The Weeping Woods was a new area to explore for a particular stormy gray-furred fae. There had been rumors that the woods were different, although the atmosphere was perfectly serene and filled with a permanent aroma of peace. The only way Aeil would know about it for sure would be to explore it herself. So, as she stood at the edge of the first row of trees, she took in a deep breath and began to walk into it. Aeil's first reaction to her new surroundings was in awe. Everything was covered with a blanket of white snow, causing the branches to dangle lower from the weight. They almost touched the ground as Aeil walked past them. Her paws left prints in the snow behind her as she slowly careened her way through the unseen trail between the trees. Even in the middle of winter, the forest had a beauty that couldn't be described in words. Her navy-tinted eyes changed to a lighter shade of sapphire blue as she felt a small amount of happiness swell in her chest. If she chose to join Seracia after her visit with Gerhardt, then this would be one of the places she would haunt. She thought about what the woods would look like in spring, until she became distracted by a particular low-hanging branch. Consumed by the snow on top of it, she decided to yank the branch's tip. One jerk was all it took for the snow to cascade to the ground. She felt some land on her face and a gentle laugh escaped her mouth. Her gaze lowered to the pile of snow near her front paws and it was then she decided to search for a large pile to play in. Softly, she padded past the previously snow-ladden branch and went to the next one. "speeeeech"

Bane was sleeping on the snow covered forests ground, leg giving a slight twitch from where he lay curled up. It was kind of funny actually, the nighttime snowfall covering his insulating fur in a downy layer of frost and then a fine layer of winter. He could still breath, his sleeping twitches and movements causing fissures in the snow covering him to allow a good, if a little uneven air flow.

Sapphire eyes snapped open as he awoke at the sound of a laugh right above him, his tensed body remaining motionless under the blanket of snow. Bane blinked an eye rapidly, snow falling away to see a dark grey she-wolf move alongside his covered form. The female was walking away from him, the male contemplating about asking her.... anything really he was in a talkative mood today. No-doubt the conversations he'd been having recently awoke his social side. Bane lifted his snow covered head and gave a low 'aroo' in greeting.

She already had her teeth set on the end of another branch when she heard the bark. Ears perked and she instantly turned her head in the direction she had been walking. The grip she had on the branch was released, but the sudden jerk of her actions caused the snow to fall anyway. This explained the loud yip that escaped Aeil's lips when the snow met her head. Her cranium was covered in the cold, white substance faster than she could blink. Aeil, whose ears had been flattened from the weight of the fresh snow, felt her ears perk through the thinner layer on top of her crown. They roved around in different directions like submarine telescopes above the ocean's surface until she was able to see through the snow. Her eyes, currently ocean blue, peeked from the snow and she saw the darkened form beneath the tree she had passed. Sniffing the cold air, she caught his scent and then began to step in his direction. As she walked, Aeil shook her head, letting the snow fall away from her stormy gray maw. The brisk feeling from the snow still had her face tingling, explaining the twitching of her nose. She tried to regain the warmth that had temporarily been taken, and it came back faster than she thought it would. A small smirk appeared on her face as she said, "What a way to let a lady know of your presence." Her tail swayed behind her gently and she softly laughed before stopping at a respectful distance from Bane. "speeeeech"

The grey wolf watched as the she-wolf initiated a self-induced dumping of snow on herself. The aging wolf let a smirk plaster across his muzzle and gave an innocently soft howl in he females direction. Then she came towards him, Bane rapidly rising to his paws and bristled his fur. For a moment. She stopped her advance towards him after only a few steps.

"My dear, that is the best way to show your presence to a female."
Bane looked past her and noticed Alarice shaking her head at him. The aging male began too relax.
"You a Seracian female? Ya smell faintly of them."

Aeil playfully rolled her eyes at the older male. She knew that he was only picking, and that was perfectly fine with her. "Well, my goodness, sir. I only hope the other females aren't too startled when you do make yourself known." Her smile still stayed on her lips as she took in the details of the stranger's face. The details of his maw - the claw marks, his eyes, the fur - told a story when they were combined and she wondered what that story was. However, since she had just laid eyes on the male, she wasn't sure if it was a good idea to ponder into his past. Aeil put the rising questions in the back of her mind, intending to let them surface later. At Bane's inquiry to her pack alliegance, she eagerly dipped her maw and took another step forward. "W-why y-yes, yes I am," she answered, letting a hesitancy escape with the first two words. Aeil hadn't decided on being a member for long, so it was still a surprise to say she belonged to a pack. It didn't feel wrong, so she knew that she had made the right choice. The only problem was getting used to saying she was a Seracian. With time, it would get better. "I haven't been around a lot of my pack members yet, but I hope to meet them sooner or later." "speeeeech"

Bane looked at the she-wolf with mild interest. "Ah, so am I. Well... you seem to have met one more Seracian wolf." Bane noted her step forward and gave two steps of his own with a shaking of his pelt to get rid of the excess snow that had covered his previously sleeping form.

"Have you met anybody beside our Alpha? Or perhaps one of his adopted pups." Bane gave a hallow chuff and took a few more steps closer, his nose almost touching hers. He smelled her checks to memorize her scent.
"You find any friends yet." Bane rasped.?

Excitement was evident in her blue eyes as he told her he was a Seracian as well. She watched him as he shook his pelt free of the snow and took a few more steps in her direction. For his inquiry, she shook her head and have an honest answer. "Nope. Gerhardt is the only one I have met. He was the one who invited me to join Seracia, of which I took up in an instant." Her canines showed in her smile and she took in his own scent to remember it. "I haven't found any friends within our pack yet." Aeil blinked a couple of times before continuing. "I have met a few other wolves when I was a rogue. They were all sweet and held good conversations with me, making me feel comfortable. I hope I get to see them in the future, but who knows what it holds." Introductions hadn't been made, and this crossed her mind just then. "My name is Aeil, by the way. I apologize for not saying it sooner." "speeeeech"

"Ahhh, getting a little to cold out there all by yourself hmmmm? Probably made even colder by some inhabitants no doubt." Bane cheekily snarked to the new Seracian. A smile crossed his muzzle at the mention of Gerhardt, thinking his own thoughts about his alpha. "Welcome to the warmth of a pack female." Bane flopped to the ground to rest his old paws and continued to stare at the she-wolf, unsure of where to further take this conversation.

Sapphire eyes glanced behind his prone form as pointed ears continued to listen to his fellow packmate speak her story to him. He listened intently as he gathered up all the information she was providing. Bane opened his maw to continue the conversation when Aeil was done speaking.
"So?what do you do Aeil? Bane merely stalks around and minds his duty as a clergy."

"Thanks, Bane," she gently said, smile still evident on her features. She reclined to her haunches and lowered herself in front of Bane. With one front paw crossed over the other, she tapped the ground with her tail and answered his question. "To be honest, I have no idea, Bane. I only just joined, but so far, I don't know what I need to do since I am a clergy as well...I hope to have a higher rank after awhile. I want to prove myself to the pack that I have a purpose for being here, among my fellow pack mates. I don't know what the future holds, but I want to do my best when it comes and until then." ooc: Sorry so short. ;-; "speeeeech"

Bane let his expression soften as the she-wolf talked about her wants and desires from the pack. A delayed nod was given as Aeil said her thanks and he adjusted onto his side while looking up at this Seracian female before him. "Those were my own thoughts when I first joined a pack after I was banished. Ya feel kinda like an extra mouth to feed or a loose piece of wood just floating along the creek."

Bane hardly paused in his wordplay as he took in a breath again before continuing.
"Your assimilation will take time and you will find your place Aeil, you will. So what I want you to do is to just become that piece of wood along the river and pretty soon you'll be stuck on the shore your profession is on and discover that niche for yourself in the pack of Seracia." Bane gave a yawn and wriggled his paws into the snow before standing and eyeing his 'lost' packmate.

She watched Bane as he rose to his paws and her tail thumped against the ground that stretched beneath her form. Aeil's fur contrasted against the snow, which was a no-brainer to even the dumbest wolf. It was because of her stormy gray pelt that made her body look more chunky in the winter. She preffered warmer seasons herself, but it was no big deal if she had to endure some cold seasons. When she caught the gaze that fell from Bane's eyes, she noticed the potential knowledge that was stored there. Oh, how much she could learn from him, she didn't know. The knowledge that spouted from his lips then reached her ears. She drank them up with the anticipation of a pup wanting to know how life worked at an early age. Aeil nodded in response to his advice and she spoke once he was done. "So far, that is all I have been doing, Bane. I will continue to do that, however, because it seems to be working so far. I hope to meet a few other wolves in the not so distant future, though. I have been a part of Seracia for about a month and I have only met a couple." She smiled gently at this thought and slowly rose to her haunches once more. "How long have you been with Seracia?" "speeeeech"

Aeil had watched him intently as he spoke, almost as if she'd never heard such words in her life. A shame, this female seemed to need somebody's help to guide her young life while she figured out everything about packs. Ears pivot at her words, the older wolf listening intently to the she-wolf so he could give the proper advice. "You seem to be doing well on your own from what you told me, meeting packmates. But if you go outside the lands and wander about for awhile you'll find that there are some odd ones who've made there home in this land all packs share."

Bane gave a chuff as he coughed and a thought about how long he had been apart of Seracia. His memory wasn't what it used to be, so he just gave a practical number. "Around two years, I've seen few things happen, all of them with varying degrees of pleasantness."

"That is definitely true, Bane. I have met many different types of personalities. I don't regret having them cross my path, however. They were all sweet to their cores and knew how to hold conversations." A light tap from her tail made her smile and sent short vibrations through the bare ground. Her paws pushed her to her haunches and she waited to see what other type of advice would spill from his mouth. "Two years?" Her eyebrows rose in gentle surprise. "That seems like a lifetime for someone who just joined this great pack." Her tones were evident of humor that gently played among her words. "I wonder if I will get to see many events in my time here." "speeeeech"

"Holding a conversation, I seem to be having trouble with that right now." Bane laughed at his own social failing. It sometimes bothered him, not knowing when a conversation was done or if he should just pick another topic and see if another conversation grew out of it. He wasn't really good at that either.?Bane didn't even know where to go with this anymore. He'd met another she-wolf and conversed for a time but now he was thinking about how to wrap this up. "There are vile wolves out there who would do harm unto others, keep your wits about you."

A nod was given after his advice and he advanced up to her muzzle and sniffed her cheeks, his long ritualized parting gesture when he met new wolves.?"Events are already happening around us Aeil, it's all a matter about going out and looking for them as they occur. One might even be happening at Seracia right now." And with that, Bane gave a curt nod and a head jerk to get her to follow him as he began to lope towards the direction of Seracia.

-Exit Bane-

"Whatever will happen in our pack, I will be sure to go forward and follow with the paws required for the job." Aeil's determination to make herself a place in the large kingdom was something she wasn't afraid to verbally or physically admit. She closed her eyes briefly at Bane's touch before she rose from the snow-ridden ground. Aeil then turned her gaze on the retreating male. With eager paws, she quickly took a stride that met him at his side. Dark blue eyes looked at him before she smiled and began the journey back to the safety of their borders. She thought of what may be going on in Seracia. With an open mind, she let the rest of her journey spread out in front of her. -EXIT Aeil- "speeeeech"