It felt like between all the drama with Ethne, the raids, managing the livestock and trying to keep track of the kids that Modesty hadn't stopped for days. She needed to talk to Gilgamesh about their plans, what they wanted from their pack in terms of expansion, but the Autumn sun was so nice on her belly as she wriggled through the sand, her antlers digging out their own little rut so her head could rest back comfortably, throat exposed. She snorted happily, allowing her eyes to drift closed for just a moment.

She had sent her rabbit to fetch Gilgamesh, it wasn't anything urgent, she just wanted a bit of clarity, until then, she would take this rare opportunity to rest, and soak up the rays while they lasted.

“Speech.”

Gil had been busy with his own chores that the appearance of Modesty's rabbit surprised him. Looking down at the rodent, he lifts a brow before it takes off, motioning him to follow. Whether it was important or not, Mod wouldn't be fetching him for nothing. It honestly pleased him to know that she was calling for him at all. Maybe it would be a step in the right direction. Or it was all business, no fun. The thoughts rolled around in his noggin as he made his way across the isle to where Modesty lay, basking in the sand. A smile warms his lips as he approaches her. Coming to stand near her head so that he wouldn't be blocking any of her precious sunlight, he lowers his muzzle down so that he can playfully lick her chin for a moment. "You requested my presence?" Gil asks, turning his chin downward slightly so that he can get a look at the rest of her face.

Modesty grumbles at the lick to her chin but it isn't an angry sound, instead she rakes her teeth playfully through the fur where his neck met his chest, humming thoughtfully when he queried her summons. "I don't recall that... must have changed my mind..." she muttered teasingly before stretching and rolling to her stomach, rear legs splayed to the side, elbows pushing her upper body to regard her not husband from the right way up. A shower of sand was flung about in the process, but sand in her fur was nothing new. She lived on a damn island. Autumn was her favourite and least favourite time of the year all at once, but she was sure Gil had higher hopes for the season than she did.

"I actually wanted to discuss our next move. I've been out." She'd seen Erish checking in on her so she was sure this wasn't news to Gilgamesh. "There's a river, just north of the shrine, it has an orchard and runs deep and fast enough to be a natural barrier to the north." Others had voiced their interest in the Gulley but Modesty wasn't sold on the idea. It would mean shifting their attention away from the beach and focusing their attention to the north of Dove Island, but it was within reach by her approximation. If they gathered enough resources, they might not even have to give up their Islands. "Of course, the Gulley has it's advantages, as do the Plains, but with an orchard we could brew up something unique, and anything we don't use could go to feeding the livestock." She shrugged, leaving the floor open for Gilgamesh to weigh in.

"speech"

Gil is glad that his sign of affection isn't met with anger, but a return sign of her teeth raking through his fur. A sound of his own chest grumbling in a pleased manner releases as he steps back to give her room to roll over. He shakes his head lightly, a smile playing on his lips at her words. Yeah, sure she did. Once she's upright and he's unshielded himself from the flying sand that comes off her coat, Gil sits in a lazy fashion, ready to chat about whatever it is that she needed to get off her chest. Of course he had been keeping tabs. What with Modesty leaving the isle more frequently, he needed to ensure that nothing malicious would come of his not-wife. Fuck, he really needed to fix that wrong eventually, right? Or was it too far gone by now? Anyway, he listens intently, eyes on her, ears forward, giving all the cues that he's paying attention. Modesty makes good points, he even agrees with a nod of his head. This was why he had made her Queen, remember? "It makes sense. We need something to use as leverage. A natural barrier is a plus too," Gil thinks on it some more, a hum in his throat. "And what of the other lands? Does the Gulley not have a natural orchard? I'm certain the plains don't, not from what I've seen," he cants his head lightly, regarding Modesty with curiosity.

When Gil queried if the Gulley had an orchard she shook her head. "There are plenty of healing supplies, but not much else." And really, it was right next door effectively. "The plains would give us the opportunity to expand our grazing flocks, and potentially plant an orchard of our own, but with one right there within reach, would it be worth the effort? We can maintain our position on both islands, but we would have to give up obsidian beach." She'd stopped by to check out Sakana's map this morning, and they really had three options worth exploring. "The only question would be whether we divert our attention to the swamplands, another natural barrier if you don't know your way, an abundance of healing herbs also. It's often quite foggy which offers another layer of protection were someone to raid from that direction, though they could use it to try and cover their approach. It's not the most pleasant of environments, but it has its advantages. Another option, and my least preferred, would be to encompass the shrine." Her tone was conflicted, and she stretched her paws out in the sand considering her words carefully.

"While I do have an emotional connection to the shrine, beyond the birch there is not so much it has to offer in the way of resources, which leaves me reluctant to suggest it as a viable option. While the river would run as a barrier to the west and the north, it is just another stepping stone to the orchard." She used a nail to sketch out the borders in the sand in front of her, "The swamp, however, is on the other side," It would have the river as a barrier between the islands and their outer territory and she pointed at her sketch to illustrate her point. She took a deep breath and then added the tall grass plain, "but if we move our interest to the tall grass plain, we can then expand into Rio Grande from the north-western edge. It would almost encompass the Shrine by default unless others approach from the west. There is good hunting, good grazing..." Not that the raiders had any intention of becoming farmers, but it might encourage some with those sort of aspirations to come and join them, and help keep their fighters fed and supplied. After all, they'd also need somewhere to put all their raided supplies when they won and ferrying them out to the island could be a pain.

"speech"

His ears press forward to listen to Modesty's advice. She really was a good scout and had obviously done her research. Definitely more than he would have ever done to begin with. Turning his gaze down toward the sand where she sketches the boundaries, he watches intently, listening to her explanation. Once she finishes, Gil lets out a thoughtful noise. From what it sounds like, Daager Isle and the archipelago really were just... annoyances in the grand scheme of things. While having a private island to keep all of their stuff safe, it didn't make sense if they were to grow larger. Which inevitably was the plan, right? Be the largest reigning pack in all of Boreas? It was a grand idea, but that meant they would need better lands, better plans. "I think we should scout some more. The more you bring this to my attention, the more I realize that we potentially may need to give up the isle," Gil continues to look at Modesty's map, contemplating. "I like your idea of The Rio Grande. It's a great place and so is Tall Grass Plains. But to get there, we would need... to potentially take the shrine in the meantime. What if move from the isle further toward the north? Take the forest and maybe even the knolls with all that buffalo? It would put us more central to all of Boreas so that could leave us too open for attacks, but surely..." Gil pauses, looking up to Modesty with a grin. "What if we took Avalon's lands? That Orchard would be exactly what we need if you want fruit," he waits with bated breath to see what she thinks.

Modesty hadn't expected him to be so open to leaving the islands. It certainly had its uses in taking the heat off them with the leadership change, if she continued to reach out and put the other leaders at ease, it might help to make a move to the mainland more palatable to the other packs. Her head tipped at the mention of the knolls and she drew out a line to the east, "It would put us border to border with Heiðinn, I recently met with their leader, I said we'd come visit before winter, nobody wants to raid a mountain in the winter. He seemed favourable to the idea, we upped the stakes by a barrel of our best to one of theirs."

She then marked out the regions Deluge had let her know of other packs. "Deluge mentioned a pack over this way led by a purple woman, Avacyn? Let her out of freezing herself to death when she tried to swim from Ardens Glacies to Alias Island, I've yet to call on them." The other she drew a question mark over to the south of the first, "I feel like these ones have some relation to the Armada, I will ask Dread when they get back from their little errand."

She also marked out an area just north of the battlefield, "Not to mention the Armada is right there, handy for Jael and Kenway if they want to sell their wares at the markets, but a great temptation..." she teased her not-husband with a knowing smile.

It did set her to sighing though, perhaps it was all a bit crowded to consider branching so far out. Pehaps the fern gulley was their best shot, and they'd only be reaching out towards Ashen, where her Uncle now ruled. "Perhaps it is worth considering looking to the west?" Perhaps the reason there was space out that way was because it was a barren wasteland, "The goats came from the moor, I'm sure they'd cope just fine going back, but we would be very close to Uncle Chi."

As for absorbing Avalon, Modesty perked up a little, it certainly would make things a little less crowded... "I thought you liked their leader," she teased Gil with a pout and then a smirk. "I don't doubt you are capable, but how do you want to go about it? Excuse me Miss, I've come to claim your orchard?" It was a risky move to make, but they were farmers, and the Raiders needed capable, industrious hands. She was interested to hear what Gil had in mind.

"speech"

Fortunately for Modesty, Gil is full of surprises. Leave the islands? Only for her. Simp much, dude? Eh, he doesn't care. He needs to right is wrong and this was the way to do it. Say yes to all of her whims and fancies until he's back on her good side. It was a fool proof plan, right? RIGHT? Fuck it, he would work with what he's got. Her mentioning Heidinn makes his curious though. His eyes light a bit, narrowing slightly. When had she gone over there and spoken to the shadowed King? No, he wouldn't stir the pot. Instead, he nods, agreeing to her offering of a barrel of their finest slog. Looking back down to her sand map that she draws lines across, he watches and hums under his breath. Elysium? Was Manea no longer their Matriarch? Interesting to find out as well, but unsurprising. Change was inevitable. "Probably no hurry with them. They seem rather reclusive," Gil mutters, completely ignoring her comment about the Armada. Who the fuck wanted anything to do with that useless pack anyway? But she brings it back up and he gives his head a light shake. "You do enjoy tempting me, don't you?" Gil teases back, sticking his tongue out in her direction until she's sighing. Were his suggestions not good enough so far? A brow raises, he studies her carefully. "The west? Toward Insomnia?" No, Ashen. Ah, still unsurprised. Ashen would always be home for Modesty that much he knew. The pack would always hold a soft spot in the woman's wretched heart. "Hm, if your uncle wouldn't mind," Gil says carefully, thinking it over, not considering it a bad idea. As they circle back around to the idea of sieging Avalon, Gil's smile brightens. "Corbie is pleasant 'nough, but I get the feelin' she's a tad weak. Don't think it would be too hard to knock on her door, but then again, going west might be ideal," he looks back down at her map and considers their locations. Would the west be better than a central location?

Things had an easiness about them that had been sorely missed during her illness and the subsequent fallout. Modesty found her laughter felt genuine, their gentle teasing lacked the harsh edges she had grown accustomed to. Why that should be the standard interaction in their own home, she had done some soul searching and decided to let it go for now. He seemed to have learned a lesson (that didn't mean she wasn't above pulling it out like a knife to give him a stab in the future, she wasn't a saint), but for now, he had earned a little softness from her. "Sounds like an excuse for a holiday," She arched a brow, not forgetting the season that was upon them. She had a feeling her season was close, and they'd have to get a wiggle on if they expected anything to stick.

"speech"