Aurielle Adravendi

OPENING NIGHT OF VALHALLA'S HARVEST FESTIVAL! Time of Day: Early Evening She slowed to a stop, squirming from the traces of her harness and setting about preparing for the festival. It was lucky for her that she’d run into one of the Nomad Chapters. It had been nice to catch up with the elite healers, and they had offered to assist in this Festival’s proceedings, at the very least in setting it up. She and they had spent three days ferrying the supplies and food and other materials from Valhalla’s lands to the Dancefloor of the Gods. It was exhausting, but she welcomed the distraction from her own bodily frustrations. Among the festivities would be a trade fair. She had much to offer, from pelts, bones, hides, leather and various other crafting materials, to meat, herbs, and offers only an alpha could provide—hunting rights, for one thing, within her own pack lands. Privately, she hoped that the small flock of wild-once-feral-long-ago-domestic sheep she had spent a week capturing on a trek to the mountains of the east – through much hellish experience and trials – might draw the attention of her uncle—was he in the market for sheep? They blatted dolefully from within a tall wicker enclosure, a few half-grown lambs ducking between their dams’ legs to peer out with wide dark eyes at the wolves milling around outside, setting up the hide and pole yurts the Nomads traveled with—the help of many primate companions was a boon. Finally, after long preparation, it was ready. It was a bit haphazard and not as grand as she had been hoping, but the fire now crackled high and warm against an evening sky, sending a glittering show over the woman’s coat as she threw back her head and howled, long and loud, welcoming the wolves and creatures of Boreas to come. The Nomads remained for the festivities, eager to watch the proceedings and fun, and perhaps join in themselves. Aelloshir and Ayodele sat with the Spirit, the lemur running a comb through her mane and tail almost incessantly. Aurielle had doused her fur in strong, pleasant smelling oils—peppermint and a hard to procure pine scent that one of the nomads had gifted her. There was also cedar-wood, and she found she liked the warm, woody scent quite a bit. The nomads also said that it warded off small vermin such as fleas. Her heat masked for the most part, she settled to hopefully enjoy herself. She had left it to her pack to decide who would stay behind at home to guard Valhalla, and since the Festival would be going for a week, maybe longer, there was a chance for all of the pack to partake. Luckily, none of the wood for the fire would eat into Valhalla’s supplies, as the Nomads had gathered much of it themselves, and extra lay set aside with hollow horns with embers inside as trade items. She had to admit, she liked the results of Ayodele’s primping. She had an extra glitter and shine to her fur that she quite liked. It was a bit much to do for every day, so she doubted she would stay this well-groomed all the time. She wasn't as fond of the headdress that adorned her crown and draped down the back of her head and neck and down the center of her elegant muzzle in swirls of glittering silver, dripping in rainbow moonstones that flashed and glittered like her fur under the light, favoring blue more than the other colors the stones were renowned for. She hadn't been that fond of it even when she and Amos had found it and he had made her wear it all the way home as a joke. Either way, her head was held at an easy angle, half enjoying the fire, half keeping an eye out for guests. Invitations had been sent via lemur to all the packs she knew in Auster, with a heavy emphasis on neutrality for the event. She hoped to see a big turnout, as well as many prospective new members for Valhalla, if she was particularly lucky. She drew in a deep breath and let it out. Hopefully, her first ever festival – Valhalla’s first ever festival – would see great things and much joy in the coming days. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

It seemed that he was out of the packlands more than in them lately, but unlike the last festival held by a group of wolves this time he brought his budding family, guiding his train of little pups north to meet their cousin. He had no intentions of standing up the leader of their sister pack, plus it would be a good opportunity to go over their relationship as packs again, now that Olympia had been lifted and he'd agreed to aid them however his means allowed he wanted to make sure that their oldest ally wasn't about to abandon them in the event of something less than pleasant. Not that he was eager for that, he was simply able to understand that what Pegasus sought was unlikely to be won through peaceful means. As Torin arrived at the dancefloor, he spotted his cousin, stark white against the horizon and Torin stopped, ushering his children to his side and seeking to meet Derecho's gaze. There was a thrill of excitement at being allowed to show off his little family to Aurielle, he was so proud of them all. "Be on your best behaviours, alright?" He leaned down to speak to his children, gazing pointedly at Lili as he did. "Mind your manners, and no wandering off alone alright? We're some way away from the den and the desert is already dangerous for adults." That last point was directed at Lachlan. Then his stern tone dropped and he sought to give each of his children a sloppy affectionate kiss on the head. "Let's go meet your cousin." He said, a grin unlike something he'd ever worn before his children spread across his face. Torin lifted his head and started towards Aurielle, lifting his voice in greeting. "Well met Aurielle!" He called out, watching as Lili raced ahead, knowing some of her siblings were likely going to be hot on her heels. He picked up his pace to make sure his little bundles of energy didn't overwhelm the younger alpha. "Silent Treatment" & Deep thoughts

Lili was happy they'd been on so many adventures as a family lately, first, they'd gone to the island and now their parents led them through the desert to go meet another pack. She was practically vibrating with excitement when they stopped, hardly even registering what her father was saying though she realized he was giving her a hard look, had she done something wrong? Well her father didn't seem mad for long so it was probably nothing. They started towards the white woman she could see in the distance and her excitement simply couldn't hold anymore. Lili raced forwards giggling and tossing a challenge over her shoulder for her siblings. "Last one there is a rotting squirrel!" She tucked her head a bit then, racing towards the wolf her dad had called her cousin. Not that she knew what that meant. So into the race, she was that the girl was likely to collide with the white woman if she didn't move out of the way. "Can you see me?"

Papa laid down ground rules already; rules that weren't meant to be broken. it was like the firefly festival; behave or someone will take you home! "cousin?" came Siobhan's first word since leaving Lirim behind them. she'd been mostly silent to allow Papa and Mama time to wrangle the others and be on their way, but now that they were here... she chased after Lili as the red pointed pup declared a challenge, her little grey body streaking in the wind. "Liliiiiiii - watch out!" she'd gasp, though she did not slow down either. if they weren't careful, they'd smack right into that pretty lady that Torin greeted.

When Legion had received the festival invite Valdís immediately decided that she was going to go. The festival was to be held in a neutral location at the Dancefloor of the Gods. Valdís could not recall ever being at that territory but she felt certain she could follow the instructions and Jynette had been in the area before. She groomed her fur meticulously to give the best impression then with her red fox companion at her side the pair headed out. The journey in and of itself was uneventful. The autumn air was pleasant and while there were storm clouds building on the horizon to the north they seemed to shrink in the distance as she headed west. She arrived fairly early and dipped her head in greeting to the other wolves there, particularly Aurielle. "Greetings. I'm Valdís Thyre of Legion." "Talk" "You" Think

Bee never missed a party if she could help it.

on the road, she heard a pack was throwing a festival of some kind and was quite keen to visit them. though she had seen other wolves come to the festival together, she was here alone. entering the flat plains, her eyes were on the decorations and the wolves attending. she'd look to the large bonfire and smile dreamily. there was a bit of worry that something would catch fire but she placed that out of her mind in favor of partaking.

Willoughby had done her very best to groom herself nicely while traveling. her locks were windswept, shiny and clean. but that was all she could think to do. she had no wonderful accessories yet but had been told a few would be on sale at this festival. maybe she would walk away with a pretty flower or two. something nice to line her makeshift den with. the lone wolf kept to the outskirts, hoping she could see someone else alone to approach. or maybe someone nice to approach her.

"Speech"
1/3 navigation
ooc; hope its okay for a loner to show up!

At first Philomena had been convinced she wasn’t going to attend the festival. Brooding, troubled, bitter with herself… yes, interaction was exactly what she needed. She had accepted what had become of her children was her own fault. Now the next hurdle was trying to move on. Push forward for the future and rediscover who she was and what mattered most.

She wasn’t going to make those sort of mistakes again.

The woman had taken care to properly groom herself before setting out. She wasn’t sure if Peg would show up there or not… or if any of her fellow Olympians would either. It’d be alright. She needed to branch out… discover. It’d be fine.

No Face wasn’t with her. Her companion had remained home leaving the woman with only her thoughts for companion as she arrived at the area that night.

Philomena hesitated as she saw those gathered so far. A smaller gathering so far… but it was alright. She could ease into it.

Her blue gaze fell on another woman at the outskirts and she took a small breath. A loner…? There was no pack scent on her…a perfect place to start. Admittedly Philomena was curious about the beautiful, shimmering woman who seemed to call the festival…

She was striking… and bore a mane too… but with the children near her Philomena dared not approach less her heart ache for the ones she had lost.

Philomena slowed her steps and lifted her head as she addressed the other woman.

“A fine night, isn’t it?” Philly came to a stop a reasonable distance away and dipped her head in respect to the stranger. Here went… something.

It was chance that Gavroche arrived in the area that night. Mela was hunting and he had decided to wander off as night began to fall. Winged tucked against his sides the petite wolf wasn’t expecting to discover company… let alone wander into something that was going to be far bigger than he expected.

Houdini’s chattering alerted him to their presence and the boy lifted his gaze to see others in the distance. Gavroche frowned, considering his options. A gathering of wolves could be dangerous to wander into… especially ones that were growing. But, noting that some of those present were children he decided to take a chance. If worse came to worst he could run, right?

He approached them, gaze immediately drawn to a pale, shimmering figure. His light green eyes widened, jaw agape as he stared at her form. It was her…

The boy slowed as he approached, seeming entranced by the woman.

He wasn’t sure what to do… he shuffled a little… how did one speak when addressing a God?

“Great Goddess Celeste…” The youth knelt, bowing before her.

“I… it is an honor…” What was she doing on the mortal plane though?

Houdini huffed as her companion bowed before the alpha. The rat didn’t believe in his silly religion… and the fact he was acting like this just proved his naivety. Oh well… let them correct him. She wasn’t in the mood.

Aurielle Adravendi

OOC: To all, I'm just posting a little early and no one will be a latecomer to any of these threads, let alone this one... it's just... if I wait to reply until like twenty people have arrived.... my response is gonna be like a million words long and everyone will be squashed! So, don't worry too much about posting order. If you feel the need to have a separate thread for fuller interaction, just like with other festivals, go ahead and make one :D We're gonna flood the Dancefloor with activity, guys! A thrill filled the shimmering woman as her first guests arrived. She recognized two of them immediately—Torin and Derecho, but her grin widened, and her eyes lit up, sparkling as she saw the five pups milling around their feet. Two broke away, pelting straight for her, and she gave a mock gasp of fright before dropping to a play bow to meet the girls, long-hair of her tail bannering through the air as it waved gaily through the air over her rump, gladly letting them crash right into her, though she tipped her laughing muzzle down to keep her long canines from accidentally meeting either tender body with their points. The regal woman had shifted right into a thrilled auntie as she laughed and reached to nudge each pup playfully with her nose before grinning up at Torin and Derecho. “Well met, Cousin! Oh, they're beautiful. Fatherhood suits you, I dare say. Welcome to the festival.” Others were approaching, and she rose with a glitter of fur and moonstones, casting the pups a brilliant smile before her eyes turned to the woman accompanied by a red fox, an easy smile and nod following the woman’s introduction before a quick grin flashed those canines of hers as she responded, “Welcome to the Harvest Festival—Valhalla’s first of what I hope to be many to come in the following years.” Her eyes shifted away as more came—they weren’t to be the last, as she expected and hoped that many, many more would filter in over the next several hours. There was one who hung back to the outskirts of the festivities, glimpsed through the Yurts of the Nomads who called greetings to the newcomers in cheerful barks and howls. Another came, and her eyes lingered on the huge woman with interest, briefly catching her eye as she glanced her way. The earth and cream mottled woman bore a mane, long and rippling in curls and waves. It wasn’t often she encountered others with a mane like her own. Many seemed to bear long fangs, though. She made a mental note to try and meet the woman, but a distraction came in the form of a wolf who was the exact opposite to the prior wolf when it came to size. He was tiny, even compared to her own mother, but what was particularly different – and… odd – was the abject reverence and awe he wore on his face as he stared at… her. The bafflement on her features had to have been utterly priceless as the male approached on shuffling paws and bowed. Goddess Celeste? Her eyes flicked from his face and widened briefly as she saw the wings he bore. They couldn’t have been large enough to carry him, but it was still the first time the woman had ever seen a wolf with wings. Her eyes fell upon the rat, who seemed very disgruntled and impatient, before she looked back to the tiny young male, composure regaining its hold on her features as she lowered to the boy’s level and said, quite apologetically and in a volume only he would be able to hear clearly, “Pardon me, but I’m afraid I’m not the woman you were thinking of. My name is Aurielle Adravendi, Spirit of Valhalla. What’s yours?” She was compassionate in her manner, gentle of voice, and somewhat puzzled by the reaction, and she wondered – worried – if her perfume must not have been blocking her heat scent as well as she’s thought. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

I'll tough it out, I won't give in

Álarr scrambled quickly after Valdís with a guilty grin on his face and his gaze cast downward. Afi scrambled along beside him while Brynhildr flew above. He'd managed to sneak after Valdís to the festival and half way to Valhalla she'd caught him but by then if they turned around to drop him back off at Legion she'd end up being late. So the warrior had to suffer his presence. Álarr didn't think it was a big deal. He was a month from becoming a yearling and should be allowed to travel on his own without an escort.

He paused for a moment to scratch at the top of his head before carrying on. His training in healing was paying off and he already felt particularly knowledgeable. He could wait to learn more! He arrived after Valdís and quickly scooted in next to her, missing that he should introduce himself. Scratching at the top of his head again he waited for the festival to officially begin. As he waited he suddenly spied a girl he recognized. "Psst! Hey, Siobhan!"

GOT AN ANGEL ON MY SHOULDER But the devil always won... Boreas was certainly a busy place but then fall was often the time for festivals. A last hurrah and a boost of morale before winter set in. Taking a break from his crafting Harbringr followed the invite the lemur had given Ashen. He didn't know if any of his other relatives planned to attend but he figured he'd at least see what the fuss was about. It was a good opportunity to get more familiar with the other packs in the land. Oh who was he kidding? He just wanted an excuse to get out. Costanza was nestled on his back while Ari walked along beside him, chattering about this and that until they arrived at the festival meeting. Harbringr dipped his head toward whom he obviously thought was the woman in charge. "Greetings, Harbringr Klein of Ashen." Ari leaned over and tugged lightly at his fur. "She's gorgeous isn't she." Hari nodded absently. She was not Costanza and that made it all the more a shame his wife had been reincarnated as an owl. The spirits were punishing him, he was sure of that.

Justice was wary of having so many of their small pack outside of pack lands for the length of the festival, particularly with some of their members ill and unable to defend themselves. But some of the Nomads were there helping Aurielle with the festival, and Justice couldn't resist the opportunity to finally meet some of the healers her mother and brother had trained with. She had missed the opportunity to train with them when she herself was young, and she doubted there would be much of an opportunity to actually receive any training with the festival going on around them, but she couldn't help but seize the opportunity with all four paws. She did make a deal with Artur and a couple of the other fighter types so that they'd all be able to enjoy the festival while still not leaving the pack lands undefended, but she felt vaguely guilty about it anyway. If someone took it in their head to raid while the festival was going on, a couple yearlings and a few sick and old wolves couldn't take care of it themselves.

So she was restless and somewhat out of sorts as she helped carry the last of the supplies that had been planned for today, and was still unloading them from her travois and putting them where they needed to go when wolves began arriving. She gave a brief, somewhat malicious grin when Valdis and Aurielle spoke, wondering if either of them knew who the other was. The little winged boy earned a discrete roll of her eyes for his theatricality, but otherwise no one much caught her attention. She finished up with the supplies and stowed the travois, then moved to sit a bit behind Aurielle where she was with the Lirim puppies. She kept her gaze moving constantly, watching out for anything suspicious or dangerous, letting her gaze rest occasionally on the guests who had already appeared to evaluate them. If she was going to be here, she could at least assuage her guilt by guarding.

Viviane couldn't pull nearly as much weight as her larger packmates. She was only a yearling, and small for her age anyway. Artur had helped for a couple trips, but he was staying back in pack lands to protect them while the festival was going on. Viv felt bad for him, but someone was supposed to switch out with him so he could come later too, so it wasn't so bad.She herself was very much looking forward to the whole thing. She couldn't stop her tail wagging constantly as everyone started gathering. She didn't really know anyone here other than her packmates but she was looking forward to it. Besides, there were wolves called Nomads here that were supposed to be amazing healers, and she was sure there would be many other healers there as well. Maybe at some point during the festival someone would hold a healer's conclave or something and she could listen to them all talking about techniques and herbs and other fun things she could learn about.

Her tail stilled in surprise as a boy even smaller than she was - no, not a boy, she amended as she realized that he was a physically mature adult - with wings approached Aurielle. She was too enchanted by his wings to even take note of what he'd said, wondering if he would let her touch them, wondering if he could fly or maybe glide or something, more importantly wondering how a wolf could have wings.

The Lovliest Lies Pegasus arrived to the festivities fashionably late, approaching the gathered horde from a distance. He spied Philomena talking to another with a mane- blessed Ley how many wolves had manes on this island- and then spied Aurielle seemingly surrounded by a horde of pups. Coming to the festival had been Célestin’s idea, although he hardly minded it; they had just spent another festival together less than a moon’s turn ago but this festival offered food and drink while the firefly festival had not. He had ben too young to try the golden cider of his homeland, but he was sure that the magic of Boreas would make their vintage just as good if not better. At his paws the cottonmouth slithered to his side, flicking her tongue curiously at the gathered folk before her eyes rested on her king. Pegasus frowned at the lowly creature but knew better than to try driving her off, she was completely devoted to him, although what having a snake as his familiar said about him, he couldn’t say. Talking Thinking You Of All

Célestin had never really met this branch of his family, knowing only Torin and his siblings. But the idea that a festival was being held by Lirim's sister pack he'd practically begged Pegasus to go. It'd be a good opportunity to actually get to meet his estranged family and well socialize. And frankly he'd look for any excuse to be out with Pegasus, in the pack they were surrounded by the Zeus' family and while he was doing his best to be respectful, he couldn't shrug off the feeling that he was being judged in some way, at least by some of them. The rainbow man cast his gaze over the gathering as they approached, noticing a woman he'd seen around the pack a bit lately though he didn't know her name. He spotted mostly strangers then his gaze fell upon his Uncle speaking to a shimmering white woman and surrounded by- a grin spread on his muzzle and he gave Pegasus a friendly nudge before trotting towards his uncle. "Uncle Torin!" He said as he arrived beside the slate alpha. He dipped his head to the white woman, noting with surprise a wolf with... wings, near her as well. His uncle turned to look at him and his face lit up and he actually smiled. Gods, something had changed his uncle! He cast his gaze down to the pups. "Are these yours?" He asked, eager to learn if he had new cousins. Walk, "Talk", Think

she did not really expect anyone to approach her yet. she understood some wolves may be a bit... nervous of her presence. Willoughby did not belong to any pack, not this one or any other, and therefore she wasn't a known affiliate. but the woman did not seem to care. she remained respectful and where she was, her crimson gaze flickering as another approached. flashing the other female a warm smile, she would launch into conversation easily enough.

"oh my, yes" Bee would chirp, giggling fondly. the plains were flat and wide enough to house many wolves, but also the natural light the evening gave off would be wonderful indeed. the moon would hang so nicely in the sky and bask the Dancefloor with its blessing. she wondered if the moon goddess was smiling down at them at the same time. "it's such a perfect night for some fun." the woman added in.

twisting her head to get a better look at the other wolf, Bee smiled. "I'm Willoughby. who are you?"

"Speech"
2/3 navigation
ooc; hope its okay for a loner to show up!

the trek hadn't been that long, but already Thaddeus was feeling the exertion. it wasn't that long ago he was bedridden and unable to open his eyes. but he still followed after the rest of the Olympian folk, not really part of their pack but also not-not affiliated with them. their healer had patched him up and kept him on their land while he recovered after all. he marched away from the other pure-bloods and Olympians to do his own thing. there was food and drink offered but he hung back at the edge of the crowd. though his stomach twisted uneasily with thoughts of filling it, the saliva came all the same. grumbled to himself, he sat down against the tall grasses and waited. for what, he wasn't exactly sure. he didn't want to talk to people and he didn't want to be alone. life was complicated. his thoughts even more so. Thad tried to appear lofty and confident, his chest sticking out proudly and looking like he knew what the hell to do. "ooc; let's get underage drinking and make some BAAAAD decisions!"

Chrysanthos tagged along after the rest of the Olympia crew on their way to Valhalla's autumn festival. Bolla had been particularly interested when she noticed the messengers were other lemurs. Chrys was dallying behind as he stopped to collect this and that. He couldn't help himself sometimes. By the time he arrived there was already a large crowd gathered. He dipped his head in greeting to anyone that made eye contact, pausing for a moment to take in the form of the Valhallan alphess who had called the festival together. He spied Thaddeus on the outskirts of the group and trotted over to him. "Hey Thaddeus, is this your first festival?" There seemed to be so many first for the man.

Curiosity was what had driven Jupiter to attend Celestial's festival. He'd recognized the voice of the woman who called it to order and simply had to come investigate. How long had it been since that time in the caves? It felt like an eternity. So much had happened since then. He stopped on the fringe of the gathering and looked in. Almost immediately his gaze was drawn to the glittering Aurielle. She was all grown up now and all youthful roundness had left her form. Jupiter took a moment to study her, trying to reconcile his fuzzy memory of her with what he was seeing now. She was pretty in a wholesome kind of way; all dolled up, proper and perhaps a touch alien when compared to the rugged and tough women he was used to seeing. She was in conversation but perhaps later when the mob receded and the festivities were solidly underway her would say hi. "Jupiter"   "Amadeus" ”You”

Red had come ready for the festival, packing in with him the few things he'd been able to craft in the short time he'd been here. A few sets of leather bracers, a few sizes of peytrals, two styles of chaffron with one still unfinished, all heavily decorated and wrapped up in softly tanned hides with intricately carved pieces of jewelry made from the tusks and teeth of a boar. It had taken a great deal of effort to acquire the resources and craft each item, but he felt the effort was worth it. Each piece showed his skill in crafting, and even if none sold Boreas' wolves would see his ability, and his reputation as a craftsman would build.

That much weight in furs, scrimshaw, and boiled leather wasn't a treat to carry, though, and he sank gratefully to his haunches when he reached the area Aurielle was greeting festival-goers. He didn't shrug out of the makeshift straps holding his handiworks to his back, though, despite the way that they weighed him down and rubbed against his shoulders and chest. It was easier to put up with it now than to need to put it all back together to carry it to someplace to display them.

He chuckled a little at seeing Aurielle surrounded by a horde of pups, and the reaction of the little winged wolf at seeing her. Wings were unusual, even in Red's homeland, so the little wolf certainly drew attention. Red grinned indulgently at his ingenuous greeting towards the Valhallan alpha. He didn't try to approach for a greeting of his own, however. Aurielle was already busy enough, and he had more to talk with her about than could be conveyed in a quick moment between visitors arriving. There would be time enough for that tomorrow, when things had calmed.