Ardyn Cadeyrn Aodhán Phoenix Adravendi

He’d come here to harvest willow fronds and canes, planning one weaving baskets – both for fishing and gathering other food-stuffs – and to consider the course for the seasons ahead. Winter would be there before they knew it, and it was imperative to be well-stocked, both in food and firewood. It was dark, and stormy, with pelting rain and wind sending the willows to hissing and swaying, but his cloak kept the majority of his body dry. His tail was dripping, and the drips water sliding through his wet hair left trails of fire in their wake as they triggered the bioluminescence in his coat. He ignored the weather, letting the sounds slide to one side in his mind and listening for other sounds as he snipped his way through a bough, taking only enough for what he needed without affecting the tree’s appearance or health. Lyr sheltered in one of the trees, glowing black and white plumage sticking out in rain slick spikes. The raven, as loyal as he was, made no complaints about the weather or hour, keeping watch while his near-life-long friend worked, then croaked softly in alert. Ardyn coiled the newest frond and added it to the bundle, listening over the sounds of the night-time storm for the figure Lyr had spotted, glowing-masked features remaining unworried. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Labhair an Sean-Teanga." ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Eligos wasn't particularly pleased to be wet, his fur plastered against his slender form with a sullen glow against the blackness, but he had grown up in a land where the winter was essentially one long chilly rain so there was a strange sort of nostalgia in the fall rain. Still, he was glad enough to see the willows whose overhanging boughs would provide at least a modicum of relief from the rain despite their denuded foliage. He wasn't as pleased about the sight of someone already occupying the area, but beggers couldn't be choosers. He crossed the remaining yards, pausing to shake off as much of the water he could before stepping up under the semi sheltering branches, eying the cloaked figure as he did.

Ardyn Cadeyrn Aodhán Phoenix Adravendi

The horns hadn’t been there, and he was pretty sure the man hadn’t glowed or been so large last he’d seen him during that raid, staggering off with blood dripping from under his helmet, but the pattern of the markings’ glow was familiar as the sodden form of Aerie’s alpha slipped into the shelter. But, come to think of it, he had noticed the new features at that gathering to discuss the Long Night with the other alphas... But Eligos had hung back, mostly out of sight, so the change hadn't really settled in the young King's memory-- there'd been a lot on everyone's mind, in all fairness. He’d not missed the stale scent of the neighboring leader on Aerie’s borders each time he’d casually taken a sniff to keep tabs. Well, it was good to know the man was still alive and the Long Dark hadn’t claimed another known wolf. Ardyn’s features settled into a cordial smile as he greeted the man, tone warm, if not overly friendly—from what his mother had said, Eligos wasn’t one for overtures of friendship beyond respect. “Evening, Eligos.” He didn’t press further on the man, keeping his distance as he settled a way off to start weaving the first fishing basket, number digits deftly founding the tight node of the basket that would keep the fish from escaping out the front once it was in. It was times like these the markings on his face were a help, shedding enough light to do the work by. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Labhair an Sean-Teanga." ---- "Hear" ---- Think

He had been fully prepared to give the stranger his space and to sit in silence as they waited out the rain and to not interrupt the stranger's work, but the voice that issued from the cloak was a somewhat familiar one. It took a moment to place it, changed as it was in timbre and depth as the speaker had grown up. "Evening, Ardyn," he returned gravely. "I hope I am not disturbing your work." He could see more clearly now by the strange light what the male was working on, though he couldn't see yet what it was intended to be. He should have guessed the male's identity just by the dexterous way he wove the willow fronds - there weren't many who bore that peculiar mutation of the paws that allowed such agility. A beat longer and he realized that the light was issuing not from some odd lantern or foxfire as he had initially assumed, but from glowing markings that masked the other male's face, markings that had not been there last they'd met. You would think he wouldn't be so surprised by markings and mutations appearing unexpectedly on someone later in life, considering his own changed appearance, but the phenomenon did not cease to cause him a certain religious interest just because of the repetitive nature of it, and he obliquely studied the male's face with renewed interest.

Ardyn Cadeyrn Aodhán Phoenix Adravendi

A flash of a smile touched Ardyn’s features as he shook his head, fur sparking within the hood of his cloak. “Not in the slightest. I’m making a fish trap.” He raised the basket to indicate it as he wove another frond into place, slanting a glance to the older alpha with consideration. The man was studying him with curiosity, and he didn’t really have to guess why. Eligos had met him prior to his markings coming in, and he tipped his head in acknowledgement. “Apparently growing up into adulthood came with some changes.” He regarded the fishing basket thoughtfully as another willow bough was worked into the vertical fronds. Would wrapping some of his hairs around the frame help it stay lit so he could see it? The glow didn’t last more than an hour after the hair was plucked, but still.. He tucked the consideration aside for the time being. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Labhair an Sean-Teanga." ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Eligos gave a tired chuckle. "Yes, these changes have a way of sneaking up on someone." He tilted his head to the side thoughtfully. "Did anything... unusual seem to trigger it? Or is this something that runs in your family, perhaps? I seem to remember something about your mother's own appearance changing at some point." The timing was right for it to have been triggered by the most recent tragedy that had also taken his niece, but his own hadn't been so he was interested in finding a common denominator if there was one. Knowing wouldn't be of any particular strategic advantage, but he had a curiosity that drove him to know everything even if he rarely displayed it so openly on a subject that had no real value.

Ardyn Cadeyrn Aodhán Phoenix Adravendi

Surprisingly, his words drew a chuckle from the man, and a faint smile twitched his features as he nodded in agreement. His own head tilted within his hood, flame flaring like a contained halo against the fabric at the question, pondering. “Mom’s not sure what triggered her change. All she knows is her hide started itching incessantly, and then her coat began falling out and what grew back just about blinded her when she first looked at it in the dark. It was most common in places she’d been injured or had her fur yanked out in fights. And she hadn’t even noticed the marking until my Da pointed it out.” His digits, having paused in their deft weave of fronds, returned to work as he shrugged, continuing, “I was born with the glowing coat, among other things… but I’m not sure what caused the new markings… it might just run in the family now. I guess I’ll just have to see once I sire some children.” Oh how confident he sounded that he’d be doing that; internally, he wasn’t sure if it would happen so soon. It wasn’t like he had a drowning tide of fan-girls dreaming of his choosing one of them. The thought was a little ridiculous, and he snorted softly to himself, head shaking in amusement. He studied the basket, almost complete, and nodded to himself in approval. A few more twists and he finished the last row and tied off the front, then reached into his pouches for a hook and tied it on, attaching a strip of jerky to it and giving it a last lookover. “Now that the insanity of the long night’s over – at least for now, who knows if it’ll come back – will we be seeing a Raid from Aerie?” His teeth glinted in a grin as his brows arched at Eligos, a hint of challeng in his eyes. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Labhair an Sean-Teanga." ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Eligos hummed thoughtfully at Ardyn's explanation. It would be interesting to see if these changes that cropped upmummaturally in adulthood would be passed to children. Ardyn's glowing coat seemed to have been passed to him, and the late-appearin marking. Would his own witch-cursed differences be passed on as well? It was an interesting question and, since he was obliged to eventually sire children of his own, one that would be answered... Eventually. Well... Perhaps not, considering. That was a pity

Eligos sighed as the boy brought up a sore spot that had been bothering him for some time - the promised raid on Valhalla. It had been one thing after another since he had taken that contract... His brother's death, the witch's curse, the Long Night. They had only managed to fulfi half of it I'm the lull between the curse and the Long Night. It bothered him to leave a Contract unfulfilled, but would he ever be able to see if come to fruition? He could not lead his pack in a raid when he couldn't set foot in pack lands. But he didn't much feel up to talking about what had happened, particularly to a virtual stranger and essentially a rival, so he merely nodded. "I will see to it that the Contract is fulfilled," he assured the other alpha, though he didn't know how. Maybe he would tell Deus to lead the raid after his death - the boy craved responsibility.