when does the pillaging begin?

Getting the lay of the land had been an awful pain in the ass. Viðarr was certain of that much. The resistance of the sand on his joints, his knees especially? Nope. Nu-uh. Do not sign him up for this shit ever again, because it was fucking exhausting. The landscape was nearly as harsh and barren as the winter plains, without the added benefit of the snow and all the creatures that burrowed within it. No, this was just sand. What had Celeste been thinking, settling within the Oasis? Well, it was a position that happened to be easy to defend, protected on three sides and the desert before the fourth was a good deterrent for any possible invaders. That, and they were sure to see anyone who even considered approaching at a distance... but still. Viðarr hated the desert on principal.

The sun warm (too warm) on his back, he considered turning back toward home for the day. Sighing and gazing to Månsken where she flew high above, he weighed his options. Better not to go out much farther, but had he really covered all that much ground? This sucked. Grumpy, wrapped up in his own thoughts, and then... and then?

A call came on the wind, one that the shadow knew well. "What the fuck," Viðarr spoke to himself, lifting his head to scent the desert breeze. A call resonated from his chest in return, as loud as he could muster. That was family. That was one of his own. Thyri... how did she find him? How did she know? Without a second thought, the shadow took off in the direction the call had come.

At a distance, he could see the dark figure coming together. Dark and pale in equal measure, though he hadn't seen her since she was a child herself. "You found me," his tone was incredulous. Surprised. She'd managed to find him. There was relief in his gaze as the shadow took her in, finding no visible damage at least at this distance. He drew in, ever closer, tail wagging at his haunches as he did. "And you're all grown up now," warmth. All the warmth in the shadow, it sprung forth from his chest.

"Viðarr"