It wasn't all that often that Avacyn found herself alone with all the various wolves she needed to speak with on a regular basis or just from the fact that her and Saracyn were always nearly inseparable. But today she had made some time for herself after her patrol of the Rock Garden to just walk and think for a moment. She climbed up on one of the fallen pillars that made up this broken and decrepit monument from times long past, sighing softly as she slipped out of her armor and put it off to the side with a shake of her violet and black, galaxy marbled fur. The sun was high in the sky and felt nice on her fur as she slid down onto her stomach, her head tipping up to look at the sky where a few stray clouds were floating by. With everything that had been happening lately it had been difficult to find time just to breathe, but she knew that was only going to become even more true as they inched ever closer to the day she was due to take over as Matriarch.

Her ears flicked a bit at the thought. It was something she had been looking forward two for her entire life, something she was proud to do and was excited about, but she was still nervous and now with the added layer of her relationship with Saracyn to consider it had only grown more tangled. She had to have faith that it would all work out in the end, that this was really how it was meant to be, but it was hard to feel settled in that belief when there wasn't a clear answer at the end. She looked down from the sky to her white-tipped paws, her claws flexing and scratching absently at the stone under her. It felt a bit like taking a leap of faith and while she was certain that her brother and family would be there to catch her, she still wished she could see where she was going to be landing.

A soft breeze flowed through, ruffling her fur a bit–and bringing the scent of a predator to her nose. Her lost, absent thoughts suddenly snapped back to the present and her obsidian gaze popped up in the direction of the breeze just in time to see a tiger rounding the corner of a near by pillar. She hopped to her paws with a snarl, only to end up having to scramble backwards and go toppling backward off of the rock she had been laying on to avoid the tiger as it sprang forward toward her. Avacyn landed on the ground opposite the fallen pillar from the tiger with a thud, wincing a bit and quickly rolling back to her feet as she spun back toward the predator with her hackles bristled, growling threateningly to try and get it to reconsider its choices.

"Avacyn Mendacium"

One of the greatest perks of the nomadic lifestyle her family led was getting to be her own alpha. She was the boss, she made the decisions for herself! If she wanted to go exploring or wandering or anything, she was free to do so. And that's exactly what had led Juniper's paws to meander aimlessly around Boreas, just taking in the sights and learning the land she walked on. Her father had always practiced the belief of being truly in tune with your surroundings, and though she had much to learn from her guru parents before she was ever on their level, she wanted to do her best to follow in his paw steps and practice his tribal beliefs as well. So as she walked, Juniper let herself get lost in the nature surrounding her. She drank in her environment, really considering it and paying attention to the finer details of springtime Boreas. The cool ripple of the breeze over the land, the scent of wildflowers blooming and the salt of the nearby sea, the sounds of songbirds in the trees and other local fauna going about their daily lives, the iconic growl of a tiger- wait, what?

Mint green eyes snapped open as another leonine roar echoed out over the hills, coming from a cluster of oddly-shaped stones nearby. There was definitely a tiger over there, which meant the solitary Juniper was definitely not going over there! She was smart enough to not want to die today. Or at least she was until the sound of a lupine growl from the same area pricked her ears to attention again. Oh shit, there was someone else over there with the tiger too? That was enough to give the smaller fae pause, now weighing her options. Sure, she could continue on her way like she hadn't noticed a thing, but what if the other wolf was in trouble? Tigers were formidable adversaries, her mother even hesitated to consider facing one and she was the strongest woman she knew! If someone was in danger, it was her responsibility to help, wasn't it? Her sense of morality winning out over her survival instincts, Juniper turned in the direction of the ruins and sprinted into them, heading in the direction of the sounds of battle.

With her nimble and smaller form, it was easy for Juniper to gracefully leap from stone to stone, moving about the ruins like a bolt of gray and black lightning. Her agility allowed her near limitless movement around the ruins, and as she crested a toppled pillar, she saw the tiger and the wolf. The tiger was a tiger, but the wolf was a rather tall and elegant looking fae, violet in color with a glowing marking on her face. Juniper had never seen a creature like her before! Well, now she absolutely had to help the strange beautiful wolf! From her vantage point, the diminutive fae slunk her way along the pillar, dainty paws moving with lithe grace as she drew nearer to the tiger, and then with a growl of her own she leaped from the pillar onto the tiger's back, claws and fangs biting down into the back of the tiger's neck with all her might. Her stronger jaws afforded her a deeper, more secure grip, but her small mouth could not quite open wide enough to capture the tiger's entire neck to snap its spine in one go, leaving her hanging onto the tiger's back as it yowled in pained surprise and immediately began thrashing and spinning to try and dislodge the little wolf on its back.

"Juniper of the Sea"

Avacyn took a few slow, measured steps back as she lowered her head with her teeth bared at this large cat that had decided to intrude on her day, her hackles bristled and marking glimmering bright from the rush of adrenaline making her heart beat fast in her chest. She had tangled with tigers often enough that she knew how to handle herself around them, though she wasn't usually facing them on her own. She was close enough to the pack that she could have called for help, but she was still hopeful that she could chase the cat off instead of having to really fight–well, that was until a small flash of dark fur appeared from over top the pillar of rock she had previously been laying on. Her dark gaze widened with surprise as she watched a much smaller woman than herself jumped on top of the tiger she was facing off with, grappling onto its scruff and riding the now flailing and spinning feline like an angry bull.

Ava blinked with surprise, dumbfounded by the eccentric and bold move, but she quickly shook off that initial shock so that she could jump in and help her unexpected fighting partner. She shifted from paw to paw, waiting for their opponent to turn away from her, and as soon as the tiger's tail was facing her she launched herself froward. Her large, similarly feline paws latched onto each side of the tiger's hips, her curved, sharp claws sinking deep to stop the tiger's spinning in its tracks and she reached forward with open jaws to bite down hard around the cat's spine at it's lower back. The crushing bite brought her fangs down to the bone as the tiger's roaring yowls filled her ears, but before she could do any permanent damage the tiger surged forward, pulling her off of her back paws and forcing her to let go before she got dragged along by the large cat. She dropped back to the ground and scrambled to right herself, licking the blood from her lips as she glanced around to find the stranger who had jumped into the fight and make sure she was still alright.

"Avacyn Mendacium"

Okay, so maybe leaping onto the back of an enraged apex predator wasn't the smartest of moves, but it had certainly proven effective! Juniper made a fine distraction of herself while she rode the back of the furious tiger to keep its attention away from the violet woman, biting and clawing at the back of the feline's neck and keeping it spinning around trying to whip her off of itself. Being so small, Juniper had learned long ago that taking on a foe one-on-one was a fool's errand, so she adapted her techniques to be the best assistant she could. In this case, it was trying to open up a vulnerability for the much larger fae to take advantage of. Despite the tiger's best efforts, Juniper clung onto its back like an angry tick, refusing to let go. Letting go meant being vaulted off, and being vaulted off meant death. She didn't really feel like dying today, so on she rode, refusing to let her grip go for even a second.

Thankfully, the other wolf seemed to catch on to the unspoken plan pretty quickly. With a snarl, Juniper heard the tiger roar in pain and glanced back to see her battle buddy biting into the tiger's lower back. Woo, score one for the wolf team! But that feeling of success was short-lived when she felt the tiger's powerful body suddenly surge forward, taking her with the tiger as it launched off away from the fight. Juniper barked out in surprise. This was not part of the plan! But she had to make sure the tiger knew not to come back for a round two, so with one more bite to the feline's scruff, June reached down inside herself to activate that reflex that triggered her electric organ, sending a painful shock through the tiger's spine. The predator yowled in shock and pain and continued to flee, bucking Juniper off with a particularly violent thrash that sent the smaller fae tumbling back onto the grass. The little monochrome woman righted herself with a shake of her head just in time to watch a flash of orange disappear behind some ruins.

"Yeah, you better run!" she shouted off after the tiger, a triumphant grin on her face as she sprung to her paws, tail wagging a mile a minute as it hiked in a dominant display over her hips. Woo, what a rush! She couldn't wait to tell her brother how she'd fought off a tiger!

"Juniper of the Sea"

Avacyn had expected the smaller wolf to be bucked off immediately as well or to at least abandon her ride on the large feline once it began to charge off so she didn't look to the back of the cat immediately. Only when a quick glance around told her that her mysterious assistant was no where on the ground beside her did her ebony gaze dart back to the retreating feline and she saw the black and gray girl still attached to the feline's scruff. What she wasn't expecting was the loud yowl from the tiger as she watched the smaller woman bite down on the cat's scruff again and she wondered what the little wolf did to get such a reaction from their opponent. Whatever it was it made the cat thrash like nothing else and it finally freed itself of its assailant as the other wolf went topping to the ground.

With a gasp Avacyn ran forward while the tiger raced off and abandoned the fight, but by the time she had reached the stranger she was already back on her feet, earning a sigh of relief from Avacyn. The taunting retort the gray-dappled girl made as she yelled after the tiger made her smirk and chuckle, glancing up to make sure the tiger was actually gone before she refocused her attention on the newcomer. "Are you alright?" she asked first, a quick sweep of her gaze not finding any noticeable injuries, but she still wanted to be sure. "I'm Avacyn, by the way. Thank you for your help."

"Avacyn Mendacium"

Juniper was still reveling in her victory with threatening growls being issued in the direction the tiger had fled in when the violet wolf she had been assisting came up to check on her. As if flipping a switch, Juniper's fierce demeanor melted away into her normal, much softer facade, blinking up at the tall fae with bright mint green eyes and a wide toothy smile on her face. "Oh yeah, I'm totally fine! Not my first time tussling with one of those oversized striped tabbies," she remarked with a giggle and a nonchalant wave of a paw. "What about you? You're not hurt, right?" June didn't smell any blood on the air—well, except for what they'd gotten out of the tiger—so she didn't think the other woman had gotten hurt, and she certainly wasn't limping or favoring any legs. She was no healer like her father was, but she knew enough about basic triage to be able to spot an injury.

The violet fae introduced herself as Avacyn and Juniper gave a little wag of her tail as she nodded her head up to the tall, leggy lady. "Nice to meet ya, Avacyn! That's a very pretty name. I'm Juniper. But you can call me June if you like, that's what my family calls me," she replied, offering her own name in exchange. A quick sniff of Avacyn taught her a little bit more about the regal-looking wolf before her. "You smell a lot like that pack near here. Is that where you live?" Juniper was definitely not a shy or introverted character, that was for sure. She was by far the most bombastic and outgoing out of her siblings, a firecracker packed into a compact package.

"Juniper of the Sea"

Juniper's smile was contagious as she turned to face her and Avacyn gave a little shake of her head when the much smaller wolf asked if she was hurt. "No, I'm fine, thanks to your help." With their introductions made, Avacyn made sure to commit Juniper's name to memory–not that she thought she'd be forgetting the little spitfire's name any time soon. She had certainly made a big impression for someone so small. "June it is," she agreed with a grin and a soft chuckle, her white-tipped tail wagging behind her gently. She enjoyed Juniper's energy and brightness. It wasn't something that she experienced all that often with her family that so often fell more to the serious side of the spectrum. She knew she didn't get out all that much so perhaps wolves as spirited as June were more common than she thought, but she doubted it.

Juniper picked up on the fact that her scent matched up with that of the pack that sat behind her, questioning if that was where her home was, and Avacyn nodded with a brief glance back over her shoulder at the Elysium borders. "It is... That's Elysium, led by my mother, Manea. Well... for now, at least. I'll be leading it soon, I guess," she explained with a bashful, slightly uncertain smile. It was strange talking about it to someone that didn't know her or her station already. It was something she should probably be more confident or prideful in, but considering she only just met June she didn't want her position to make things weird. It made her realized how little she really socialized with the world outside of Elysium and immediately put that on her mental to do list of things she needed to work on.

"Avacyn Mendacium"

The little fae listened with piqued curiosity and a slightly tilted head while Avacyn explained the pack that she smelled like was named Elysium, that is was her home, and that it was her mother’s pack. Ah, so that made her a princess then. At least, it would have, until Avacyn went on to say it was actually her pack now. Ah, so that made her an alpha! Juniper’s attention perked up, though her casual demeanor didn’t change a bit. Being in the presence of an alpha was nothing new to her. "Oh neat! I guess I should be congratulating you then," Juniper replied with a teasing giggle. "My brother’s an alpha too. Maybe you’ll get to meet him now that you’re an alpha as well." June didn’t know what sort of relationship this Elysium had with the Hallows, if any, but knowing Artorias, he would want to meet this new alpha lady.

Giving her short summer coat a gentle tousle that ended in an energetic tail flick, Juniper turned her minty green eyes out over the ruins they were in. The old, moss covered rocks invited adventure and exploration, but it did make her wonder what other sorts of predators and dangers might be lingering around each corner. But it didn’t intimidate the petite wolf; on the contrary, it just made her want to explore all the more!

"Juniper of the Sea"

Avacyn smiled bashfully at June's congratulations, giving a little dip of her head in response. "Thank you." Luckily it didn't seem to change how Juniper was acting around her, which felt nice, and when she explained that her brother was an alpha also it helped explain why. Avacyn's brows lifted with surprise at the new bit of information and she chuckled as she nodded in agreement to the possibility of meeting her brother now that she was in the same line of work. "I do hope so," she replied, her tail wagging gently behind her. Even though she knew the names of all of the alphas that her mother had met so far from her lessons, she didn't know many of their faces just yet so she couldn't even hazard a guess as to who Juniper was related to based on appearances–not that appearance was always a good indicator of family relationships anyway.

She noticed how June's mint green gaze shifted to look out over the stone ruins and she took the initiative to take a step forward and nod for Juniper to join her. "Why don't we walk around the ruins a bit? Just to make sure that tiger actually got the message," she said with a chuckle. Juniper clearly was able to handle herself and certainly had no shortage of courage, but she got the sense that the little wolf wanted to explore and it made her feel better at least to explore with her and make sure the tiger didn't come back for a round two and catch Juniper on her own. Once they had begun to move through the various crumbling pillars and broken chunks of rock, she asked curiously, "So who is your brother?" Not that it would really impact her opinion of Juniper herself, but it would help to know if she happened to stumble into the relative of an ally or an enemy at the very least.

"Avacyn Mendacium"