Worth It
This was one of those big choices she usually would have liked to have put on someone else. But she was determined to be one hundred percent independent now, and from now on. So she was going to start climbing. Clenching her jaw a bit in resolution for the choice she had made, Solveiga started the long walk uphill. It was a difficult and occasionally treacherous journey, but not one that she couldn't handle. Her body was capable of nearly anything; it was her mind she had to convince. That was the mantra she was going to live by as she trekked through this crazy fjord. She would make it to flat and stable land soon enough.
After all, it was either this or the briars to the west. And Solveiga was not in the mood to get a bunch of thorns in her paws. Again.
Finally, though, she made it to the other side. She kept tight to the edge of the cliffside, but not too tight for fear of tripping and causing exactly the injuries she sought to avoid. As she neared sea again, the sounds of struggle reached her ears. She paused, listening. Ok, perhaps not a struggle necessarily, but someone was definitely climbing. Nati stood a moment, debating. She could keep walking, stay true to her course and avoid the stranger. But curiosity always got the better of her, and today was no exception.
With careful steps, Nati moved to peer over the edge. A ways down and over, a smaller female was making the trek. Her eyebrows raised in interest as she watched the female move with determined steps. "You must be crazy," she barked somewhat loudly, not wanting to startle the other female but certainly looking to get her attention.
She looked all around, the shape of the land causing the voice to bounce in a way that made her unsure of exactly where it was coming from. But eventually she saw the source, another female perched a ways above her. She laughed lightly, trying to hide the fact that she was a little out of breath from climbing this far already. "Definitely a possibility," she called back, in response to the comment about her being crazy. But how had the other female gotten up there? Through the briars, probably. That wasn't the wisest decision either. "I'm a healer, got any thorns that need tending to?" she teased, operating under the assumption that the stranger had in fact gone through the briars. If she hadn't, well. But there was no other way of getting up that high, unless she had miraculously sprouted wings.
Solveiga wished that would happen to her right about now. She'd been climbing for nearly an hour and she wasn't even halfway through this darned fjord.
The other wolf's perceptiveness caught her slightly off guard. She had to laugh. The female must be from this continent to know where the only other path ran. "More than a few, I'm sure. Shall I wait up here for your arrival? I can take a seat and continue shouting to keep you company." She smirked, glancing up at the sun. It was high now, sure. But it was heading in the direction of setting. She glanced back down at the female, head tilted slightly. How long would it take her? Would she make it before nightfall?
"Or I can leave you to it, if you'd prefer to finish your climb alone."
The woman admitted that she had picked up more than a few thorns, and Solveiga smiled proudly at the fact that she'd been right. She really was starting to know this land like the back of her paw. "How kind of you," she shouted when the other female offered to keep her company during the climb. "I'll be up there as quickly as I can manage, just don't be offended if I occasionally stop replying to you. That probably means I'm trying to focus on not falling to my death." There she was again, with the sarcasm and dark humor. Had some old friends like Peregrine rubbed off on her?
Shaking off the thought, Solveiga gave her muscles a quick stretch and then set to work climbing higher. For once she was grateful to be so small. It meant she was agile, and had little weight to pull up and over all these jagged cliff faces. All things considered, she was already making pretty good progress. "So," Solveiga called breathlessly, squinting up at the stranger again. But it was no use; the sun was still blinding. "Come here often?" she asked, laughing at her own joke and then stopping to catch her breath again before continuing onward, her ears open to whatever response might come.
This female struck her as the type to have potential, though. She appeared to share a similar wit, and hopefully, a no-bullshit attitude. Nati could act tough all day, but in reality she'd been painfully lonely since leaving home. She needed a friend. "Fair enough," she shouted back, before flopping to the ground to lie with her front paws and nose hanging over the edge. She felt more secure now that she didn't have to worry about her legs giving out and sending her tumbling down the cliff-side. The other wolf's next comment made her chuckle softly. "First time actually," she responded. "But I'm thinking I should come back a few times a season, seems like a good spot for a workout.
"My name's Nati, by the way."
But she was glad to have this other voice to keep her company. She smiled when the other female commented on this place being a good workout spot. "Considering how my muscles feel right now, I think I'd have to agree with you on that," the cream colored female shouted back. She liked this stranger. It made her kind of excited to reach the top, so she wouldn't have to be so much of a stranger anymore. Maybe even a new friend.
Moments later, the stranger in question introduced herself. It was nice to have a name to put to the voice, and hopefully soon she could put a face to the two as well. Nati was a cute name. "I'm Solveiga," she called out as she caught her breath for a moment and walked up a relatively steady incline, much like a switchback. Not much longer now. "I know that can be a mouthful; feel free to shorten it any way you like."
She responded with a name and Nati couldn't help but chuckle. It certainly was a mouthful. Nati thought on it for a moment before nodding to herself. "Sol it is then. It's a pleasure to yell to you." They hadn't truly met yet, after all. But once Solveiga reached the top they would meet, and perhaps they would go their separate ways but Nati sorely hoped they'd chat for a while first.
Though she'd assumed Solveiga was familiar with the area, based on her knowledge of the briers, Nati realized belatedly that she hadn't asked. Maybe she'd only known because she'd considered going that way, then thought better of it. "So what's your deal?" she shouted down. "What are you after up here that set you on your glorious hike?"
And just as that thought entered Solveiga's mind, the other woman asked her what exactly she was after that was worth all the climbing she was doing. "Basically the rest of the continent," she said with a breathy laugh, letting out a little grunt as she pulled herself over another ledge. "I spent some time... traveling the island south of here..." Another pause to catch her breath. She was determined to speak in coherent sentences.
"...and I'm back now. So I had two options. I could either travel through those nasty briars or endure a bit of a workout by climbing through the fjord. I'd prefer a little fatigue over having thorns in my paws any day." Not to mention the time she'd ended up with thorns in her butt, and that sweet healer from Celestial had helped her take them out. No, that was a memory she could safely lock away, never to think of again.
But then, a minute later, Solveiga came to the moment of truth. With one last oomph, the petite woman pulled herself up and found herself finally on even ground with the one she'd been talking too all this time. She was a little ruffled, and definitely out of breath, but she'd made it. "Hey," she said simply, laughing a bit as she weakly sat down to rest from her workout of sorts. Now she could finally see what this Natiel looked like. She was a pretty girl, about the same age as Solveiga, and not all that much bigger. Her coat was unique, and Solveiga would have been distracted by it had it not been for her lovely blue eyes.
"Nice to finally meet you, Natiel," she giggled.
It continued to baffle her until the very moment Sol crested the top of the cliff why someone would voluntarily make that climb. She raised her head up straight with a great smirk as the female took her seat. "It's nice to finally meet you too. About time, I'd say. What took you so long?" Her words dripped with teasing sarcasm. "I'll let you rest a bit before I ask for help with my thorns," she added with a chuckle. Solveiga had, after all, offered to help out.
It took several moments for her breathing to steady, and her muscles were still aching, but at last Solveiga stood. She gave her tail a tired little wag and stepped closer to the girl. Already she saw a thorn or two, and she winced as she recalled the pain she'd felt when she'd had all those thorns in her hide that one time...
"May I?" the little woman asked, just wanting to be polite before she invaded Natiel's personal space. Pleasantries aside, Solveiga came in close and started to nose around in her fur. There were a couple of more visible thorns between her shoulders and above her tail, but they looked like the more painful ones to remove. Better to start small, right? While poking her nose about in Natiel's fur, the little healer found an additional thorn farther down on her shoulder blade.
"Sorry about this," she said, before taking the thorn in her teeth and tugging quickly, removing it as painlessly as possible. Surely there were more where that came from. Unfortunately.