It hadn?t been her plan at all to simply up and leave like she had. Well that wasn?t quite right, she?d definitely be returning but she had taken a sudden trip away from Ludicael?s lands, far longer than any of her previous ones. Novella?s intentions had always been to discuss her plan with her siblings first, see if anyone else wished to join her on the search. And of course, such journeys ought to wait until both Symphony and Song had given birth to their children. Though she personally would be no help to her sisters nor would the pups remember those early days, all the same she wanted to be present.
Yet somehow here she was now moving through the Southern parts of Alacritis on what might as well be a wild goose chase. On and on she had wandered, eventually convinced she had come across a familiar scent. After having lost it for quite some time she had her suspicions that the sun had been getting to her though now she stood near the borders of Seracia with an oddly familiar scent lingering.
It wasn?t Myth, not as she had hoped it to be. Little did she know her sister did in fact reside within the lands though wasn?t as regular a visitor to the borders as another family member she was struggling to recall at the moment. The scent still escaped her; so subtle in her mind she was almost convinced she was going mad. She certainly couldn?t ask to see every wolf in Seracia until she placed the scent and with a sigh the young Destruction girl knew she ought to simply turn and head back to Ludicael but for now something had her rooted to the spot, the odd sensation that she was being watched.
Iorwerth hadn?t let slack his duties, both those he was meant to do and those he volunteered for. That being said he still had yet to plan a lesson he could teach to his apprentices, and even to properly meet the two children, apparently it could wait at least a little longer though, finding himself once more walking the familiar paths around the borders of Seracia. There were certainly others that could and would do the job, others that held more power as well if they ran into someone. Never once had it stopped him from trying to help in some form or another though.
Most of the time these patrols just ended up being quiet walks, so far he hadn?t really ever needed to report any details back to another or come across some trespasser that wasn?t actually meant to be there. Today was a different story however it seemed. The air was still, neither scent being carried or even obscured overly well, though his eyes hadn?t failed him and he had seen her standing awkwardly at the edges of the land. She didn?t look as though she was up to any trouble, but he wasn?t about to take any chances.
Striding forwards he was rather confident for a few steps, faltering slightly upon realising he recognised the other. Brow furrowed attempting to recall who this wolf might be and then, suddenly it hit him. She was from Ahlon. ?Novel.? His simple and far from friendly greeting was the best that she was going to get.
Novella tensed slightly as another wolf suddenly came into view. She had barely spent any time with her cousin and certainly didn?t recognise the male, instead all she could see was a member of Seracia now approaching her. She had no real reason to be here, and it was likely now that she would find herself in a spot of trouble. How on earth she would get out of this mess she wasn?t quite sure, all she could hope for was that they would hear her ridiculous story out and decide not to punish her.
?Novel.? The single word that spilt from the male?s lips didn?t suggest any hostility really, although his tone was far from warm. It was spoken with such certainty though that Novella was left feeling a little stunned, after all the name was almost her own, belonging to two other wolves within her family. Was it possible that this wolf knew her? The worry faded away, replaced a slight feeling of bemusement and strong sense of curiosity.
?No. I?m Novella.? No one had ever referred to her as simply Novel; that was her mother?s name after all. She was only ever called Novella or Nov although there had been instances in the past that others had mistaken her for her mother. Could it be that this strange male was now doing the same?
Indeed Iorwerth had been certain when he spoke what he believed to be the female?s name. ?No. I?m Novella.? Now it was his turn to be momentarily confused though his expression did not suggest this for even a moment. His mind studied the facts carefully and it was now that he realised this wolf was in fact younger than he, certainly not the female he had at first presumed it to be. The resemblance was there though and he presumed that it meant this wolf was the daughter of Novel. He supposed the age was about right actually, there had been pups upon his brief stay in Ahlon, and they of course would be adults by now, he in fact knew one of them; Myth Detruction was after all a member of Seracia.
There was no apology for his mistake however or an introduction of his own and instead the man simply moved on to what he felt to be the far more important matters. ?Why are you here, so close to Seracia?? Perhaps she was here to join her sister, though with the scent of another pack still rather potent upon her, he doubted that this was the case. Silently now he awaited her explanation.
The man didn't react all that much to her correction nor offer any name of his own. She hadn't personally spent any time with Iorwerth during his stay in Ahlon, a pup at the time he had paid her less attention than any of the other wolves within the pack. For that reason she still hadn't made the connection that this was her aunt Arelahn's missing son, that obscure brother of Satu and Cirala. All she could assume was at some point or another he had been in Ahlon, a fact that ought to have helped her identify him and yet she still had no idea.
"What are you doing here in Seracia?" Came a rather blunt question, straight down to business with her still left clueless as to who this man actually was. A silly game at least on her end of things but then she couldn't really get in trouble, she hadn't actually crossed completely into the lands, just lingered rather close to their borders. "I was looking for someone." She responded simply. "Who are you? I'm guessing you knew my mother, Novel is her name."
To be fair Iorwerth barely knew the girl, even those he was familiar with received the short and rather cold greetings, this treatment had little to do with the fact she was now so close to trespassing, even if they had met far away from Seracia's lands chances were that she wouldn't have gotten a much warmer welcome at all.
"I was looking for someone. Who are you? I'm guessing you knew my mother, Novel is her name." Iorwerth hadn't given much thought to the matter that she might be a little confused by his abrupt approach, the fact that he hadn't offered his own name as well. It was a typical procedure in meeting others after all, though the standard social conducts had never taken much priority with the man.
"Yes I have met her before. You were just a child then so I suppose you may not recall my visit to Ahlon. I am Iorwerth." She ought to feel rather privileged really, he had offered a little more information than she had asked for.
Novella's mind still whirred away as she attempted to try and recall who this male was. Apparently not a stranger though all the same she couldn't remember seeing him before. No memories came rushing back to her, and all she could think of was the fact that he didn't seem to be a particularly talkative fellow. "Yes I have met her before. You were just a child then so I suppose you may not recall my visit to Ahlon. I am Iorwerth."
Fortunately it wouldn't take him long to speak again though once more there wasn't much information provided. It was just enough though for her to retrieve some memories though, connect the dots and jump to a conclusion. This man was her cousin, son of Arelahn and brother to Satu and Cirala. She'd heard his name mentioned once or twice, though he was indeed a sore subject within the pack certainly not a close relative. Satu's position as Novella's favourite cousin was definitely still safe.
"You're Satu's brother aren't you?" She was rather confident in the idea now, the question more rhetorical than anything else. "She's here as well, part of Ludicael like me." The information that many of the Destruction family resided in the pack was rather important to Novella, Iorwerth was an estranged member though and even she had her suspicions that he wasn't going to suddenly return with her to visit them all.
"You're Satu's brother aren't you? She's here as well, part of Ludicael like me." The phrase was not one that Iorwerth himself would use. They were related by blood, though these days such connections meant very little to him. Family in general wasn't important, they had their bonds already strongly formed and he was nothing to do with it. There was no point interfering with their lives, he simply didn't fit a fact that didn't bother him.
He decided not to comment upon these words. Novella had assumed correctly, there was no way he was about to rush out to visit them all. Such an idea didn't even form in his mind, instead the statement was completely disregarded, the knowledge was of no use to him. Perhaps now would have been the opportune moment to point out that Novella had a sister here in Seracia but he decided to steer clear of the family topic for now and get back to what Novella was doing here. "Who were you looking for?" Had he a better sense of humour or one at all he may have added that she likely wasn't looking for him, of course though the joke didn't spring to his mind.
Novella could have almost believed that Iorwerth didn't hear her words, no reaction showed at the mention of his sister and no comment about her followed. Had someone told her about any of her siblings she would have asked how they were at the very least not completely ignored the statement. How he could act in such a manner she had no idea, all the young Destruction girl knew was that she didn't like it one bit. Her family were all so close and she was realising for herself how little Iorwerth fit into that now.
"Who were you looking for?" That was all he would ask, leaving her rather disappointed, she had hoped perhaps he would prove her wrong and question something about Satu or the rest of the family. A little disheartened she tried to move past the feeling, concentrating once more upon why she was here. "My sister, Myth." She responded, not really sure whether she ought to say any more on the matter. All she expected in a response was something along the lines of 'I've not seen her'.
Well then the girl would be in for a surprise. Iorwerth didn't really speak with Myth much, he regarded her more as another member of the pack than his cousin though it meant that he had most certainly seen her. "You have found her pack." He responded simply. There was no smile upon his face as he spoke, emotions remaining as blank as ever. She would probably be happy, though he honestly found he didn't care about it, to be honest he as about to break that joy anyway.
"You can not see her though." There was still no change of expression as he spoke. At least though he realised she would probably question why and did continue to speak, offering her more information than his blunt statement provided. "She isn't currently here and even if she was I do not have the power to invite you onto the lands. Our current Queen Destruction may allow you to visit if you return, or Myth herself may meet you at the edge."
That would be all he would give her though. As far as he was concerned there was nothing else that needed to be said. "Now, I believe that is all. I must return to my duties and you should leave. Goodbye." The conversation was now over in his mind and without waiting he turned to continue with his patrol. Any other wolf he may have lingered for a little longer, ensure that they would leave though she seemed as harmless as Myth. It was only her sister she was after and he figured Novella would leave now he'd given her all the knowledge that she needed.
"You have found her pack." As Iorwerth had anticipated her expression lit up a little at the news she had found Myth. Why she had chosen to join Seracia and had left Ludical Novella really wasn't sure, but at least now she knew where to find her sister and could return back home to share the good news with the rest of her family.
The next question that would have left her lips was if she could see Myth, perhaps find her inside the territory or have her sister come to meet her. Her cousin was one step ahead of her though with a rather disheartening comment. "You can not see her though." The joy that had once spread across her face had faded now. "Why not?"
"She isn't currently here and even if she was I do not have the power to invite you onto the lands. Our current Queen Destruction may allow you to visit if you return, or Myth herself may meet you at the edge." The response didn't make her feel any better, though at least it wasn't an outright rule that she wouldn't be able to see her sister. Next time she would have to plan a little better, actually bring along some of her family members to see her. The knowledge of which pack she'd joined was better than nothing, though it was still a little upsetting that she couldn't see her this time, it had been far too long since they'd last spoken after all.
"Now, I believe that is all. I must return to my duties and you should leave. Goodbye." Novella got the impression he always meant what he said but she hadn't finished yet, there were still more questions she had. Before there was any chance to respond though he turned his back on her to walk away. "Wait! Iorwerth!" Novella stepped forwards now to move closer and follow him. "I just want to know, is she ok?" At the very least she needed to know that.
Iorwerth had hoped that would be the end of it. He had nothing against the girl though nor did he wish to waste time discussing her family when he had the patrol he wanted to get on with. As far as he was concerned there was nothing more to say on the matter, but apparently he was to be mistaken "Wait! Iorwerth!
A sigh was withheld as he turned to look back to the girl once more. Hopefully she would make this quick, hadn't he made it clear enough he was done? "I just want to know, is she ok?" Well he supposed that was reasonable enough to ask. "Yes, I believe so." He answered simply. "Goodbye Novella." He repeated himself once more, turning again to walk away and continue his patrol.
Mismatched eyes watched his back as he paused, glad when he turned around. It had been a little rude of him to simply walk away like that, even if she was the one that didn't belong in Seracian territory. It was only one little question and she hadn't exactly kept him long, nor did she find she really wanted to bother him for too much longer.
"Yes, I believe so." It was a simple enough answer though she doubted she would get any more detail from Iorwerth. She'd simply have to ask Myth more when she saw her, and she would see her. A part of her was tempted to ask him to let Myth know she'd tried to visit though as he turned once more she thought it best not to push her luck. "Goodbye Novella."
"Thank you. Bye Iorwerth" She called back, gaze lingering for a moment before she too turned to begin her journey back home. She certainly didn't expect him to turn around at all but a part of her almost hoped that he would. She could certainly see why her aunt and cousins didn't have all that much to do with him, seemed that he wouldn't allow the chance for starters. All the same, she'd let Satu know that she'd seen him when she got back to Ludicael.
