Her travels across the East had brought her to a strange and intriguing land. The terrain was steep, the air was moist, and the ground was oddly warm. It was the last of these that had Kanja's curiosity piqued. The ground was almost too warm. Sure, the sun was shining and summer was in full swing, but what she felt had to be more than simply a product of the season. And oh, was it ever! There was a volcano up ahead.

Her hopes were high as she made her way towards the top of the mountain. She'd heard stories of, but never seen, a volcano before. A fellow loner quite some distance down the mountain had told her what was up ahead and Kanja was eager to see it for herself. She almost couldn't believe what the woman had said. The loner had compared the pool of lava at the top to the sun. How cool was that? The rogue had seemed unnerved by what she'd seen, but that did little to curb Kanja's excitement.

With a huff the giantess paused to rest. The closer she got to the top the steeper the terrain became. That wasn't the only thing that changed. Something she'd noticed the other day was that there were fewer animals this far up the mountain. Somewhere around the halfway mark the common forest dwellers had decided to go no further. She saw the occasional squirrel or two, but no groundhogs, no rabbits. It was kind of odd. Maybe they knew something she didn't or maybe it had something to do with the change in tree cover, but either way, what animal life that did live up here seemed hardier. She'd seen some goats who, upon seeing her, had bounded up a sheer rock face as if it were nothing.

The break she'd allowed herself was short and inadequate, but she wanted to reach the top today so with a stretch and a deep breath, she set off again at an easy jog. This was her third day on the Mount and it would take just as many days to reach the base again, and she was eager to carry on with her exploration of these lands. There was a lot to see and not enough days in a wolf's lifetime to see it all. But Kanja thought she could get pretty damn close.

After spending some time in Auster, Kai had decided to venture further north again. Winter would be here before long - venturing up to the far north later in the year sounded appealing. He hadn't seen his father it quite some time, but he no longer worried about spending long periods time away from him. He had grown accustomed to his freedom, and now yearned to see more of the world. As much as possible, really. He had begun his slow trek to the north some time ago, lazily crossing from one continent to another with ease, with no particular goal in mind. Until he saw Mount Volkan, and decided he had to explore it. From a distance it was tall and looming, almost threatening in its grandeur. It was unlike anything he'd ever seen, perhaps something from one of his father's stories, and he knew instantly that it was somewhere he had to go. So he'd headed toward the dormant volcano, eager to scale its peak - if he could even get that high up, he had no idea - and see what sort of adventure awaited him today. Initially the journey wasn't quite so bad, but as minutes turned into hours he began to wonder if he'd made a mistake. The air was warmer than he expected here, the terrain uneven and steep, and the air seemed thick and strange. Still, not wanting to rush his exploration, he took his time here - finding a decent place to hunker down through the night amidst the sparse vegetation and rubble, before continuing on the next day. By the time he caught whiff of something, he was eager to figure out who else was trying to conquer this obstacle. He'd seen few prey up here, and they only seemed to grow more rare as he gained elevation. The possibility of finding someone to speak to up here though made him suddenly feel more invigorated. His pace increased almost immediately, and by the time he saw a stranger standing in the distance he was panting and heaving like he'd run a marathon. It was nobody he'd ever seen before, yet the figure looked shockingly familiar. At first, only slightly, with her dark grey coat - but as he nearly sprinted toward her, up the steep slope of the volcano, the red markings around her forepaws made his eyes widen. "Hei sinä!" he called out eagerly, his tail waving high above his back as he sought to close the distance between them.

A thunderous crash off to her left caused Kanja to wheel around with a snarl. With her lips curled in warning and her eyes narrowed to slits the giantess was the picture of savagery. She was prepared to do battle with whatever creature created that racket. Her gaze zeroed in on the source of the the crash: a series of large rocks tumbling down a nearby outcropping. Kanja's eyes lifted just in time to watch as some kind of shaggy ungulate completed its climb over the rocks and fled out of sight. With a hiss Kanja straightened out of the defensive crouch she'd slipped into. "You grass eating bastard!" Her heart was hammering so hard she could hear it in her ears. "Got me all worked up for nothing!"

With a determined huff she set off again. Her nerves were frayed but Kanja was determined to smooth them over. No way some dumb sheep was going to ruin her adventure with a little scare. She reminded herself why she was there: the volcano. A fiery lake hot enough to roast that stupid sheep on contact. Now there was an idea! Visions of roasted mutton danced in her head as she wandered up the side of the mountain.

Her imagination was still running wild with the idea when an unfamiliar voice yanked her out of her reverie. Was that...? Kanja turned to face the speaker half expecting to see someone from her clan. She hadn't heard that language since leaving the homeland and it was odd to hear it now. The giantess ran a scrutinous eye over the man in an attempt to figure him out. She was certain she didn't know him. How could he have known to speak to her in Finnish?

It clicked suddenly as she took in his red markings. Most of her family sported the same shades of grey and red. Knowing this and knowing how unusual this combination was, it wasn't too much of a stretch to think there might be a connection upon seeing someone of similar coloring. A ghost of a smile graced her lips as she purred back, "Hei itsesi."

In the common tongue she said, "I didn't expect to hear that language this far south." For a moment she studied him again before finally deciding to introduce herself. "The name's Kanja Jarvela. And who, Mr. Distant Relative, might you be?" Of course she didn't know that for sure, but it was a safe bet.

What a coincidence that he'd run across someone who quite clearly resembled family, so far from the habitable world. Kai would've assume that she was a Jarvela, yet clearly it was a good guess judging by the language he called out to the stranger in. The truth was that he often used his family's native tongue without realizing it, but this time it had been intentional. More than once he'd been caught singing some simple tune; he was lucky that he'd noticed her before he'd been caught wandering around humming some folk song to himself. His gaze fixed on her, searching for any sign of recognition in her features. Surely she wouldn't know him, but perhaps his guess wasn't far off. He was pleasantly surprised when she returned his greeting, and his curious expression shifted, lips twisting up in a wide, goofy grin. Interest shone brighter in his silver eyes as he bounded forward, less quickly than he would've liked - knowing that losing his footing could easily send him tumbling down the side of the mountain. She spoke the common tongue as well, expressing surprise at hearing this tongue so far south. "Nor did I expect to hear it spoken back at me," Kai quipped quickly, amusement bubbling forth in his words. He was even more surprised to catch her name. Kanja Jarvela! She could've been his own sister, judging by her name and appearance, and Kai let out a hearty snort at the realization. "My name is Kai Jarvela. Son of Aki." He didn't always introduce himself by his father's name, but it seemed useful information in this instance. "Who are your parents?" Truthfully, it wouldn't have surprised him terribly if his father had sired more children unknowingly - though one so close to his age seemed unlikely. Still, he didn't bother to hide his wide grin, pleased to meet his kin no matter how they might be related.

Her ears pricked forward as he introduced himself. Now there was a name she recognized! Could it really be? Surely this was too good to be true. A grin drew up the corners of her mouth and she quirked a brow at him. "Would you believe me if I said my uncle, my mother's brother, is named Aki?" She'd never met him, but her mother had told her stories about her older brother who had tusks like her father, Kanja's grandfather.

"My mother's name is Sabine and I don't know my father's name," she said conversationally. Kanja had never met him and she knew nothing about him. It wasn't something she was embarrassed about or anything. In fact, it was something she'd never really given much thought, maybe because her mother had never made a big deal out of it. It had always been just the two of them and that had always seemed like enough.

She studied him curiously. Already it was pretty clear that they were cousins, but in case he had any doubt, she knew just what to ask. "Does your dad have tusks?" Kanja had known that Boreas was the last place her mother had seen Aki - the woman had said so herself - but what were the odds that, in a land full of wolves, Kanja would stumble upon her cousin?

While Kai didn't really believe in fate persay, it was quite the coincidence that he had happened upon a fellow Jarvela. He mirrored her expression with a wide smile of his own, finding no need to contain the obvious pleasure at meeting family. He, too, was surprised to find someone related to him so far south - but since his father had taken a liking to this continent, it made sense that his siblings might, too. His ears perked with interest at her recognition of his father's name, any uncertainty that she might be family fading away rather abruptly. "I'd say you look similar enough to my father to take away any uncertainty," Kai replied with an easy laugh. The markings she bore around her from paws was enough to convince him. He nodded in recognition of her mother's name. Aki, of course, had told him all about his family, and of course his twin sisters were included in that. It was also of little interest that she didn't know her father's name; he hadn't seen his mother in a long time, though knew her name - but he also knew that was not always the case. He was convinced before she asked anything further, but he nodded at her question. "Indeed he does," he chuckled a bit. He was a bit disappointed the trait hadn't passed on to him - he'd been told they were a rarity in these lands and something he'd seen fetch odd reactions from strangers. The additional attention, he decided might not be so bad. "We are cousins, then,"  Kai said finally,  his grin widening substantially. Curiosity suddenly flooded him, and his ears flicked slightly atop his head. "Does your mother travel with you? I would love to meet her." His father had spoken fondly of his fiery sisters - he wondered if Kanja was half as much of a spitfire as her mother was said to be. But if not, alas. He was happy enough to meet one of his cousins, on top of a volcano, no less. Well.. not at the very top, though he certainly wanted to make it there.

Kanja accepted this statement with no small amount of satisfaction. She was pleased to have met Kai in such a place as this; if he was anything like the rest of their family he had a wanderer's spirit and a lust for adventure- just the kind of wolf she'd want with her on a trip to the mountaintop. Kanja briefly tossed around the idea of inviting him along before deciding that duh, yes, she would be happy to have him as company.

"I'm afraid not," she said, referring to his question about her mother. "I think she'll wander back to these lands at some point - she was always telling me stories about this place - so who knows, maybe you'll get to meet her one day."

Kanja's gaze drifted from Kai to the mountain's peak and then back again. Okay, yes, she was definitely going to ask. "Say, I'm on my way to the mountaintop; I heard there's a pool of lava up there and I want to see it. Wanna come with me?" It would give them a chance to get to know one another. Kanja was curious about this cousin of hers and the uncle she'd heard so much about.

Kai was beyond thrilled to meet someone from his family. Many of the wolves of this land seemed soft and meek, far too concerned with emotions and obligations. It was a far cry from the bold and outspoken Jarvela family - at least, that was what he'd been told of his family, and his father's demeanor was no exception to that rule. Instantly he could tell that Kanja was of a kindred spirit, if not just of kindred blood, and his grin spoke plainly of his glee. He'd never been one for containing his emotions, had never actually tried, if he was being honest -- and the present was no different. The possibility of getting to meet any family was quite exciting to him, and he found his tail wagging a bit dramatically behind him at the prospect. But if he never got to meet Sabine, he'd be perfectly okay with that, too. Such was the way of life, and it was nothing worth dwelling on, especially now that he got a chance to spend time with a cousin! Kanja seemed about his age too, perhaps a bit older, but certainly not much. His sniffed a bit at the air, taking in her scent and implanting it to his memory. "Perhaps," he answered simply, clearly nonplussed about the issue. His attention was all but captured by her question. Did he want to come with her? Oh hell yeah! He nearly took all his energy to not bark an excited response. "I'd love to!" Kai exclaimed, beaming from one ear to the other. "I haven't heard what's at the top, but that sounds awesome." It sounded like something out of a story his father might tell him. Briefly he wondered if Kanja's mother had told her similar stories, or perhaps they'd have some to exchange! He was sure they'd have plenty of time to chat on their way to the top, so before she said anything else he leapt up onto a section of jutting rock and started his ascent to the top.

Kai's exuberance was contagious and Kanja soon found herself grinning back at him. She couldn't be happier with this day. Sure, the sheep had frayed her nerves, but connecting with Kai was quickly remedying her sour mood. The odds of finding him so soon after entering these lands were minuscule and yet here he was.

In a flash Kai was off and climbing up the mountain. Not to be outdone, Kanja was quick to follow and soon the pair were climbing side by side. The ground was uneven, with rocks jutting every which way out of the dirt. Kanja found herself staring at the ground more often than not in the hopes of avoiding a fall. The last thing she needed was to twist an ankle. Kai seemed game for an adventure, but she wasn't so sure she could convince him to drag her back down the mountain if she wiped out.

"So tell me, Kai," she paused to leap the space between two boulders. "Have you always lived here in Boreas?" As a child Kanja had moved around pretty consistently with her mother. She had vague memories of Boreas' north, but most of her childhood had been spent traveling to the motherland. She remembered those lands best. Kanja was curious about her cousin's upbringing. This question was just the start; if he seemed willing to answer it she had a dozen more questions lined up.

His face and posture were simply overflowing with excitement; he was, like his father, a bit of an open book when it came to judging his emotions. He'd met a new friend, and an adventure partner, who happened to be family - how could he be anything but overjoyed? After a moment he twisted his head to glance over his shoulder, pleased to find that she was keeping up with him easily. Some of their journey would be made in silence, for he knew how much concentration it took to navigate some of this uneven terrain. It wouldn't be a good first impression to make on his cousin if he ended up hurting himself on this trip; he was used to the usual scrape and bruise but he was pretty sure breaking a bone - or worse - would put a damper on their adventure. By the time she spoke again, he was breathing heavily, his chest heaving slightly.  "Yep!" Kai answered her quickly, and though his voice was a bit strained now, he still seemed quite exuberant.  "I was born in a pack's lands, if you'd believe that." He glanced sideways at her, grinning his usual toothy grin. If his aunt had been anything at all like his father, he had likely raised Kanja to detest the thought of being under the control of another, so he was curious what her reaction to that would be. "My mother was a pack wolf, so we stayed there until I was old enough to be without her." Truthfully he'd stayed a tiny bit longer, since he'd enjoyed his mother's company - he still wondered where she was now, and how she was doing. He grunted as he took another large leap and turned to eye her again. "What about you? Were you lucky enough to see the lands my father talks so fondly of?" Though he'd be a bit envious of her, he mostly felt curious - she hoped he could tell her everything, if that was the case.

Kanja's ears pricked forward in surprise upon hearing that Kai had been born in a pack. She supposed their familial clan was a pack of sorts, but they were nomadic and their "pack" dynamics were very different from the dynamics of typical wolf packs. Each did as they pleased; their comings and goings supervised by no one. It just so happened that they tended to move as a group. It surprised her that Kai's father would have gone to a pack (even for a short time considering the wanderlust of the relatives she knew) although it did feel like she was missing something by not knowing the full story.

"I did," she confirmed proudly. Their way of life was a source of pride for her. The dynamics, the freedom, the shared love of roaming and nature. No where else had she found so many kindred spirits. "It's wonderful," she said warmly. "Although really, its not so much the place that is great - although it is pretty cool - but the people. They are like no other people I've ever met."

She leapt over some more rocks before parting with the words, "Maybe one day I'll go back, but if I don't it'll be because I found a community like that here." She was breathing hard now. The hiking over the past day was definitely catching up to her. "If you can, you should visit sometime. I'm sure my mother has all kinds of stories about your father that she'd be happy to tell you," she added teasingly.

The whole idea of living in a pack structure, stationary and with a rank system, was strange to him. It was hard to imagine claiming any land as as his own, let alone needing to report to another or follow their laws. In his world, only parents had that sort of power - and even that, children only followed their parents if they wished to, and parents never held their children back when they were ready to go off on their own. His face lit up further, if such a thing was possible, at her confirmation to her inquiry.  "I'd love to travel with them someday," Kai admitted with a dreamy sort of sigh, glancing over her way.  "The wolves I've met here are nothing at all like father - nor like you." He hoped someday he might find kindred spirits, wolves that lived and breathed for the earth and for the thrill of adventures like this. "And following the herd is something I must do someday. I presume you've experienced that?" He eyed her, wondering if she'd have anything to say about that. Surely Kanja would know about the reindeer - he would be surprised if she didn't. The thought of finding a group who felt similarly was appealing, but part of him doubted he ever would. Even the wolves that his father had spoken fondly of all still seemed tied to packs and obligations, something he could never be bothered with. "Visiting someday sounds like something else I must do," he agreed eagerly, panting hard now too and not bothering to conceal his exhaustion. The terrain was growing more predictable as they got closer to the top, and he was making a game of avoiding the loose sections of terrain, hopping across rubble with leaps that looked less graceful than he intended.

"Of course!" There were only three constants in the Jarvela clan as far as Kanja could tell: family, the seasons, and the reindeer. She giggled lightly. "The longer we talk the more I'm going to add to your 'I have to do this one day' list." She grinned, her gaze distant as she recalled the first time she's seen the herd. "It's amazing when they run. They make the ground shake and the sound is like thunder. You can feel it in your chest." Wistfully, she added, "Hunting one is always a celebration." She turned to quirk a brow at Kai, her expression playful. "You should see it."

Her gaze was drawn forward as she became aware of an orange glowing up ahead. "Oh, look!" she breathed excitedly before frisking closer. The ground grew warmer with each step until it was nearly unbearable and she had to stop. Already she was having to shift her weight from paw to paw to keep them from getting too hot, so she didn't dare step closer, but she couldn't see it. Sure, she could see the glowing and if she craned her neck she could see a sliver of liquid fire, but she couldn't see the whole beautiful thing and that was a shame.

Kanja skittered off the right and then quickly came back when that route didn't give her a better view. She harrumphed, then asked Kai, "Do you see any place we can stand and look into it without roasting our paws?"

Kanja's description of the reindeer sent a shiver down his spine. It was definitely making him feel a bit anxious, in the best possible way - eager for the possibilities that the future held for him.  "Perhaps we could get together a group for a hunt sometime," Kai suggested tentatively. His father told him he had encountered the trail of a herd in the far north, though hunting with his people sounded a far better idea than with random strangers. If he had no other option, though, it probably wouldn't deter him from the prospect of experiencing such a magical thing. And if they couldn't find a group? Simply watching the herd - hearing them run, as she'd explained, would be thrilling in itself. His attention was captured by her sudden enthusiasm, his gaze following hers as they neared the peak of this strange mountain. The ground was growing warmer, or perhaps it had been  for awhile now, but with their quick movements and constant climb neither of them had noticed it - until now. Kai bounced from one section of ground to another, wincing slightly when he stood still for a moment too long.  "I can't quite-" Kai's words cut off as he lifted his head and tried to peer below the precipice ahead, seeing little more than slight glimmers of something. A slight frown touched his own features as he moved to follow after her eagerly. "What about..." Kai shifted his head from one side of his body to the other, silver gaze searching the terrain for something that might be a better vantage point. Finding a possibility, he rushed away from her, scrambling somewhat aimlessly over rubble as he scrambled to a spot that seemed a bit higher - and once he was there he was dramatically gasping, jerking his muzzle to get Kanja to follow him. He was able to see much better now; though the view wasn't perfect, it did give them a decent view down into the bubbling pit of lava. His smile returned, bright and enthusiastic, his tail wagging behind him. "I've never seen anything like this," he yelled out to her.  "This place has to be sacred, Kanja." The lava was clearly dangerous, liquid fire, like nothing he'd ever seen before.. like the reindeer, dangerous yet beautiful at the same time, something to be worshiped and certainly not taken for granted. He swore he felt the mountain roaring beneath him, the earth heaving a great heavy sigh, a feeling probably not unlike the feeling of a herd running past - and he was completely enraptured, briefly forgetting the uncomfortable heat beneath his paws and gazing wide-eyed into the pit of fire.

Giddily Kanja followed Kai as he beckoned her towards higher ground. Disregarding the heat under her paws, she bound across the distance between them. The trek up the mountain had been long and tiring, but the lake of fire before her was energizing and Kanja found that her spirits had been renewed.

She skidded to a halt next to Kai in a spray of grit. "Oh..." she breathed in amazement. It was more amazing than she'd anticipated. The lake of fire swirled and bubbled, writhing like a living thing. It was a mix of reds, oranges and yellows that glowed like the sun. "This place has to be sacred, Kanja." Wordlessly she nodded her agreement. After a moment she found her voice. "I haven't either."

Sacred or not, she was struggling to resist the urge to toss something in it. Whatever spirit - or spirits - that called it home would surely be displeased, but she needed to see what would happen. Would whatever she threw in sink like a rock tossed into a pond, or would the heat of the liquid fire burn it up?

Usually one for flippancy, Kanja decided to exercise restraint. Other wolves were one thing, but spirits were another. She had no problem with tweaking the nose of an equal, but angry spirits could be downright nasty. "It's a sieidi," she said firmly. "We should make a sacrifice." Maybe she'd get her wish after all...

Being so high up, gazing down into this vast expanse of molten lava.. Kai felt remarkably small, something that the oversized brute didn't feel all too often. The truth was that he actually liked the feeling, liked feeling as though the world was far more vast than he could ever begin to know. He, too, felt wildly exhilarated at the sight, felt like he could conquer the world right now - but mostly he was in awe, slightly slack-jawed and wide-eyed at the sight. "Damn," he breathed again after a moment, taking a moment to shift his position to another set of rocks that felt slightly cooler, but still offered a good view. Despite his expression, he found himself grinning, excited at this find. He nodded in quick agreement at her suggestion. This did seem to be a siedi, a spiritual place that his father had told him about, where sacrifices were offered to the gods.  "Let's do it!" He nearly yelped, but then realized.. he had nothing to sacrifice. He supposed another wolf would made a damn good sacrifice, but pushing his cousin in was completely out of the question; he liked her way too much. "But.. uh.. what do we toss in?" His nose wrinkled as he glanced around him for awhile, wondering what the best course of action would be. He supposed they could toss a few rocks in, but it didn't seem like that grand of a sacrifice when they were literally lying right at the edge of the volcano to begin with.

Kai seemed as enthusiastic about the sacrifice as she felt. "But.. uh.. what do we toss in?" Kanja opened her mouth to respond, but when no suggestion presented itself to her she huffed and shut her mouth again. There wasn't much up here besides rocks, and she didn't think the spirits would be all that thrilled with a rock offering. They needed something living or precious. She had nothing on her of personal value and it didn't look like Kai did either, which meant they were probably gonna have to go hunting for something.

"Well," she said thoughtfully, "We have a couple of options. One, we leave something here that has meaning to us. Or two, we find something of value to give them." The skull of a bear would be good. "We could go hunting. A rabbit would be good. Or find the bones of a predator."

Once when she was very small Kanja had traveled to a sieidi and left an assortment of caribou bones arranged neatly as thanks for their safe travels. It was the first time she'd seen her mother do something for the spirits. Being among her people again had brought the wayward woman back to her roots, it seemed.

Kai's brows furrowed in careful thought and concentration. He believed in the spirits, though didn't consider himself the most religious man in the world.. his father had been spiritual in a way, but not as much as some from their family, he presumed. And because of that, he wasn't quite sure where to start in this whole.. ritual sacrifice thing. Luckily, Kanja seemed equally as stumped, and he peered across at her, thinking. Something of meaning to him? Objects didn't mean a whole lot to him - he was a wanderer, with no home and no claim to anything, especially material objects. He, too, huffed in slight annoyance at their predicament that neither of them were quite sure how to solve. "Well, I don't really own anything per say - do you?" Kai cocked his head in curiosity, though he was pretty sure he knew what her answer would be. "Yes, we should try to find something! I'm pretty sure I saw the remains of something on the way up here. Not quite sure what it was, but it might be worth checking out?" He beamed hopefully at her, hoping he was right in his recollections. He'd been pretty sure it'd been a small pile of bones, not just sticks and stones, and hopefully it'd make a decent sacrifice. Better than nothing, he figured. Stealing one last glance down into the pit of the volcano he bounded off, jerking his head and beckoning Kanja to follow.