This place was.. breathtaking. Before her stood a vast expanse of sand, stretching as far as the eye could see. Only it wasn't just sand. It seemed to glimmer a thousand different colors as she moved closer, shifting and tumbling before her very eyes. Ásvor had never seen anything like it before in her life thus far. She'd never been so far south, either. She'd been born far north of here, and she'd spent much of her life there too. Only recently had she begun to venture further and further from the lands she had grown familiar with, and thus she found herself here. She remembered a story that her mother had told her, once, of a bridge bursting with color that separated the realm of the gods to the world she lived in. Perhaps Runa might have some insight into the tale - and though she knew this was not such a bridge it felt eerily similar. Something was quite incorporeal about this place, at the very least. Curious, she pressed on. The sand felt the same as any sand beneath the pads of her paws, and as she moved toward the sand seemed to shift back to a pale white. At least the ground beneath her was, though as she lifted her head to eye the strip of sand that lay beyond her it continued to sparkle It was impossible to ignore how lovely it was. She continued on, padding across the long stretch of sand, noting that she was now fully surrounded by water on each side. Slowly the colors grew less and less vibrant as she neared the other side of the sand bridge. The sand slowly shifted to solid ground, though as she made it to Auster she turned to watch the colors glimmer once again as the rays of sun beat down on the sand.

The gods had been silent to her as of late. Her dreams were dark and void of any meaning and she feared that her gift had left her. Either that or she had done something to earn the gods displeasure but she did not know what that could be. She did not consider herself a warrior but had she not fought valiantly agains the mad wolf that had attached her? Had she not torn his flesh and left him in a defeated pile? Helpless against the jaws of the earless woman? Above her Branwen and Balthazaar were flying in their usual pattern, forward and back, spiraling, dancing in the sky above her. Balthazaar occasionally quipping at the slowness of the ground travelers. She ignored him, blue eyes intent on the path before her. "Naudir, Naudir look!" She lifted her head to gaze at Branwen as the pale raven landed on her shoulders and she gazed out at the land in front of her, her breath sucking in sharply. The Bifröst. She hesitated as she approached, fearful of taking a step upon a path she wasn't sure a mortal should be stepping on but then ahead she saw a familiar pelt and her eyes widened. Ásvor! She raced out across the sand, sending a spray of sand shimmering into the air like a kaleidoscope. "Ásvor! I can't believe it's you! I haven't seen anyone in so long, what are you doing here?" "Talk"

It was rare that Asvor spent much time reflecting on the beauty of the world. Such was the life of a rogue, though. All work and little play. She reveled in the brief moment of bliss, enjoying the unique scenery as she took in the scents of the salt-infused air. While these moments were rare for her, she enjoyed them -- she'd never seen a place with such a subtle touch of beauty. She was so briefly engrossed in what she was watching that she hardly noticed anyone approaching her. Only the soft flapping of two pairs of wings alerted her that anyone was nearby, though she noticed the birds before her sister. Her head tilted to the clear blue sky, eyes following the two creatures briefly. Once she heard a familiar voice she spun around, a smile instantly forming on her features at the sight of her sister. She hadn't seen her in a long time, since they were little more than children, and her joy was visible and instantaneous. "Naudir!" The girl returned her sister's greeting with one of her own, her head dipping toward the ground. Amusement danced in her crimson gaze as she eyed the raven sitting upon Naudir's shoulder, a companion she had yet to meet. Slowly her tail waved behind her, betraying her pleasure without hesitation. "I.. grew bored of the north some time ago,"  she admitted, with a hint of sadness to her voice. "It didn't feel quite the same without Yfir." The pack was synonymous with her family; she felt they would always be considered Yfir when they were together, even if they no longer were a true pack.  "And I decided to venture far from what I knew. What about you, sister? Has life been treating you well?"

Naudir loped over to her sister, reaching out to nuzzle the other in greeting. Balthazaar landed down by her feet and she nearly stepped on him in her eagerness to reach her sister. The bird fluffed up in irritation but Branwen was beside him in a moment, smoothing out the feathers gently and soothing his easily injured ego. Naudir had little thought to spare for her companions in the moment of being reunited with one of her siblings. Ásvor spoke, stating she'd grown bored of the north. Naudir supposed she could understand that. She'd taken to wandering herself and she'd been all over the continent though she still felt as though she'd barely scratched the surface. It didn't feel quite the same without Yfir. Naudir noted the sadness in her sisters voice and nodded her head slowly in agreement. Nothing felt right without Yfir. She deeply missed having a home, having a place to settle. "I agree, I miss our pack and I hope the rest of our family is well but I haven't run into any other Yfirians lately. I suppose life has been treating me well. I am alive and reasonably fed and my journeys have taken me to such wonders. There was a rather… unfortunate incident with a starving male but I am proud to say that he was swiftly disposed of for his folly. I've been thinking of settling up in the north, maybe in our old packlands just so that I have some place to call home and a place to store herbs and various items. I… I don't suppose you've run into anyone from Yfir have you?" "Talk"

Asvor resisted a snort at watching Naudir nearly trample her companion, amusement dancing in her eyes at the birds she hadn't yet to meet. Briefly she wondered if she would ever come across such a friend -- she remembered her uncle Kapra's snake, who burrowed in his fur, often hidden completely from sight. Her joy at seeing her sister was readily apparent; the mask she wore so often and so carefully around others was cast aside with ease. "I haven't seen anyone either," she mused a bit sadly, at the comment that she hadn't seen their family. She had no doubt that they were alive and well, knowing the gods would have shown her otherwise, and given her some sign to aid them if needed. "But I'm glad to hear you are well." Was.. Naudir implying she had killed someone? A wicked smile teased her lips at the thought of her sister defending herself. Not all knew, it seemed, of the Finnvi bloodline... they were strong wolves, fierce wolves, and not wolves to be reckoned with. "I wouldn't be opposed to joining you in the north," she admitted after a moment, not sure if Naudir was implying that she wanted her to join her or not. Asvor wouldn't take offense if she preferred to be alone.   "You've... been studying herbs as well? I've been trying to learn as much as possible since I've been on my own." Interest shone in her eyes. Now, studying with her sister and exchanging knowledge was far better than how she'd been going about things with strangers. It would definitely be more fruitful to do it with Naudir.

Branwen spread her wings and flew atop Naudir's head, the wolf shifting her stance immediately to provide support for her companion. "Balthazaar and I have been scouting but we haven't had much luck I'm afraid. I am glad to see you're well Ásvor." Balthazaar ignored them and took to preening his feathers muttering lightly about the follies of land-dwelling creatures. Naudir paid him no heed. He'd been in a foul mood for much of the day. She grinned. "Yes, after we've finished exploring this place we should head north while the weather is good. Oh! You're studying herbs? I'm so sorry, I'd forgotten. I've been trying but…" she shrugged. "Honestly, I'm hopeless at it. I've had better luck studying the stars and the weather. Without a teacher I'm afraid to experiment with the herbs myself and so I can learn nothing of them. The gods have been strangely silent to me in this area but I bet they would bestow this knowledge upon Runa if we can find her. What herbs have you been learning about?" "Talk"

Ásvor found herself grinning at Naudir's companions, looking the birds over thoroughly. She imagined they would be quite handy to have as friends, giving her sister the ability to scout ahead and figure out a path further that she would be able to on her own.   "I like your... friends, Naudi," she commented, blue eyes glimmering with amusement as she tried to figure out what word to use to describe them. Friends seemed a decent enough descriptor, and she wasn't sure how much she wanted to aggravate them; their beaks looked quite sharp and she decided she wouldn't want to make enemies of either of them. "Let's do it, then," she agreed, her grin broadening. Searching for their siblings sounded like a lovely plan, and she felt her heart fill with hope at the prospect. Surely they hadn't gone too far, right? It was hard to imagine any of them leaving this continent entirely. Reflecting on it, her brows furrowed a bit, though excitement shone clearly in her gaze. Hearing that Naudir had been studying herbs, or at least that she was trying, lifted her spirits. She would happily share what little knowledge she had gained with her sister. "I know the feeling," she sighed, easily admitting her lack of knowledge to Naudir, something that she usually preferred to keep from others. It was safer to pretend she was more skilled than she really was, usually. "It's hard to find anyone willing to give out much training for free. Maybe we could take some healer captive; that'd certainly make things easier for us." Her tone was tinged with playfulness, but truthfully it wasn't such a terrible idea, if they found the right wolf. "Studying the stars sounds neat too, though." Maybe less practical, but maybe not to. She thought back to the wolf she had met that had made some observations about the weather, and decided maybe it was a useful thing to study after all. "I've learned quite a bit about an herb called salvia. Gives you hallucinations if you take too much, apparently." Though interested in its effects, and wondering briefly if they might resemble the sort of visions Runa had, she had yet to try them herself. Experimenting on herself sounded a bit dangerous, and she wished she had someone else to test them on first.

Naudir blinked for a moment as Ásvor mentioned her friends before she realized she was talking about the ravens. She giggled. "You don't recognize them? It's Balthazaar and Branwen! They were Inga's companions but she passed them onto me. They are my eyes in the sky." Balthazaar hopped over to Ásvor with a chuckle. "I don't blame you for not recognizing us, we're getting quite old. I keep thinking we shall pass soon into the next world but it would seem the gods wish us to look after you whelps awhile longer." Naudir scoffed. "Oh come now, we're almost grown!" Actually in many ways they were grown now. Branwen settled herself inbetween Naudir's shoulder blades. "It is nice to have the group back together." Naudir nodded and with the plans to journey north settled she felt like she was finally getting her feet back under her. She grinned mischievously at her sister as she mentioned abducting a healer. "You know that's not a bad idea, though we'd have to be very careful or they could try to poison us or teach us herbs that would harm our pack. Perhaps we can run the idea by mother… if we find her…" "Talk"

'You don't recognize them?' Her face scrunched up slightly as her eyes narrowed, getting a better look at them. Truthfully it was hard to tell creatures that weren't wolves apart for her, especially ones with similar features. But after a moment of examination and reflection she realized Naudir was right, and she found herself smirking. "You're right! I don't think I looked at them much when I was younger," Ásvor commented, amusement bubbling forth in her voice at the sudden realization. "They reminded me of food, I think, and I wasn't sure Inga would appreciate me making a snack of her friends. Though it seems they're far more useful than that for you." Having friends to scout ahead, far faster than Naudir could, sounded like quite the tool to have around. She eyed Bathazaar as he hopped toward her, letting out a soft chuckle. She felt an infinite weight fall from her shoulders at the easy way she and Naudir bantered. "We just have to make sure they're someone without any friends or family that'd come looking for them, and certainly not a pack wolf," Ásvor decided, briefly considering the idea. It was an amusing idea to entertain, even if it never came to fruition. "Or maybe we could trade the services of your friends for some herb lessons. They scout out some prey for someone and in turn, they give us some of their knowledge." Between the two of them, and hopefully more of their family, they could start building a cache of knowledge quickly enough. She even found the idea of having a pack to call home again creeping into her head, finding solace in the possibility of their whole family being together again as in their younger days.

Naudir watched with amusement as her sister's face scrunched up staring at the birds.  Balthazaar let out a cackling laugh and Branwen shook her head.  "Just ignore him, it's been awhile."  Finally recognition came bubbling to the surface and as Ásvor made the comment about them looking like food Balthazaar puffed up, his feathers ruffling in indignation. "Food!  Why you wee brat!  I outta-"  "Silence yourself Balthazaar", Branwen crooned, "that is what you ought to do."  Naudir chuckled and nodded. "They are very useful, tremendous help at gauging the weather and scouting ahead.  I'd be quite cross if you harmed them."  Naudir didn't care much for fighting but it didn't mean she lacked the capability.  All of Katja's children were trained early for battle but she knew her sister wouldn't harm them now that she knew. She nodded at her sisters words, feeling a rush of excitement even though they were really just kicking around ideas.  Naudir had no intention of acting on anything discussed until she'd had a chance to look for their mother.  She grinned though at Ásvor's clever idea and she glanced over at her companions.  "Now that's a thought!"   Branwen nodded eagerly and Balthazaar scoffed. "After she called us food?  I don't think so!"  Branwen reached over and plucked lightly at one of his feathers.  "Nonsense Balthazaar!  We'd be helping them hunt!  Wolves and ravens have had this relationship for ages.  Once the wolves are done feasting then there will be plenty left for us I'm sure." Naudir nodded.   "Sounds good to me.  Let's head north and if we run into anyone we'll give your deal making a shot, sister!" -exit to the north?- "Talk"

ooc: let me know if you have anyone in mind for healing lessons. I could volunteer Lydia for this if you want. She's my most knowledgable. Dómari is really just starting out so I'm not sure how much help he'd be.

Ásvor found herself erupting with soft giggles again at the birds’ antics; one was more understanding of her mistake, while the other seemed rather agitated, and she found herself feeling a sudden burst of fondness for the strange creatures that Naudir had taken as friends. If they were good to her sister, Ásvor would be okay with them being around. She wouldn’t dream of hurting one of Naudir’s friends - not unless they hurt her first. Then she’d had few qualms with it. ”I suppose I will learn to tolerate them, though this one’s attitude could use some adjusting,” she gestured toward Balthazaar with a sly grin. Naudir was on board with her own train of thought, which lifted her spirits tremendously. There was little greater than being reunited with family, and the possibility of seeking out their other siblings, well.. She could ask for nothing better. And she was growing fonder of Branwen by the minute, who certainly seemed to be the more reasonable of the pair of them. Ásvor fought the urge to roll her eyes at their bickering. It was an advantageous relationship that the ravens had with Naudir, and with the addition of Ásvor to their group they could only feast on larger prey. They would be stronger together, even if Balthazaar didn’t particularly like his companion’s sister. It mattered little to her. ”Sounds like a plan, sister,” her grin returned full-force as they two started in the general direction of the north, eager for what awaited them there. -exit both of them via. traveling to the North!-