the pines were her favorite place in Winterfell. most wolves preferred to make their dens at the half sunken ship, but Heloise had dug a cozy den under a fallen willow tree. this is where she was now. far in the territory but outside of the other dens, the ivory woman lay at the entrance. the pelt of a cougar was on the floor of the den inside - the one she had killed just a few days ago with Fracture - and a few scattered remains of the body were tucked safely away as well. she was busy fashioning a necklace on a simple string. the cougar's skull had been plucked of a large fang. the string was made of braided leather, too thin to call rope. knawing at the fang to shape it to a desirable shape, she'd lean back to admire her work. if others complimented her on her work, she could make more. the thought of the little pups running around with cougar fang necklaces... was rather adorable. the string was beside her paws, ready to be attached whenever she felt like it. Heloise's ears piqued forward, hearing footballs approach her. but she did not look up. at least, not yet. she was too focused on doing a good job with her small accessory. the scent was male though, but it was not any of the men in Winterfell she knew by it. "SPEECH"

art + code by Kara

There were lots of things on his mind today. He had settled in pretty fast considering he had lived here before. He had returned to his old den, cleaned it up, dug it a little bigger to fit him and his two companions, and now all he had to do was make it homey again. He donned his leather armor, something he never really stopped wearing since he had it. It was the last piece of Iskra he had left, plus with the shield over his face, it hid the blindness that overlapped his eyes. The scars and the cloudiness of them were always hidden now, not in shame but he preferred it this way. Mostly because it was the last thing he had gotten from Iskra before yet another disappearance. He practically gave up trying to keep her in his life for a while now. She was a wanderer at heart and he couldn't bring himself to reign that in or stop her from doing what she wanted. She was a free spirit, who was he to stop her from living? With a sigh, he took to wandering the territory, marking the borders and just feeling at home again. There were times he wished he had stayed here instead of taking them all to Auster, but it had been a good run during his alpha days. While he missed leadership, he was content with following someone else now. The scent of a pack member dragged him from his thoughts, head turning in their direction and he absently followed it till it got stronger. It was of course, someone he hadn't met yet. Perhaps it would be a good idea to get to know those he would be living with. "Good day, neighbor. Sorry if I'm disturbing you, I smelled you nearby and figured I'd come and say hello. Get to know my new packmates," He stopped several feet from where he assumed her den was, head tilted sightlessly in her direction. "Dragon"||Kimahri||Shiva

looking up from her task, she saw a man approach wearing battle armor. Heloise did not consider this odd, mostly because she considered herself a warrior and the rest was that Winterfell was full of soldiers. or soldiers-in-training, as she thought fondly on the children. the armor covered this man's eyes and she wondered if he was trained to fight blind, unaware of his disability. he also called her 'neighbour', leading her to believe his own den was close by. "greetings" she'd respond in her calm tone. her head shook, though she was not sure if he saw that. "I do not mind the company" Heloise went on to say. truthfully, she had not had any visitors since she settled here. the woman half hoped that Fracture or Acere would come and see how she was, but she was disappointed in that regard. they were the only two adult members of Winterfell she considered herself almost close to. swishing her tail over the cold earth, she'd add in. "please, sit" the woman offered the older man. rising to rest on her rear, she played the part of a good host. "I am Heloise cel Mare, a Squire of Winterfell." she introduced herself fluently. "SPEECH"

art + code by Kara

The feminine voice returned his greeting, ears perking as she said she didn't mind the company. He didn't want to disturb anyone and would not press for casual conversations if the other didn't want to talk, but she seemed okay with it and even asked him to sit. He did, the earthen Male sat with his tail curled over his toes to keep away the autumn chill that started to set in recently. He dipped his head in thanks to her before he learned her name. Heloise cel Mare, one of Winterfells squires. She sounded young. Alot younger than he was, so he assumed she had that rank because of that, but he couldn't say for sure. Perhaps it was just temporary until her skills could be assessed...that's the way he would have likely done it if he still had Talis. "Nice to meet you, Heloise. My name is Dragon Ancora, a knight, I think." He hadn't quite gotten to speak about his rank with Acere, but he knew he had the skillset for it. He had, after all, fought alongside Ace last winter against a tiger. The same one that the alabaster titan wore over his back, in fact. "Have you settled in yet? My den isn't too far, just over..." He turned his head to either side of him, forgetting for a moment which way he had come from until Shiva walked over from the direction of the den. She nudged his shoulder briefly before settling beside him and settling amethyst eyes on the snowy woman. "That way," He finished. In fact, his den was probably visible from hers, not that he could tell exactly since he couldn't see. But just far enough away to where he couldn't invade her privacy. Walk, "Talk" Think "Kimahri" Shiva

Dragon. the name of a beast of legend, if memory served. a fine, strong name. "the pleasure is mine, ser Dragon" Heloise replied, equally politely as he introduced himself to her. if he was indeed a knight, she would show him the respect his title demanded. perhaps one day, she would be asking the older man to spar with her. to learn more about battle and the chivalry of a knight. then she also wondered if Winterfell even had a code for that rank. the man went on to ask if she had settled. "yes, I have, thank you." it had been... almost a full season since she joined Winterfell. plenty of time to settle and make her presence known. still, she hadn't seen many of their packmates roaming. if it wasn't the heat, it was the cold. she thought this with some amusement. her eyes followed his gesturing, spotting a den aways away from her own. commiting it silently to memory, she'd turn back to him. "I was not aware another made their den outside of the main camp as well." Heloise liked her privacy and perhaps Dragon did as well. "have you known the wolves of Winterfell long?" "SPEECH"

art + code by Kara

"The pleasure is mine, Ser Dragon." Ser Dragon...that had a nice ring to it. He wasn't sure if there was a ceremony for knighting or when members ranked up, but if there was, he imagined the custom would be rather formal and they'd gain titles to go with their ranks. He had a few titles already, though they were given to him by his companions or friends. This woman had just given him another, and the idea crossed his mind to speak to Ace about what customs could be expected in the pack. Perhaps the alabaster alpha was willing to listen to some ideas from a former alpha. She went on to say she had settled in. A good thing, he thought. They had all had ample time to settle in, and yet...she was the first pack member outside of his family that he had met. "I was not aware another made their den outside of the main camp as well." A small smile tugged at his lips as he sat back. "I uh...used to live here. My mom was an alpha. She was born here, too, and we lived here before I took over and moved the pack to Auster. We came back here after I lost my pack. I'm kind of glad Acere chose this place, considering I learned the entire Northern territories before I went blind, it makes it easier so I don't have to try and learn my way around all over again." His ears flicked with embarrassment. He had no shame about his blindness anymore. After all, it had been partially his fault for it happening. But he had learned to live with it and adapt to it, and even continue fighting. He had, after all, won the hardcore portion of the winters end tournament and he was proud of that. As for knowing the wolves who lived here, he shrugged slightly. "Some of my family is here. My mom, one of my brothers, two of my kids...Acere I fought with last winter against a tiger - the very same one he wears now. I don't recognize the scents of the others, so...asides from you and my family, I think it's safe to say we're all still strangers." Walk, "Talk" Think "Kimahri" Shiva

Heloise was quiet as the older man explained himself. she was not the type of woman to speak without meaning behind it, and felt there was nothing useful to add to his words anyway. he had a good grasp on the situation he had found himself in, and Dragon's story was informative. why would she interject in any way? when he admitted he was blind, she resisted a sympathic click of her tongue. she would never wish to be blinded to the beauty of the world. "how did you lose your sight?" she felt herself ask politely, as to continue the conversation. he was covered in intricate scarring that spoke of his prowess or unluckiness in battle. she'd shake her slender head "you do not have to tell me; I have never met a blind wolf before. I admit my curiosity." and though he would not see it, her face split into a smile. perhaps she sensed it would be a good story. perhaps she felt she could learn from it. recalling that Fracture said Winterfell was mostly a family pack, she assumed Dragon's peers were making the mass of the pack up. "I have no family in the Boreas" she admitted softly "I joined Winterfell after consideration. Acere is kind and wise, and I have met some other wolves in the pack so far. they are accepting but I fear the territory cannot house all of them." the children had to remain in pack lands for safety, but there was a large amount of adults here. she could smell them. their numbers were growing. "SPEECH"

art + code by Kara

When he finished speaking, she asked him how he had lost his sight. It was a question he heard a hundred times over and he expected it quite often. So when she said he didn't have to tell her, he chuckled and shook his head. "It's quite alright, I don't mind at all anymore." He admitted before taking a seat. "When I led Talis, we raided another pack, Celestial, for some supplies...but mostly to kind of show off our strength. Unfortunately, it didn't go as well as we'd hoped. Members on both sides lost more than they should have." His head tilted upward as he recalled the events of that day, "I had ordered for nothing more than dominance fights from my members, but the first of Celestial's members to arrive had initiated a maim fight against one of our own, so all hell broke loose. My members retaliated in the same way to match Celestial's intentions I guess. At some point I challenged to claim one of my younger cousins. I won. His sister wasn't happy about it, so she challenged me along with her alpha. Another member fought with me, but...she wasn't very experienced. You can guess who won that fight," He didn't hold anything against Celestial. His pack had started it, after all, but things had gotten far out of hand. "My cousin, Justice, still hates me to this day. She thinks I'm a traitor for taking her brother away, but what she doesn't know...is that as soon as we got back home and treated his wounds, he was free to leave. He was never kept as a prisoner, which...I think is what she thought. But he apparently never went back home. I don't think she'd willingly talk to me let alone let me explain. It's been a few years since then, so..." He shrugged, then realized how much he had talked. "Sorry, I tend to get carried away," He took a deep breath and exhaled as she told him that she didn't have any family in Boreas. That she had joined after some thought, her opinion on Ace, and her thoughts about how fast the pack had grown. He nodded along, the latter part most concerning. It was true that Winterfell had grown insanely fast. "You're right...I don't think Ace anticipated the pack filling up so quickly. As a former alpha, I understand the concern. If more wolves come to join, it'll make it hard for us to support everyone...it's not impossible, just difficult with so little room." He frowned as he thought about the situation. There were a few things that could probably be done, but since he wasn't an alpha, he couldn't act on those things. Well...not all of them. Walk, "Talk" Think "Kimahri" Shiva

she was not aware tensions in this land had been so terrible in the past. entering through rose-colored lenses, Heloise was shielded from the brutality of Boreas thus far. to hear of war and raids... she felt it both senseless and vital. every action had a reason behind it and she was not one to judge too harshly, especially if that other person speaking was a pack mate. perhaps she was using a bit of blind loyalty to Winterfell's members but it mattered not. in a pack, you were to support the others. it did not matter their crimes, for their king had decreed they be permitted to reside. "thank you" the alabaster woman said at last. she was quiet, thoughtful, as Dragon spoke to her. "it may not mean much now, but I am interested in the past of this land. I had just arrived come summer. the subject - and the people involved - is good to know." how was she to form an opinion otherwise? she could not live in blissful ignorance forever. one day, perhaps she too would be forced to do battle. the thought was nerving, exciting and also unwanted. she hoped never to fight in a senseless battle. Heloise did not want to take up room that others so desperately needed. she had the ability to roam and care for herself just fine. hunting was difficult with large prey, but weaker and smaller animals she could bring down. "I would give my spot to another easily" she stated "though I only hope there could be a way to house the number Winterfell needs and also be as one ideal." she had heard of mercenary groups before, yet Acere did not seem the type to employ them. perhaps... that idea wasn't completely useless though. she had the beginnings of a grasp on the situation. she just needed help reaching it. "yes, a way to have numbers. safety and support. perhaps... another pack affiliated with Winterfell? in the north. or a small group of wolves that live close by?" "SPEECH"

art + code by Kara