Last time he'd been here a pack owned this place, hadn't been able to come ashore and instead had skirted through the shallows. Observed from afar. But the rising tide had long since washed away what markers they had laid out on the beach and even as he padded further in sore it was obvious the previous residents had taken care to take anything of value with them. A few dug out dens in the forest and empty caches were about all that remained, the wildlife had reclaimed this place almost as if the Ashen wolves had never been there to begin with. Ronan liked the quiet, the stars blazing bright as a cool night settled in. A pleasant reprieve from the sweltering heat of the day.

He found himself in the shallows once more, the surface of the waves reflecting the glowing red of his coat.

Aoede had been alone for a long time now, not that the fact bothered her but she did worry for her brothers. It seemed like the whole family had just fallen apart and splintered into different directions. She hadn’t seen any of her kin in what felt like years now. While she had come to peace with the fact, she did feel a bit morose. They came from such a strong family, one that seemed like it couldn’t be toppled, and now they were nothing but strays and fragments.

She couldn’t say that she was helping that eventuality either. Aoede preferred her solitude for the most part, she was far too independent to join up with a pack. Especially one that did not hold her blood in leadership. The years of loneliness had made her strong, she flourished on her own, which was made obvious in the shine of her dark coat and the condition of her lean body.

Night had settled in over the lands, Aoede had found herself hunting on the small island. Though she was aware that the night made that task slightly more difficult depending on the situation. Very often her glowing stars upon her pelt blended in with the brilliance of the night sky.

She wasn’t the only one and as her paws carried her up the beach she was thankful for her own markings as the man blazed brilliance in the waters. While her galactic markings were a compliment to the sky, his were a burning opposition. Ao couldn’t pretend she did not see him. "Does your fur attract much fish?” She asked in her soft voice as she watched him from the sand. Her mind focusing on survival as it usually did.

"Aoede Regni"

She moved quietly, more agile and sure-footed than most, steps a whispered layer beneath the waves. He startled, a barely subdued shudder ran down his spine at her voice as he squeezed his eyes shut. It was hard to bite back knee-jerk reactions; he was not a violent man or at least he did not want to be.  But the world had made him into a lot of things he didn't want to be, bent him out of shape like rusted twisted metal. His hackles stood up on end, rising between his shoulders and the dip of his back, disapproval dripped from his voice. If she couldn't figure out why he was miffed that was on her, it was pretty self-explanatory as far as he was concerned. Didn't think it was unreasonable to not want to be snuck up on.

"Not that I've noticed." Nor had he ever really tried his paw at fishing. Where he came from the water was heavily polluted, whatever survived in those waters wasn't good eating.

Ronan side eyed her then. Back home he'd never seen the stars, they were nothing but grainy dots in the distance, obscured by smog and whatever other poisons had been thrown up into the sky by those who came before. Seeing those countless galaxies and bright colours smeared across the horizon- it made him feel small. Tiny. She reminded him of that; unfamiliar but beautiful in a way that made his guts twist. That the very circumstances of his birth had denied him of so many things, but that's how life was right? Unfair.

"That all you wanted, small talk?"

Ao became quickly aware that her soft voice startled the vibrant man before her. She hadn’t made much attempt to hide herself, but she naturally fell into the habit of walking softly and hiding her presence. His hackles raised and Aoede prepared to flee in his reaction. His retaliation never came, only words to the contrary of her question. He didn’t notice any more fish attracted to his being because of the glow of his fur, and he wasn’t so happy about replying to her either.

She was about to leave him be, as he didn’t seem eager for company and his return question only backed up this thought. Did she desire small talk? "No, I sought information. If you could catch more fish, perhaps I could attempt the same.” Everything was survival when you were alone. "There’s always more to learn after all.”

"Aoede Regni"

Information. He supposed he couldn't question her line of thought too hard, when he'd first arrived he'd asked a lot of questions to a lot of wolves and spent a great deal of time working out the lay of the land. Realised things were different. And he still couldn't quite come to terms with that, that life could've been so much more- he sucked in a breath, the scent of ocean salt rushed into his nostrils.

"If keeping yourself fed is that much of a concern, why don't you join a pack? Plenty to take a pick from." He gestured with a flick of his tail to the expanse of Boreas inland. Though his gaze lingered forward, watching the distant shadow of Auster beyond the Bifrost.

Ronan was being unfair, he knew that. Letting out a sharp exhale, his brows furrowed as scowled- he didn't like feeling like the bad guy. That wasn't who he wanted to be. Maybe she had her own reasons, like he had his.

"It might be worth a shot for you, your glow...looks like bugs. Fish might be attracted to that."

It seemed she had said the right thing as she told him truthfully that she sought information. She wasn’t a talkative woman, never one to prattle on with no reason. A stark contrast to many of her sex. This quality seemed to soften the man before her, even if only just barely as he acquiesced that her pursuit of knowledge was honorable. Still, he was critical. She obviously had no pack scent on her, and he questioned why she would fret so seriously about food when there were many packs to join.

"Surely you can value the virtue of independence. I dare not rely on others when I could support myself.” She returned easily, not that her opinion was any of his business. He seemed to realize something as he returned to the topic at hand, that perhaps her idea was one to be explored further. Her soft glowing spots were both star like and bug like, of which fish could and would be attracted. "You aren’t wrong,” Aoede paused for only a moment as she regarded him. "I won’t bother you with my attempts though.” He didn’t seem as though he was so eager for company, but she wouldn’t leave immediately.

Ao would never admit that she was lonely, and was eager to take this chance to be social. Just being in the presence of another was rejuvenating in a way that she wished were not true. However much she valued her own company, she couldn’t deny that as a wolf she was a social being.

"Aoede Regni"

Ronan grunted a sound of agreement low in his throat, he'd remained alone because he didn't know who he could trust here. But what had seasons of mistrust gotten him? Not a whole lot, admittedly. Ronan exhaled sharply, because some truths hit harder when uttered aloud, felt unavoidable, like something he had to stare in the face. The thought of asking around rubbed him the wrong way, it felt like begging, as if he'd hit rock bottom and needed to ask- and he didn't want to, his pride bristled at the thought.

If she didn't want to try, Ronan certainly wasn't going to make her.

"So who are you then?" He asked then, not asking for a broad picture, life story response, but something more. A name maybe.

The agreeable grunt told Ao that the man at the very least could see from her perspective. Perhaps he had a different reason for not joining a pack but the sentiment was similar. He seemed lost in thought for a long moment, to the point where he spoke before she headed off in a different direction. She had always been self-sufficient, meeting him here was far from changing that fact. He stopped her, to her surprise, asking about who she was.

In reality Aoede was a nobody. Her family no longer held prominent roles in Boreas or Auster, most of them having disappeared from the lands forever. She was all alone, living by herself, keeping to herself and the shadows. "My name is Aoede, though who I am... No one of note really.” She went on, being oddly truthful. "And you?” She asked curiously in return, her head tilted in question.


"Aoede Regni"

Aoede. Yet another nobody, the thought made the corners of his lips twist just a little, the barest hint of a sardonic smile. Didn't last long though as he inhaled, the ocean breeze sharp with stinging salt in the back of his throat, not painful, just a dull discomfort. Could summarise life in general like that, bunch of hardships and then you died, least that was his experience thus far.

" About the same, Ronan." He told her, not offering his surname since she hadn't. Since they were a pair of nobodies. But then he paused, head tilting, wondering in the silence that lingered, just the waves rolling over their paws. Background noise that fell into place alongside their breathing, the wind rustling the massive palm leaves closer inshore. " Would you be someone, if you could?"

The legends of her forebears were undying, and yet Aoede couldn’t have been more of an unknown soul. So independent and reclusive was she. The woman didn’t mind the company of others, but it was rare that she would go and seek it out. Something told her this man held similar opinions, considering his own answer about being in a pack. Their current interaction would never had happened if he did not sport a similar glow to herself.

He answered, almost verbatim, what she had said. He was no one of note, and offered a name. Ronan. Ao nodded in response, stowing away the name within her memory. The man went on after a long moment of silence, again tempting the reclusive woman to end their interaction. However, his words drew her in more readily. She took what seemed to be an unconscious step forward.

"I would.” She answered after a few moment of thought as her golden eyes fell to her paws. "I have big paw steps to fill, though I doubt that I ever truly can.” Aoede didn’t intend to lament, but her father, her grandfather, and much of her family had gone down in history, but she would be forgotten with the ages. Ao tried to shake off the thought as she looked back to him. "And you?”

"Aoede Regni"