesake, they treated and saw others as family in return for their loyalty. They protected their own and didn't hesitate to fight for their own and their pack. He heard stories of his predecessors raiding or going to war when other packs decided to mess with them. At least, that's what he thought. He was sure there was more than that, and he wished he knew more. His knowledge of his namesake was limited to what his mother knew, and though she knew almost everything about their kin, there were still some things she didn't. He couldn't ask Creed, and as he walked through the pines, his head rose as he blindingly looked around. This was where Creed had died, wasn't it? Creed's life had started and ended here, and he briefly wondered if his mother's life would end the same. She had strong attachments to this place, and he felt some regret for taking her away from it when he moved them to Auster. Maybe they'd come back here. To the place that was truly home when he decided to take up the reigns again...though he was a little uncertain of his future, he would try to make the best with what he had. "Dragon"||Kimahri||Shiva

It was strange to feel both busy and aimless at the same time. On the one hand, he'd been doing plenty of exploring and gathering of herbs while the weather was good, but on the other it all felt a little... boorish? Aggie was MIA - that didn't surprise him at all, but he did miss his troublesome sibling - so now he felt like he lacked even the acceptable faint ties of family to give him some purpose. In all honesty, it was a bit lonely not knowing where his sibling was, and he hadn't made any good friends yet so venting was out of the question. Now he just sat there, flopped heavily onto one side in a patch of half-frozen grass and snow, feeling too low to even move to a more comfortable position when one of his limbs started tingling.

The lavender and rose grey man might have just stayed there for a large part of the day if the sound of someone approaching didn't pull him from his funk. Lifting his head, Jouko searched for the one who's paws crunched through spotty patched of resilient snow and ice. A man of earthy brown tones came wandering his way. The fellow was handsome, though he struck Jouko as odd and it took him a good minute of observation to realize it was his eyes. They didn't move like seeing eyes did.

Hauling his heavy frame to an upright, sitting position Jouko called, "Hello there! Out for a stroll, or going somewhere with a purpose?" A smile pulled at his dark lips, likely heard in his warm tones as he spoke. It was funny how your expression changed how your words sounded, though maybe not everybody noticed that.

He startled slightly at the sound of a foreign voice. He didn't know someone else had been nearby, and it was a surprise to him. Shiva and Kimahri had gone to hunt, leaving him alone with whoever seemed to be here. His muscles tensed a slight bit, but whoever had greeted him sounded...friendly. Or at least, not so hostile. But that could be deceiving, couldn't It? After all, the two Abraxas he had let into his home had turned around and taken his pack. He couldn't be too careful now. "A purpose, I suppose." He turned his head towards the direction of the voice, his muscles tense in preparation to fight if he had to. "Who are you?" He inquired, tone firm but curious.

Jouko didn't miss the tension in the man's body, though he'd carry on amiably in the hopes that his generally agreeable personality might ease the wariness he saw in the other man over the course of conversation. That was always the best way to gain trust. Funnily enough, if you voiced having good intentions it tended to make others more suspicious rather than less. Strange how that works.

A thoughtful nod of his head preceded his reply. Chuckling, the young man would reply, "I'm Jouko Aldfinnr, a wandering and mostly purposeless healer." His tail swatted the ground several times before he would rise and stretch out his stiff shoulder muscles. "And what's your name?"

"Jouko Aldfinnr." Dragon's head tilted at the males introduction, a younger male judging by the the sound of his voice. So the kid was a healer? He supposed he would have asked him if he knew of some sort of trick that restored sight, but he doubted such a thing truly existed. The earthen male would come to accept the fact that he would never see again, and while that thought was depressing, it wouldn't quite dampen his mood. "Dragon Ancora," The newcomer seemed nice enough, his tone seemed friendly. But still, Dragon had learned not to trust so easily anymore. "What brings you to the North, Jouko? I imagine it's not just a leisurely stroll...exploring maybe?" He hadn't talked to many strangers since he left Auster, and he felt suddenly awkward with conversation. Perhaps it was just him though, having decided to seclude himself for some time after recovering from losing his pack.

"Nice to meet you," he said lightly. Another name and face to remember for later, and remember he would since it wasn't often you found a blind man wandering alone in the frozen north. Though, maybe he was only temporarily alone? Hard to say. Jouko wouldn't fault him for being on his own if he was able to take care of himself. In fact he admired wolves who persisted and thrived when blinded, and judging by those scars Dragon was among those who were not born blind.

The question had him thinking, pausing, missing a beat. Normally he had an easy answer, but lately he was off his game and stuck in his head just a little too much. After a moment he shrugged and laughed, "Exploring is close enough. Without much to do as of late I've been all over the place. Of course, wandering has it's uses. Some plants only grow in very specific areas so it's good to try and find the ones that are out of the way whenever possible, so I at least know where to go if I need them." Wasn't all that brought him, but, it was a good enough answer.

Weaving through a few of the pines and scanning the area a bit more curiously, he mused, "Doesn't seem like favorable conditions for many herbs, though." Not that that meant there were none. Quite the opposite, there were probably some hardy plants lurking around the bend that he wouldn't find elsewhere. It just was starting to seem pointless to collect any at present.

Dragon dipped his head to the male, he seemed polite enough. But so had others he had come across in the past. Still, he didn't want to keep living wary of everyone he came across. He knew if anyone tried something dirty then his companions and nearby family wouldn't hesitate to jump to his aid if he needed it. The earthen male rose to his paws, stretching out his limbs and shaking out his thick coat. He listened to the males explanation of what he was doing around these parts, and it brought a bit of curiosity to him. "I agree, traveling and exploring does have its uses. Perhaps I can be of some help?"

His lips quirked up in a grin, "There are a few useful herbs here, I think. I suppose it depends on how useful a healer thinks they are anyway." He shrugged. He wasn't a healer, so he wasn't quite sure what was useful and what wasn't. "I grew up in these parts, my family has lived here for a long time as far as I know. I can show you where they are if you'd like?" He thought about where the herbs were and tried to remember what they were...he vaguely remembered seeing Vereux and his brother collect them, and he now wished he had paid attention to healer training...ah well, it would come to him eventually.


"Dragon"||"Kimahri"||"Shiva"