Zephyr was.. surprisingly tired. Though it was not long after midday, it was dark in these caves and could've been the midst of night here, for all he knew. The dark-furred male made his way slowly through the twisting turns of the underground labyrinth, with no apparent goal in sight.

He'd been wandering on his own for awhile now. Though it had been quite some time since he'd seen his mentor, being away from him was not completely unusual. They had lives of their own - though it often felt as though the other man was very much his other half these last few years - but he still found himself alone more frequently than not these days. His pale, sea-green eyes were narrowed into tiny slits as he peered into the darkness of the cavern, his gaze wary and calculated as he assessed what lay within. He'd already traveled a fair distance into the somber place, curious about what lay within. The aroma of the place was quite unusual, and he found himself wondering what may lurk in the darkness.

Paws carried the massive man deeper into the shadows. He was cautious, always on high alert - his friend and mentor had taught him this much. Letting his guard down was something that didn't happen anymore. Not since.. that day. Zephyr tried to not think of it anymore, but the memories crept in still, like water through cracks, wearing at his surface. Briefly he would shake his head, as though the motions would relieve the heavy thoughts from his mind.

Instead of dwelling on it further, he would decide to venture further into the caverns. It was damp and stale here, and his nose twitched as he examined the air. A soft grunt fell from his lips as he felt the slick cave floor give way beneath him, though quickly he regained his footing. He swore he heard a soft clicking again - it almost sounded like nails against the stone, constant and irritating - and he found himself scowling at the sound. Little did he know, it wasn't a real noise at all. He noted his head felt strangely light, not in an entirely unpleasant way, but he figured it was mostly due to the lack of fresh air here.

His jaw tightened as he stifled a yawn, venturing deeper into the caves, his posture slowly slackening as he grew more certain he was the only one here. Danger, while always present, did not seem to want to trouble him today.

She wasn't quite sure what brought her here. Wandering was about the only thing she could do until she found somewhere permanent to stay. She'd been wandering for a while - most of it was escaping from her past. Between getting kicked out and then seeing her old pack lay in shambles, well that hadn't been the most welcoming of sights. Her mind often flitted back to the day she'd almost killed the kid and she got angry and upset all over again. It really had been an accident. Why did Caelum have to act like she'd done it on purpose?

A part of her was still bitter about it. It was almost as thought karma had come around and punished the white and black marked woman, but the whole pack hadn't deserved that. Wolves had died, gotten injured, and she wasn't even sure who all was alive if any of them even were. No, that hadn't all been karma. It'd been cruel and undesirable, even if she had been angry with her old Alphess. She would have never wished that upon all of them.

She found herself pining for the old days as she walked. Would she ever find anywhere that she comfortable in? Starting all over again didn't exactly sound tempting. She had no doubt in her ability to make new friends, but she certainly was a bit weary of it. How long until she did something stupid again. "Probably not long." she chuckled to herself. She had a pretty good knack for finding dangerous and stupid things. That or they found her.

A save caught her attention and she delved into it without thinking. She didn't mind the damp darkness that soon enveloped her as she left the warm sunlight. Eventually a strange scent hit her nose (she couldn't smell Zephyr at all) but she didn't think too much of it. In her experience caves always smelled a little funny because of the lack of sunlight.

She walked deeper and a strange sensation eventually overcame her. It came on quick do to her small size and she easily became light headed as she made her way through the twists and turns of the labyrinth. She didn't think about getting lost and eventually put all her time and effort into making sure that she didn't stumble through the dark. Her eyes had adjusted somewhat and vaguely she could make out the form of a wolf ahead of her.

"Hello?" She called out curiously.

"SPEAK"

His ears seemed to swivel constantly atop his head, constantly searching for sounds in the distance. This place was dangerous, in a way - he was fully aware that he would have nowhere to run if anyone chose to ambush him here. Perhaps it was a risk he shouldn't be so eager to take. It was too late now, though. If someone had followed him here, he'd have to fight his way out now. His jaw set in a solid line as he continued his descent into the caverns, one careful stride at a time.

This place was quite unlike anything he'd seen before. It was similar, in some ways, to places he'd explored before. But the scent was something new entirely. The smell of this place was musky and dank, which was not uncharacteristic of underground structures like this, but something just plain smelled.. different. Unusual. He couldn't quite place what was strange, but he felt slightly on edge here - and wondered, suddenly, if he'd made a mistake coming here in the first place.

A voice, soft and so distance it was hardly audible at all, caught his attention. His posture stiffened suddenly, instinctively. He wasn't even sure that it was a wolf's voice at all. The brute's head swung to the side, nostrils flaring as he searched for the source of the sound before he really found himself ambushed. A quick sniff of his perimeter told him only one wolf was approaching, which made him relax just slightly. The air was still here, and he only caught wind of her when she was almost too close to miss.

The scent was familiar, in an off-handed sort of way, though he didn't quite grasp who it was. Through the shadows he saw the shape of another wolf, dim light of the caverns just barely revealing the dark-furred woman He retracted when she spoke a simple greeting, his stomach tightening in uncertainty. Something about her, though he could barely even see her, made his fur stand on edge. He was uncomfortable, which was a rarity, though these days it seemed more frequent a feeling around strangers - or what he presumed was a stranger.

Slowly, ever so slowly, his vision of her became more clear. Though his eyes had gotten somewhat used to the nonexistent light of the caverns, suddenly everything seemed harder to make out than before. His head was spinning and he found himself shifting his weight from one side of his body to the other, feeling unsteady. "You following me?" he'd reply a bit gruffly to her question, eyes narrowed to get a better look at her across the distance that he'd widened.  He couldn't help but wonder where the sudden uneasiness in his chest had come from, but he was more concerned about why someone had followed him here.. and what the fastest route out was.

Asha was fearless in the face of everything. Dark scary cave? Go right in! Doing something that was both dangerous, stupid, and reckless? No problem! She probably wasn't seen as the brightest of wolves with all the things she had done in her life. One would have thought she'd learned her lesson when her friend had nearly died that day in the river, but Asha couldn't bring herself to change. It was too ingrained in her nature for her to be anything else other than her. She absolutely had to do things that others wouldn't dare do in their own life times. What was the point of living if you didn't live life on the edge and enjoy yourself?

It was why she was plunging into this deep, dark, smelly labyrinth in the first place. She barely noticed the strange dizzying feeling she had in her head or the way she occasionally stumbled some times. She wasn't the most graceful at times so it almost seemed normal (despite the light headed feeling she had.)

She wasn't afraid of the stranger she'd already discovered - she would have been more excited if she actually recognized who it was. She couldn't pick out any defining features of the male except that he was considerably taller than her and had a dark pelt. Both of those things were a pretty normal constant in her life. She was almost always shorter than everyone and plenty of wolves had dark pelts. Even her own was the same way.

The voice that answered her back was gruff and yet the tone was almost familiar. She could smell him now and that had an air of familiarity to it as well and yet it didn't quite ring any bells in her head. Instead her own eyes narrowed as she tried to figure it out, but her brain was pulling a blank. She had no idea who this man was so instead she shrugged and wasn't at all put off by his question.

"Now why would I wanna go and do a thing like that?" She smirked. She probably could have just said no, but that was no fun, was it? "Calling me a stalker?" Now her tone was sarcastic and teasing. Who cared if she didn't know him? The reaction was going to be the fun part.

"SPEAK"

He was wondering now if he should've come here at all. Without his mentor's guidance, he found himself feeling more.. aimless. Maybe reckless was a better word for it. Feeling rather on-edge now that he'd caught the scent of someone else - and heard the gentle clinking of claws as the apparently stranger made her way toward him - he found himself really regretting this decision. Not that he was particularly afraid, just wary and uncertain. Zephyr's nose twitched a bit frantically as he tested her scent, as though cataloguing it to memory in case he needed to remember her later.

Eyelids narrowed pale green eyes as he searched for her. Her silhouette was clear enough, but due to the distance her features were all but unrecognizable. The voice made his stomach tighten even more - his nose wrinkled and discomfort at her presence, even if he couldn't fully tell why. "Perhaps you can't resist my presence," he retorted without thinking, a soft snort echoing into the caverns, pinging off the walls and creating a soft echo in the distance. The sound was disorienting, and he shook his head to focus his attention again on Asha. She didn't seem much like a stalker, not really, but how could one be certain?

"It seems like--" his voice cut off, suddenly, as he took a few steps closer. He knew her. Quite well, too. The recognition hit him suddenly, quite painfully, and he felt an unbearable weight bearing down on him. How could it be? He'd looked for her, but she'd been gone. Weren't they all dead? Except Caelum. It'd been years since he'd seen her. His throat tightened as he froze, unable to speak or even think. He'd never considered that she might still be alive, not for so long - the hope was too difficult to live with. Never knowing if he'd find any of them again. It'd been easier to accept the worst, and slowly deal with his loss as the years went on.

But now, he felt like he could barely breathe. "A-Asha?" Another few slow, wary steps were taken. All the walls he'd build around himself over the years seemed to crumble, and he felt strangely vulnerable. As his eyes adjusted to her, he knew he was right. It was her, though she was older now, but he had no doubt about it. He was frozen though, hardly able to move a muscle as he stared and swayed on his paws where he stood.

ooc: So this post is kinda M for mature xD Just warning people

She rolled her eyes, she couldn't help herself, as the male replied with a snort. As if she'd wanna be that crazy stalker type to follow some strange man she didn't know into a cave. What was she gonna do, make him her sex slave? That would work out marvelously. She thought sarcastically to herself. Cause I totally have a dick to make others do what I want. She snickered softly to herself before grinning at him.

"Yes, I'm totally that crazy chick that follows a strange man into a cave, cause you're so alluring."

She was going to get herself into trouble one day with her mouth but she couldn't help but say the first things that came to mind. It was hard to focus on keeping her mouth in check when he spoke again. His words stopped mid sentence and she cocked her head to the side. It seemed like what? What on earth did he have to say? Her brows furrowed now as she tried to guess, but nothing came to mind. It didn't seem like he was going to finish his sentence either.

"A-Asha?"

Her eyes widened now. What? How did he know her name? And he called her a stalker! She took a closer look at him in the darkness and even dared to take a step closer. There was this nagging at the back of her brain that she couldn't quite put a paw on. He looked ... well he looked kind of familiar. She took in his scent again and then her brain put two and two together. Oh! But there was no way ... she hadn't seen him ... she hadn't seen him since that night. Her brows furrowed further together as she stared at him uncertainly. She was positive it was him though. He smelled different, looked older, but it was him alright. That realization hit her like a ton of bricks and her joking sarcastic demeanor left her entirely.

"Zephyr?" She breathed, her voice barely audible. She felt like she was looking at a ghost.

"SPEAK"

Before he even recognized her, something about this woman seemed familiar. The quick, effortless way she spoke back to him was impressive - shouldn't she, instead, be timid of being trapped alone in a cavern with a strange man? That was the impression he got from most lone women he met. At the very least, they were cautious. But nothing about this woman seemed the least bit wary of him. He couldn't decide whether this trait made her bold, or foolish. Perhaps a bit of both would be accurate. He was a bit wary of her himself, though her next statement brought a cold laugh from his lips. He knew he was not alluring in the least -- and truthfully, he didn't try to be, but it made him laugh nonetheless. Perhaps many years ago he had been more charming, but now.. that sort of companionship was far from his mind.  "You sound a bit crazy even if that's not what you're doing," he'd quip back, before the entire mood of their conversation changed.

It took him a long moment to process who he was talking to, even after he said her name. Asha. She'd been his best friend - and a horribly sore spot in his relationship, much of the time. She'd gotten kicked out of the pack. Caelum seemed to think she was, somehow, at least partially at fault for what had happened. Not that he even knew what had happened. Caelum had been weak.. too weak to protect the pack. But he had been gone, too. Seeing Asha. You could've saved them. You know you would've fought til your very last breath to save them. He had always been a loyal man, to those he loved and those who looked up to him. What had gone wrong? The memories were strong, too strong, but he stood strong and stared.

His name on her lips nearly made him crumple to the ground where he stood. His body sagged, limbs bending at their joints and begging to collapse; but it'd been too many years for him to give in now. Hadn't he come to terms with all these emotions? He blamed Caelum, had blamed her for a long time, but this.. it was difficult to relive, as he finally got a better look at Asha's familiar face. It was aged and different now, but strikingly familiar all the same. A long-lost friend, one he'd assumed dead for many years, had come back to haunt him. "You.. you're dead," he uttered, though she stood here in the flesh, as real as anyone he'd ever seen before. But he felt his head spinning, felt faint and suddenly nauseous, though his face was as stony as ever. It contorted only slightly, in apparently frustration as he took a few steps closer. "You died that night," he said again, more a rhetorical statement than anything else, nose wrinkling as he got a better whiff of her scent. It smelled like home, in a way, and he felt his heart clench painfully in his chest at the realization of her continued existence.

Crazy. It certainly hadn't been the first time she'd been considered a bit eccentric and it certainly wouldn't be the last. She took pride it stepping outside the normal guidelines of "proper" behavior. She liked making things wild, troublesome, and most of all fun. What was the point of living if you couldn't enjoy yourself? She said what she wanted, did what she pleased, and overall was very much a giant child more times than not. She accepted the term crazy as a compliment.

For once in her life no witty or sarcastic remarks came to mind. She was just left dumbstruck and gaping as realization slowly dawned on her. How was this even possible? She'd come here for a new start and yet here her past was to haunt her. She hadn't even known that any of them were still alive and yet his scent and tall lengthy form was certainly recognizable. She highly doubted her mind was playing tricks on her. What the hell was he doing here and if he was here did that mean Caelum was as well? Her mood soured slightly at that thought.

"You.. you're dead,"

She rolled her eyes at this statement. She hadn't missed the way his body seemed to sag. Her own limbs seemed oddly out of place and not connected to her at all. She was still reeling with the fact that her old friend was here. Silver eyes watched him as he took a step forward and spoke again. She resisted to roll her eyes again and instead made a show of checking her own body out for a minute. She knew she was alive, she hadn't been anywhere near the pack that night - not until the aftermath, so there was no way she was dead. She looked back up at him and suppressed a wry smile.

"I don't know about you, but I feel pretty alive." Joking. That was the solution to all tense situations.

"SPEAK"

There were few times in his life when he'd been utterly speechless. Usually he could come up with something, even in the most awkward of times, even though he'd been largely on his own lately. He'd grown more fond of avoiding company these last few seasons, but he didn't expect to find himself so stunned. But he hadn't expected this, either, not in a hundred years.  His jaw clenched tightly as he tried to steady his thoughts and the sudden, rapid beating of his heart in his chest.

Years ago, he would've never greeted her so.. uncomfortably. They'd always had a playful, friendly air to their friendship - they could joke and roughhouse, a welcome break from the sometimes too-serious air of pack leadership. He'd cared about her more than he did about most, despite Caelum's vocal dislike of her. He couldn't help but remember that it was her fault that he hadn't been there to protect his family, and his pack. If Caelum had never banished her, he wouldn't have to sneak out to visit her. Briefly, his eyes closed as the memories flooded him. Thinking about it all was difficult for him to bear and rendered him temporarily silent.

Her own response was so.. refreshingly characteristic of her. She didn't greet him as one might greet a long-lost friend, nor did he greet her with any sort of sadness. Just.. her typical sass, unchanged over the years. He almost grinned, almost, but fought back the shifting expression as he tried to keep his rising emotions at bay. Truthfully, he'd never felt any less alive, but that wasn't something he was going to share with her. "What's it look like?" he'd retort sharply, his voice taking on a slightly harder edge now. But he took another step closer. She looked older, but not much different than he remembered. He couldn't tell if he was more anxious or relieved at seeing her, though he tried to give away no indication of either. "Why, do you really think I'm that easy to kill?" He hadn't reflected on Asha's well-being as much as Caelum's, truth be told, and he hadn't spent much time preparing for this reunion, since he never thought it'd come. His nose wrinkled as he stared at her, unabashedly, though not without uncertainty as he waited.

She had to admit that it was very weird meeting him in this strange cavern. The light headed feeling was only increasing by the second, yet she just chalked that up into running into an old friend. Friend was probably the wrong term for it really, she'd always felt something a bit more for the male, but he'd always been with Caelum. She shoved those thoughts down into the deepest recesses of her mind. Despite the fact Caelum wasn't here - well there was no telling if she wasn't lingering somewhere nearby. Had they traveled here together? She silently hoped not. She was still angry about being kicked out of the pack. That grudge would never go away.

She chuckled at his retort and rose a paw to try and poke his chest with it. He seemed as solid as ever and she highly doubt that he was dead. Seeing ghosts just didn't quite seem like something her mind could conjure up. He looked about as real as he ever did. A little older maybe, his features a bit more weather-worn, but still the same old Zephyr. She hadn't realized how much she'd missed seeing his face. She'd missed their friendly banter and she was glad this wasn't some heart felt reunion. She could just be her regular sassy self around him.

"Aw I never doubted you for a second, however I'm a bit insulted that you thought I died. Killing me is like fighting a grizzly bear, I just won't die." She joked.

"SPEAK"

Time had changed so much for him. Never would he have been so shaken up by Asha's mere presence. It was refreshing, though painful at the same time - he thought briefly on how much had changed and how much he had lost in turn. Not only his mate, not only his children, but his friends too. Clash and Asha and all the others, vanished like a breath of white smoke on a winter's day. Some, he'd seen die. Others, their fates had been created inside his head, always changing, but he'd never envisioned a reunion. No, not really. He was held captive by the uncertainty, rendered temporarily silent and stunned as he stared and made out her features better in the darkness. One at a time, she became clearer to him. Her dark mask made it more difficult to see her well, silver stare piercing his own in the near-darkness, her gaze too familiar.

He wouldn't have been able to speak, he was fairly sure, if she hadn't made an effort to lighten the mood. Zephyr wondered if speaking to him was as effortless as she made it seem, or if she was just good at hiding her emotions. She'd never really been one to show much of that side of herself, even when they'd been close friends. He found himself cracking a faint grin at her words, shaking his head.  Taking a step forward, he gentled leaned toward her and bumped his snout against her shoulder in a friendly gesture. "I don't know about that one," he quipped, though his voice had a serious tone.  "I could certainly put up a fight against you?"  Amusement danced in his eyes, tail flicking gently behind him.  "Been awhile, Asha. How has time treated you?" The more light-hearted tone fell from his voice; his question was a serious one and he had no reason to disguise it as anything but.

The truth was, this was hard for her. She found it hard to be in his presence when it brought back so many memories. Most of them were good - she'd always valued her friendship with Zephyr. It'd been an easy and laid back experience and he'd always been there for her. It also reminded her of Caelum and her banishment from the pack. She'd been so angry and she still hurt over it. How could one stupid mistake cost her everything she'd known and cared about? Then the night a lot of the pack had been either killed or scattered to the wind. It was really hard not to think she was staring at a ghost. She hadn't stuck around to find out how everyone was, but she'd smelled a lot of blood. Most of all she felt relieved he was still alive. It meant she still had the possibility of keeping her best friend around. She knew it probably wouldn't be the same as before, but they also had the luxury of not being in a pack this time. Would they still be able to keep that close bond they'd once shared? She was almost scared that he wasn't the same as before. What if he wasn't the same man she'd known all those years ago and he'd changed somehow? She herself was the same. Older, yes, but still the same mischief maker that often got in trouble and joked around a bit too much. It was also the only thing keeping her going with the situation at hand. Making light of everything was the only way she could make herself feel better about any of it. She relaxed slightly as he moved forward and bumped her with his snout and she playfully attempted to bat at his face with a paw. "I'm sure you'd put up an amazing fight, I'd still beat you." She joked with a chuckle. "But you know, I've been alright, just alone for the most of it. Traveling doesn't leave you very much room to make friends. How have you been?" Walk, "Talk" Think

He was grateful, at least, that she was glad to see him. It was in a typical Asha way though - she'd never been overly sappy and if he'd seen her get that way he would've been rather taken aback. Everything always seemed to come naturally to her, even now as she stood and joked with him, as though hardly any time had passed at all. He found himself feeling envious that she seemed so collected when he felt like he could come undone at any moment, flooded with memories and nostalgia. Still, he tried to keep his composure, tried to seem normal even as strange as this felt to him.

But she really was the same Asha he remembered, and as she batted at his face he ducked away from her and let out a snort of laughter.  "We'll see about that," Zephyr retorted quickly, but playfully.  "Hopefully time hasn't made you too squishy." He wondered then where she had been all these years. Had she looked for him? For anyone? Or had it been a good escape from all that embarrassment that her banishment had brought her? His brows pulled together as his demeanor shifted, a bit less joyful now.  "I've been.. okay,"  he offered tentatively.  "Surviving. I honestly never thought I'd see you again. Or anyone, really." It'd been an intensely painful realization, but one he had come to terms with and had learned to cope with. But now he didn't know what to expect.