Balsam had finally made it to Boreas. The moment he'd crossed that line his heart had tried to beat out of his chest. This was it. The land of giants. Here he would either make his name or meet his maker. Either way, this was where his story was going to unfold. It was exciting to think about. He was going where no Songa had gone before and that thought alone was heartening.

The real adventure was going to have to wait until tomorrow, though, because the sun was going to rise soon and Balsam had yet to find a good place to sleep. He'd been traveling at night and sleeping during the day for the whole duration of his march north. At some point he might give that up, but not today.

Up ahead was a large promising tree so after checking to make sure the coast was clear Balsam jogged across the creek bed and jumped up the embankment on the other side. He placed his paws on the trunk of the tree and then stared up into its boughs for several seconds. Yes, he decided, this was a good one. Now to find nesting material.

Balsam hopped down and began to look around for soft things. As he did so his mind drifted back to the woman who had started this all. Velvette. Just thinking her name brought a dreamy sigh to his lips. No matter the hardship he faced in the land of giants, she was worth it. Not only was she smart but she was beautiful. She was a delightful cheetah print lady and she was flawless. More than anything else he wanted to be worthy of her time and thinking of who he was now make him ache with embarrassment.

As he gathered moss his thoughts shifted to the moment he had realized he was in love with Velvette. They'd been pups - little more than babies, really - and he'd spied her across a clearing. She'd been playing with her friends or participating in a lesson, maybe. Balsam had heard her laugh and the sound, like music, had immediately emptied his mind of other thoughts. He'd caught himself staring, mouth hanging wide open, and hadn't cared at all. Not even when his friends teased him about it. Why? Because he'd found his soulmate and he couldn't have been happier.

He'd known right then that they were meant to be together and in the coming months had used her for inspiration during his training. His lessons had been grueling, but a mix of love for his oblivious muse and a desire to live up to his father's name had propelled the wannabe Soundless through the lessons with dogged determination. While not the best at what he did, his skills were nothing to sneeze at and while she may have been aware of it, his successful could be contributed largely to her existence.

With a mouth completely full of moss Balsam moseyed back to the tree. A flying leap got him up into the branches and from there it was just a matter of bouncing from branch to branch until he got to the right spot. Had this been his permanent nest he'd have woven a nice little cushion out of branches, moss and grass, and rigged the overhead branches into a canopy, but seeing as this was a one day thing he was going to settle for a little moss and parking his butt in a hollow in the tree. Hopefully it wouldn't rain.

With the claws of three paws digging into the branches surrounding the hollow Balsam used the fourth to stuff moss into it. Not everything he had brought up with him fit neatly into the hollow, so the rest he laid out on the branch in front of it. A little lichen from the branches above topped the whole thing off and added a thin layer of padding to the branch that would be his bed for the night.

Without ceremony he then clamored up onto the branch, backed into the hollow, and flopped down. Almost immediately his eyelids were heavy, but sleep was still some ways off. His thoughts drifted to what was ahead. Balsam had made it this far without a setback. He had not seen hide or hair of any of his family and that alone was a blessing. And being this far all but guaranteed that none but the boldest Songa would keep tracking him. Assuming he was being tracked, of course, but he couldn't afford to think he'd gotten away scot-free. The smallest mistake could cost him his shot at achieving greatness. It could cost him whatever chance he had at getting with Velvette.

Balsam's eyes continued to grow heavy and just as the sun began to peek over the horizon he slipped into sleep.

Sota was extremely, extremely uncertain about leaving their homelands behind... and a little bit peeved that Balsam had chosen to follow through with his plans. Not that he'd necessarily show it to his friend, unless fretting over him demonstrated his annoyance. Either way, he wasn't comfortable letting him go to this land of the giants alone, and so carefully Sota had trailed after him. He was nimble enough on his paws that he was hopeful he'd gone unnoticed thus far, not wanting Balsam to convince him otherwise. He could already Balsam trying to convince him that he didn't need to be looked after like some kind of child - but despite Sota's rather reserved nature, he'd have no trouble arguing with Balsam over that matter. Going alone to a place like this was just foolish, regardless of what Balsam said or thought.

The ridiculousness of it all was only growing more apparent as the hours went on, and as he felt fatigue weighing his limbs down heavily. Is he ever planning on stopping tonight? Sota stifled a sigh as he pressed on, slowly clambering down from the tree he'd been scaling as darkness settled over the lands. At least by night he could move freely, certain that the rumored giants of this land weren't half as quick on their feet as he was. As long as he could move quickly he could evade their attention. Sniffing quietly at the ground, he re-oriented himself and grabbed hold of Balsam's scent and rode with it.

He wasn't sure how long he traveled, but by the time Balsam's scent was strong enough to place him nearby, Sota was about ready to collapse. Though he considered himself to have a fairly high endurance, this was just pushing it. Grumbling a bit, he gaze his silver gaze to the sky and tried to assess just how long he had before daylight. Not long, judging by thee faint pink light that was beginning to spread over the skyline. "Balsam?" Sota's voice was wary, not wanting to attract unwanted attention as he searched for his friend. He moved carefully down the incline he'd found himself scaling, his gaze sweeping the treetops. All he wanted to do was to sleep, but finding Balsam seemed like a more pressing concern currently. "Balsam!" Seeing a glimpse of mottled brown fur in the treetops ahead, Sota quickly searched for the lowest branch he could find, leaping onto it and scaling the branches with ease as he stopped at one near Balsam. "Have you lost your mind?" Though he sounded a bit exasperated, his voice was void of anything negative; Balsam had his respect no matter what he did, however foolish Sota might deem it.

His friend's voice echoed through his dreamscape but wasn't enough to immediately pull him back into wakefulness. A soft sigh left Balsam's lips and he readjusted his grip on the branch, but that was it. Sleep's claws were in too deep. It would probably come to the surprise of no one to learn who his dream revolved around. "Balsam!" The shout combined with the sudden shaking of the tree as Sota climbed it was enough to tear Balsam away from his Velvette-centered dream and fling him into awareness. He sat up with a start and had just enough time to sweep a wide-eyed glance around his surroundings before Sota hauled himself up onto a nearby branch. Whew. His thoughts had immediately gone to the worst case scenario and he was relieved to see his friend and not, say, his mother or brother beside him. "Maybe!" he shot back. "But what kind of man would I be if I stayed home?" Technically he wasn't quite a man yet, but details. "I'm not gonna hide in the trees forever." He'd never win Velvette's affection if he did. And if he were alive, what would his father think of him playing it safe?

Sota had been too surprised to catch up with his friend that he'd all but forgotten his usual courtesies. Such things were common, even among the closest of friends, and Sota could already imagine how his elders might scold him for such impudence. Ack! Almost as soon as he spoke and steadied himself on the branch he'd leapt onto, Sota offered a brief but exaggerated bow to his friend. Perhaps it was a bit too hurried, but he had a feeling Balsam wasn't as concerned about traditions as he himself was, if he'd gone this far from home for a girl, of all things. He was reminded of his meeting with Velvette and decided he thought Balsam a touch less insane for coming after her after getting a proper look at her. She was quite beautiful, he had to admit. Perhaps Balsam was on to something after all...

He sighed a bit too dreamily, though was brought back to reality by his friend's response. "A wise one!" Sota responded quickly, but his words were half-hearted at best. Tradition was safe, but he knew there was more to the world than sticking to the familiar. He'd followed Balsam out here after all, hadn't he? "And you probably would hide in the trees forever if Velvette was up there with you." He wasn't being sassy, merely pointing out a fact, but the outspoken nature of his words was a rarity for the small boy - proof of just how comfortable he was around Balsam. His infatuation with her was no secret, and even though he hadn't been explicit about coming here specifically for her, finding her along Balsam's general trail had instantly confirmed it. "Do you have a plan yet, now that you're here?" Again, nothing in his voice was accusatory, merely curious. He was resigned to helping him in whatever way he could, and he'd rather know what he ought to expect.

"A wise one!" Balsam couldn't resist rolling his eyes. He appreciated what his friend was trying to do, but he'd made up his mind. There was no turning back now. Balsam opened his mouth to protest Sota's comment about Velvette, but not only could he not think of a good retort...he knew there was truth to it as well. So he shut his mouth and settled for fixing Sota with an unamused scowl. Sota's question was a welcome respite from his (on point) observations. Balsam was quick to jump on it in the hopes of steering the conversation away from the things he found uncomfortable. "I think I'd just look around for a bit, you know? Get a feel for how the giants live first." He grinned confidently, then added, "Then I think I'll find the best warrior they have and take his tail." There would be no ears taken from Boreas' champion. No, Balsam would settle for nothing less than the best from the best.

He noticed Balsam's rather obvious eye roll, and Sota found his lips pressing together in a tight line in response to the exaggerated expression. Regardless of Sota's rather tame protests, he knew he wouldn't convince Balsam of anything. When his mind was set on something, there was hardly any chance to change his mind about things, so instead of arguing further her simply mirrored the scowl with a much smaller one of his own.

He admitted he planned to just look around and get used to things. And see how the giants lived, of course. "Have you seen any of them yet? The giants, that is?" Sota asked curiously. He had been keeping a safe distance from any strangers so far, and he couldn't help but be wary of running into them. He didn't doubt that he could outrun one, but.. still. The rumors he'd heard of wolves nearly three times his height was a bit nerve-wracking, even if he was bright enough to know that was a slight exaggeration. Perhaps if Balsam had some insight into whether they were terrifying or not, Sota might not feel so uncertain about the whole thing.

But his frown wilted at Balsam's next words. A trophy like that would no doubt earn him Velvette's attention, if nothing else would. But - how dangerous! And yet painfully admirable at the same time. He sighed wistfully. "I don't support your plan, but I better be there when it happens. If I've come all this way to keep an eye on you, I don't want to miss that." Sota doubted he'd ever find a trophy quite like that - though he was quite interested in how his friend planned to get his paws on such a trophy, and the slight grin he wore proved he wasn't entirely displeased with the thought.

Balsam pursed his lips together upon hearing Sota's first question. He hadn't seen a single giant so far. Not one. Given the expression he'd already made it was a little late to play it as though he hadn't seen any on purpose. To be honest the reason he hadn't seen any this far was because he'd gone out of his way not to be seen. He was a little nervous and kind of afraid that if he saw one and they were as big as advertised he'd lose his nerve. BUT he wasn't about to say that part. Nope. "Nope, not a one. Yet. You wanna go looking for one with me?" Perhaps having his best friend beside him would bolster his courage a bit. "Just to watch; I wanna see if they're as big as the Soundless say." He grinned. "And don't you worry. When it's time to take my trophy, I'll make sure you're there. I'm gonna need eye witnesses to tell my story, right?"

Balsam's expression said it all - he hadn't seen any giants. He slowly confirmed it verbally, and Sota nodded in understanding. "Me neither. I've been... keeping my distance," he admitted tentatively, knowing his much meeker nature was no secret to Balsam. "But you're right, we probably should go find one of them. I'm in." Though far from courageous, having Balsam at his side almost always made conquering his fears far easier - and surely this time would prove to be no exception. Just don't say anything foolish when we do, Balsam, he thought silently to himself.. though he knew they were likely faster and infinitely more nimble than those giants, so they truly had little to fear. Not that it would totally quell their worries, of course, but it was a vaguely comforting thought nonetheless.

Sota pulled away, move nimbly to a lower-hanging tree branch in one graceful leap, before glancing over his shoulder at Balsam. "You better make sure I'm there. I'll never forgive you if you don't!" There was a hint of childish daring in his voice, though he knew Balsam was right; the Soundless might not believe overzealous Balsam had earned such a magnificent prize (as he no doubt would) and having an eyewitness would only solidify his story. Surely Balsam wouldn't let him miss that moment. Flashing him a grin he continued on, not so much leading the charge as encouraging Balsam to come after him and then take the lead right from him, as he usually did, and as Sota preferred it.

-exit Sota-