The viking needed to find them. He needed to be back with them. He had his bearings, he'd gotten them. He'd caught his breath, and was re-settling into the north. Now he needed to find his family. Viðarr was ready. It was time. They had business to attend to. They had things about the land to learn, to explore, to understand. Things in the north had changed, and he needed to figure out what exactly those things were.

It would come in time. Everything would come in time. What he needed now, though, was to find the rest of the family. The rest of the band. They needed to sit down and meet together, and they needed to meet Katla. The child wasn't his, but she was his-- if that made sense. A child in winter, Viðarr couldn't well just leave her there. No, she'd come back with him. The viking insisted. Just as the rest of them were, she was family now. Family is what you make it, after all.

Viðarr tracked back towards the Wall. He'd use that as the starting point. An expert tracker, it shouldn't take him long to find the rest of the family. For now, it was getting to be later in the afternoon. Daylight would fade soon, and Viðarr was happy to settle in beside the wall itself for the night. Some things had changed. Some hadn't. The Wall would still be his starting point. Now... was it time to find dinner?

"Viðarr"

It was rare Kiela ran into the same wolf more than once, but today was apparently an exception. When Víðarr's scent came to her attention at first she thought to ignore it, not because she hadn't enjoyed his company but rather the opposite. He'd made an impression on her in a way few wolves did and the camaraderie she felt with him was undeniable, which was exactly why she wasn't sure reuniting with him was a good idea. She wasn't the type to form attachments with anyone, no matter how small they might be.

Perhaps against her better judgment, she decided to trail after his scent and see where it led her. Maybe a reunion would lighten her mood. It wasn't at all lost on her either that the north had grown more populated as of late and it didn't settle well with her either. She found herself hoping that tending to her herd wouldn't send her trespassing into a pack's lands. Kiela would do what she needed to for her herd, though at what risk to herself?

She supposed that was a question for when a situation like that arose.

She was quiet on her paws as she navigated across the tundra. He was visible long before she could get his attention, standing alongside the strange stone structure she'd encountered before. Only when she was closer did she let out a bark of greeting, tail giving a slow wave behind her. "Been awhile," Kiela offered, her form of a simple greeting, as she strode closer.

With new packs springing up in the area, it was safe to say that the shadow was on ever-higher alert. If he was caught trespassing he figured he'd simply lie or charm his way out... or pretend that he didn't speak the common tongue. Really, he had plenty of options. He had plenty of options until they started recognizing him for who and what he was, after all. If he couldn't lie his way out, he'd fight-- simple as that. A man of simple desires, as he was, after all. Viðarr would be ceaseless in the pursuit of what he wanted. Relentless.

But gathering information was different than relenting, as well. Rest, too, was important. All things could coexist, and so too, would the shadow and the world around him. There was a bark, a greeting, that pulled him from his thoughts. Viðarr knew that voice, and the scent that the breeze carried as it shifted. His head came up, and a charming grin played across his features as she came into focus. "Kiela, a welcome surprise," the tension of moments before melted away. Something about her, though Viðarr couldn't place just what, was a balm to the senses.

With long and admittedly excited strides, the shadow moved to close the space between them. A long, even lope. Couldn't look too eager, despite the fact that... well, he was.
When their distance was comfortable, Viðarr offered the side of his muzzle, a soft greeting. A friendly greeting, should she want to take it. Maybe it was forward, but he admittedly had a hard time not being forward with a woman quite so captivating. "Did winter treat you well?" The question was genuine as Viðarr took her in, gaze soft.

Kiela could relate to doggedly following her desires. Fortunately, her goals in life were relatively simple, and following the same path indefinitely was quite easy. So long as nothing unusual came directly into her path. Sometimes something unexpected happened though - and today that was apparently running into Víðarr. it wasn't like it threw here completely off course though and she could redirect herself after she spent some time with him. How much time was to be determined, but she couldn't deny the faint but growing excitement at his presence. "A welcome surprise indeed," she agreed, her expression warm and touched with the faintest beginnings of a smile, like the first rays of sun in the morning just beginning to peek over the horizon.

The gesture he gave her was unusual and not something she was accustomed to. Somewhat warily she reached out to touch the side of his muzzle with her nose, the contact brief and lasting only for a moment before she broke it and pulled away. "The winter was... well. Quiet. Nothing to note." Life had been fairly ordinary for these last few seasons and Kiela had kept to herself more often than not. She was beginning to wonder if her reclusivity was such a good thing now. "What about you?"