He could tell that this wasn't the scent he was looking for, but he didn't see a reason to pass up introducing himself to a new pack either. He had gone looking for the pack that Jackson had spoken of that Xephyris had started, but on his way through the East toward the North he caught the scent of a pack he wasn't familiar with. Curious, he turned his path a little bit to head toward the scent. It didn't take him long to find the telltale scent markers of a pack. How interesting! He didn't know so many new packs had been springing up lately. He hadn't been out on any diplomatic trips recently thanks to trying to keep up with his quickly growing children. They were adults now though and it was high time he put a bit more focus on pack relations. He stopped a comfortable distance from the pack in question's borders and lifted his head to call for the alpha. His tone didn't have any real urgency to it. It was just a curious, friendly visit after all. He let the howl fade into just an echo before he sat back on his haunches to wait for whoever might come to greet him. "Talk" "You" Think

I SEE ANOTHER MOUNTAIN TO CLIMB BUT I GOT STAMINA

Fog rolled around the mountains, slipping through the trees on a surprisingly quiet autumn morning. The typical bustle of forest creatures silenced by the darkening clouds overhead that threatened rain at any moment. A rain that might be one of the last before winter moved in. Gathering had been going reasonably well she supposed but Karabela wished they were making more progress. Even though they weren't in the north the altitude and forbidding terrain of Fenrir's maw was likely to make this one of the most difficult winters she'd ever attempted to weather. Well, she wanted a pack built on vigilance and perseverance and this was certainly one way to do it.

Karabela rose to her feet at the sound of a howl on the borders. A new member perhaps? Swiftly she descended down from her perch. Her body was growing more used to the terrain by the day and she navigated nimbly down toward her border where a russett, blue-eyed man waited. "Greetings, I'm Karabela Thyre, Chieftan of Ivory Ridge. Is there something I can help you with?"

"Speech"

He was glad that he didn't have to wait too terribly long for someone to appear. He still wanted to make it to Xphyris' pack before sun down so he didn't want this detour to hold him up too much. He'd still give this pack just as much attention though. He offered the woman that came to greet him a pleasant smile and a small, respectful nod of his head as she introduced herself. "It's a pleasure, Karabela. I'm Leo, the King of Fiori. I happened to catch scent of your pack as I was passing through and wanted to stop by and introduce myself. I don't make it up to the north very often so I figured I better take advantage of the chance." He chuckled softly and shifted his weight a bit to stand more comfortably on the uneven terrain under paw. "I always enjoy seeing new packs appear. You seem to get around here pretty well. Has your pack been here long?" "Talk" "You" Think

I SEE ANOTHER MOUNTAIN TO CLIMB BUT I GOT STAMINA

Oh, another alpha? Karabela's attention sharpened slightly. So far she'd been going to visit the other packs and she hadn't expected one to show up at her border. The visit made her both anxious and excited. Slowly word of Ivory Ridge had to be getting out to the other packs and she could only wonder what that word was and what it would mean for her pack. The man named himself as Leo, the King of Fiori and she would nod in recognition. She knew of Fiori though she didn't know anyone there currently, let alone it's ruler. She only knew that her aunt Birna had lived in Fiori for a time.

"It's nice to meet you Leo. I am dimly familiar with Fiori. My aunt resided there while the pack was under the rule of… oh goodness, I'm awful with names. Epiphron?" She certainly hoped she had the name right or it would've been terribly embarrassing. He seemed pretty amiable. "Oh, we haven't been here to long. We were founded this summer. You know I'm glad you stopped by, I've been visiting the other packs and planned to visit Fiori as well. Ivory Ridge is very interested in establishing trade with other packs. Is this something you would be interested in?"

"Speech"

Leo's brows lifted with interest when Karabela mentioned that her aunt had lived in Fiori while his mother had run the pack. He smiled and gave her an affirmative nod when she correctly guessed Epiphron's name. "Yes, that's right. She's my mother." He was of course curious about who her aunt was, but she went on to answer his question and brought his attention back to the task at hand. So they were still fairly new then! How exciting! He remembered that initial excitement and burst of energy he had when he first took over Fiori and that hadn't even been a whole new pack. Fiori was already fairly well established when he took the reigns. He could only imagine what creating a whole new pack would be like. His expression showed his curious interest when she offered to establish a trade between their packs. That wasn't something that he had been offered before. Well, no, there had been one other, but nothing had ever come of it. He hummed thoughtfully and gave her a small nod, replying, "I'm certainly interested in hearing more about it and learning more about what type of trade you have in mind. I don't see why not though." She certainly had his attention at the very least. It was always interesting to see someone trying something new - or new to him at least. He settled down on his haunches to listen with his ears turned toward her. "Talk" "You" Think

I SEE ANOTHER MOUNTAIN TO CLIMB BUT I GOT STAMINA

Karabela was pleased with herself for guessing the name correctly and not to surprised to learn that Leo was Epiphron's son.  It made sense that the pack would pass down the line.  She wondered if she'd ever have a legacy like that, of keeping her pack afloat long enough to pass it onto someone.  Of course, she didn't really plan on having any kids so that made this line of thinking rather pointless.  While she could take on an apprentice Karabela hoped to be ruling herself for another 5 years or so if she could manage it.

"At the moment I'm just interested in traded goods.  Seeing if there are items and resources in other packs that might be of interest to me and my members and, likewise, if we have anything of interest to you."  Karabela supposed that in the future these trade agreements could expand to borrow pack members in a similar manner to Abaven or allowing temporary hunting on each others packlands but being as private as she was she was in no hurry to allow strangers onto Ivory Ridge lands. "Our home is also the home of many mountain dwelling creatures such as bighorn sheep and mountain goats.  I'm willing to barter horns and bones and eventually skins though as this is our first winter I prefer to keep the pelts for my members.  We have a selection of rare herbs as well as minerals and unusual stones.  I also have a member who makes unusual drinks.  I can see how he'd feel about bringing samples.  What of you?  What resources does Fiori have?"

"Speech"

Leo listened with interest while the fellow alpha described the kinds of things that she was interested in for trades as well as what her pack had to offer for their end of the trade. He could certainly see the usefulness of them, especially for his sister with her healing. He'd have to keep the possibility of pelts in mind for next year. He was sure that it didn't get nearly as cold back home as it did here in the mountains, but having some furs to line the dens never hurt in the winter. Especially for nursing mothers and pups. He hummed thoughtfully when she opened the floor for him to list what he could offer on his end. "I imagine herbs would be our most plentiful resource to offer. The mangroves are pretty full of all sorts of them in the warmer months. My sister Amalia would be more helpful than myself in telling you exactly which ones they are. She got the healer genes I'm afraid." He chuckled softly at himself before he went on to add, "Most of our prey is on the smaller side. Hares, deer, fish, the like. Honestly what Fiori has an abundance of is healers and scholars. And water. We have plenty of water." He grinned a little at his joke. He knew this was a serious negotiation, but he couldn't help himself. He was too much of a joker to not slip a little one in there. Of course he'd trade water if she really wanted it and had a way to transport it. "I'd be willing to trade lessons from some of my members for goods if you have any use for them. Otherwise I think the only thing we have for trade at the moment is herbs."

I SEE ANOTHER MOUNTAIN TO CLIMB BUT I GOT STAMINA

Karabela was a firm believer that you had to give a little to gain a little but she hoped she wasn't being to open about her resources. Honestly, she doubted any one would challenge for Ivory Ridge. Having the base in such difficult terrain should, she hoped, dissuade any would-be rivals from laying siege to her budding pack but perhaps she should have been more careful. Well, only time would tell and anyway Leo seemed like a genial soul.

He would go on to explain their resources, mention herbs and mangroves which led her to immediately pin him in a warmer climate. That would definitely be helpful. Fenrir's Maw was rich in herbs true enough but it was a lot more work for a much smaller haul. Being able to trade for some base supplies would certainly be useful. Raba grinned as he chuckled. "No problem there! I'm no healer myself so I'd have to ask my healers what would be most beneficial to them. Perhaps we could arrange a gathering? A joint meeting of our healers at some mid-distance location? "

The small game was of some interest to her but with the newly acquired hunting territory she was fairly comfortable with game. Fiori mentioned an abundance of healers and scholars. Ivory Ridge was doing fine with healers but she wasn't quite sure what to make of 'scholars'. "Scholars? Can you elaborate?" She chuckled at his mention of water. Well, if she had a reasonable way to store it that might not be a bad idea but they were doing reasonably well on water and anything she tried to store would likely freeze anyway.

I'd be willing to trade lessons from some of my members for goods if you have any use for them. Otherwise I think the only thing we have for trade at the moment is herbs.

Karabela nodded. "I think that would be an excellent idea. Do you have anyone particularly skilled in hunting? My niece is young, resourceful and a quick learner but I feel she would excel faster with a good instructor. I can ask my other members as well if they'd be interested." Of course, she also planned to see if Tonrar could instruct her niece but at the moment they were so short on Defenders she imagined he was quite busy.

"Speech"

Leo readily nodded in agreement at the sugestion that they meet again somewhere between their packs with their healers so that they could trade herbs with someone who actually knew what they were doing present. "That's a great idea." When Karabela requested more clarification on what a scholar is he realized that it wasn't as obvious as it felt like to him. "Oh! Of course. The scholar rank is pretty much for anyone that wants to study something other than healing, hunting, or fighting. For the most part it's our navigators. One woman is fluent in another language. There are a couple that are older that have decided to be scholars just by pure virtue of having wisdom to pass on and not wanting to be a hunter or fighter any more." He hoped that was a clear enough explanation. He nodded at the question of a skilled hunter, saying, "Yes, one of my nephews has gotten quite good at hunting. Our lead hunter is a great teacher as well, but she had pups here recently. I'm sure she'll be back at it soon enough, but I wouldn't want to rush her back to her post either." He smiled, pleased that this meeting had gone so well. "I'm sure either of them would be happy to give your niece a lesson. Perhaps we can make a group lesson and trade day out of it. Meet somewhere half way and let our healers trade while Bright Moon or Jackson leads a hunting lesson?" "Talk" "You" Think

I SEE ANOTHER MOUNTAIN TO CLIMB BUT I GOT STAMINA

All this talk of mutual meetings and exchanges of knowledge had Karabela excited for spring. All they had to do was survive the winter but she was confident in herself and her members and she knew they could weather whatever winter decided to dish out. She listened with interest as Leo described his scholars, particularly his mention of his navigators. The older wolves made her think of her Elder rank though of course her pack was to young for the rank to be utilized yet but she liked the idea of gathering knowledge to pass on. "I see, it seems like a wise rank to have. My navigators usually take up the rank of Traders and invest themselves in learning about the earth and its resources and in particular how we can best utilize the treasures we've been given. Perhaps some time we might be able to exchange various pieces of knowledge."

She was glad to hear that Leo had a set of good hunters in his pack. Dagmær would be thrilled! Karabela nodded at the mention of the healer with pups. "Perfectly understandable. Yes, if your nephew wouldn't mind I'm sure Dagmær would enjoy learning from him." She was fine with them hunting on the steppe or in a one of Fiori's territories but a neutral meeting place seemed a fair compromise and she nodded eagerly. The only place she would not allow strangers to hunt was Fenrir's Maw and more for the safety of her potential trading partners than anything else. The mountains would be particularly treacherous to those that did not live among them.

"Excellent! That sounds like a plan to me. Do your people celebrate the Solstice? Perhaps we could plan the event for then. Well… the hunting anyway. I suppose herb gathering would have to wait unless we held the event in lands farther to the south. If you're looking for a territory between ours I believe Redbud Nook would be a good choice."

"Speech"

Leo was very pleased with how this meeting had gone. He wasn't sure if he'd ever had such a productive first meeting with another alpha in the past. Generally it felt like a hey how are you kind of meeting, but there were plenty of plans to be had this time around and he was excited about them. He listened with interest while Karabela described the more specialized Trader rank her pack had and hummed thoughtfully. He could see how that would come in handy, especially when trading seemed to be a big focus for this group. He nodded happily in agreement when she mentioned learning from Jackson. He was positive his nephew wouldn't mind. Knowing Jackson he would probably enjoy the chance to meet some other wolves and be useful. "I don't believe we've ever celebrated the Solstice in particular, but we've never been one to turn down a celebration of any kind!" he replied with a light laugh. "Yes, the Nook was what I had in mind as well." It was a good place in between the two packs and would be a comfortable area for all the things they had planned. "Should we aim for the spring perhaps? We might have better chance with herbs and prey then." "Talk" "You" Think

I SEE ANOTHER MOUNTAIN TO CLIMB BUT I GOT STAMINA

Karabela couldn't help but grin. She was enjoying Leo's company and felt she could learn much from the older alpha. Already the meeting was going smoothly and she looked forward to the events between Fiori and Ivory Ridge. She hoped her members would feel the same. She nodded. "I don't have many traditions myself so I can't say we've celebrated the solstice but I know there are some who do and I'm all for starting new traditions. However, yes, I think you're right. Spring would be more beneficial and we can do the herbs and hunting together."

"It's been wonderful talking with you Leo. I think this will be an excellent opportunity for both our packs. Come spring feel free to call on me or I shall come to you and we can finish the arrangements. I won't keep you any longer, I'm sure you're a busy man."

"Speech"

Leo was glad that he had made the detour now. All pack meetings were generally worth his time, but this one had been particularly productive and interesting. He could tell that Karabela was going to be a wonderful leader and he was excited to see their packs work together. He nodded gratefully when she mentioned not keeping him any longer. He still had another pack to visit and he wanted to get back home by tomorrow afternoon at the latest if he could. "I absolutely will. I'm excited to be able to work with your pack soon! It's been a long time since Fiori has been able to collaborate with someone like this. I've enjoyed talking with you and I'll see you again soon, Karabela." He smiled then and gave a dip of his head before he turned to head away from Ivory Ridge's borders. He was still working through ideas and plans for their gathering in his head as he walked. At least he would have something entertaining to plan on his journey home. - exit - "Talk" "You" Think