He'd tracked the scent of his family here, but it seemed he was too late. They were no longer within the Willows, and really, he didn't know where to look next. With the pack being dissolved, Viðarr couldn't help but want to track them down. As soon as he was satisfied that Celeste would be safe, he'd be able to bring together the plan. The plan that he'd been sitting on, he'd been forming since the encounter with the statue in the fall and the ghost not long after. All of those things that haunted him. He needed his family to do it. Viðarr swore, he'd do things right this time.

He came to rest within the Willows, taking stock of his situation. If he were them, where would he go? What would his next move be? For now, all the shadow knew was that he was hungry. Viðarr moved to the edge of the pond, watching the fish silently. After a long moment he pounced, scooping one up in his jaws. Not graceful, but he'd get the job done.

"Viðarr"

She longed for the cold. To feel the frost of the mountains upon her features. Her dense fur, now slightly thinned out, felt different, off, not hers. Which was why she was headed north. Away from Auster. Away from the balmy, wet, warm, salty environment. It felt... too much like Iga down there. Simply thinking of the name of the place that ruled Nihon put a bad taste in her mouth. Why did she stay there? It was something Tenshi thought about often. Her mind always circled back to Hanzo and the pack. He took her in when he didn't need to. He showed her mercy and gave her a chance in this new foreign land. That she was thankful for. But sometimes the bamboo was too much... Hoping to lay herself down in the powdery depths of the north, Tenshi made her way beneath the Willows. A mere resting place for herself to get a drink of water before moving on. As she approached the pool, a sudden splash caused her body to freeze midstep. Both ears flicked forward as her antler crown lifted. Steel blue eyes peered through the hanging branches to spy the shadow of a man leaping in for a fish. Studying the massive figure for a moment, Tenshi let out a sigh of relief. The figure was indeed familiar and his name somehow felt fresh in her mind. Vidarr. Yes, the man she had met at the top of the falls. What a sight he had been. Slowly the mountainous woman approached. The slight sheen of her golden accent would give her away well before she was ready. She wouldn't mind though. As she emerged from the brush and let her toes dip into the pond's water, she kept her gaze on him. "It has been a while," her low tones spread across the distance until they reach him. She can feel each and every piece of hair on her body as she stands there, waiting for him to notice her. Would he remember her?

One fish was a snack, two was a meal... or was it three? Four? Who really knew. Viðarr wasn't really sure how many fish would make a meal. Was he even hungry? Frankly, he was pretty much always in a state of I could eat. For now, he would try for two fish. Sitting quietly on the bank of the pond, watching the fish as they swam. Still chilly enough to be cold, but the the shadow was a dense, broad creature. He lives for the cold. He was born for this, really. The first fish had come easily, and he could only hope the second would as well.

In the same breath that he realized Tenshi was near, Viðarr clumsily grabbed another fish from the water. It was much the same way a small child would grab a banana. Sure he used too much force, but the shadow certainly wouldn't be dropping it. Head high, with a little bit of victory about him. Yes, he had grabbed this fish with his bare jaws. It flopped for a moment before going still. Viðarr was soggy, chest deep in the pond, as he looked up to Tenshi where she stood. He was quite the sight, frankly. A bit of a mess, but in a devil-may-care way.

"It has," his tone and smile are both warm. Viðarr pulled himself from the pond, setting the second fish down beside the first. "Come, Tenshi, sit and eat, tell me how you've been," the words are genuine. Accent playing comfortably within his words, especially now that his grasp on the language has improved a bit. Broad and warm, he welcomes the woman and her company.

"Viðarr"

There is an expression of amusement on her face as she sees him stumble into the water. Magically, he returns with a fish between his jaws. How the many falls clumsily into the water and still managed to catch something was honestly impressive. Her brow raises slightly as he acknowledges her presence. While he regards her in warm tones, she responds with a gentle smile. Though their previous time together had been brief, she remembers how easy it had been. How... much she had enjoyed it. Stepping fully from the brush and coming closer to him, she takes a seat. Her stomach almost squeezes shut at the sight of the fish. While she is grateful for the food that is provided by Kuroo and the others, she is also growing tired of fish. She misses the hearty stews of root vegetables and venison. Even the gaminess of snowshoe hare. Shifting her expression into a grimacing smile, she waves a gentle paw. "I will skip the meal, but will stay to catch up," she says as she moves her gaze away from him and his catch toward the wavering willow branches. "I have been healthy. Tojo-kai is where I settled. I believe I have buried my hatred and passion for revenge. But..." the woman hesitates as she flicks her gaze to look at him from the corner of her eye. There is a beat of hesitation as her ears fold back and then forward again. Only a half-second where one could guess that she wasn't being entirely honest with herself. "I miss the mountains. The cold and the snow. I miss home. I am lonely. Tojo-kai is almost too secluded for someone as family oriented as me," Tenshi feels her heart clench as memories of her passed loved ones flash in her mind. Her mate, her pups, her family, her pack, all gone. Decimated for politics and sheer brutality. She had spent so much time shoving it down so that she could start life anew. Had that been the right choice?

Clumsy but confident, such is his way. There's no reason not to be confident, in Viðarr's mind... though maybe that's misguided. His warmth is easy, laid back. There was no reason not to be relaxed. Tenshi's grimace doesn't go unnoticed, but the shadow knows better than to pry. He doesn't know her well enough, and it's not his way. Still, the shadow studies her openly-- he can't help it. She did seem well, strong, capable, healthy. And yet there was something else under it. Something Viðarr doesn't know how to name but gives heed to. It's something that lives inside him, too.

Still, it seems to him that they're kindred spirits.

Tenshi speaks of Tojo-kai, and Viðarr nods softly. It was a spare few days ago that he'd crossed paths with Hattori. He'd been pleasant, both similar and dissimilar from the shadow himself. Still, he's struck by the memory of the woman before him and her quest. She'd wanted revenge against them, and now to see the passion buried... he thinks for a moment. For a long moment. Viðarr had watched his sister bury feelings that she couldn't give words to, and watched what it did to her. "Burying those feelings has consequences," it's an observation, one shared with neutrality. He speaks as a friend. He speaks as someone who is all too familiar with those consequences.

Gently, the shadow listens. The fish are gone in a matter of mere moments, but they are not his focus. Instead the shadow listens intently, attention undivided. "Why do you stay?" There was a restlessness that lived deep in the shadow's heart, one that wouldn't be tamed. The pining for the trees, the snow, the mountains-- this is a feeling he understands. Still, there was a reason he'd stayed in the desert with Celeste. There was a reason he stuck by them now, though he understood that their time together was finite. There are things you do for those you care about, and Viðarr cared deeply. But what was her reasoning for staying in the south, isolated? Was it getting to be time for him to move on, too?

"Viðarr"

Burying those feelings has consequences. His words ring in her ears. A short huff of a laugh allows her chest to lurch for a moment. Closing her eyes softly, she gives her head a shake. Not in disagreement, but rather she agreed. "I have spent many nights alone wondering that," her accented words are lowered as she finally reopens her steel gaze. Too many nights alone. She is not used to that. Before arriving here on the island, before the tragedy that had fallen her family, she had spent every night curled up in a pile of puppies and her loved one. Oh, she missed him. The way his thick fur felt against her cheek as she rested her chin over his shoulders. Every night she spent alone, the more her heart closed off. Feelings she thought she had for Hattori were out of mere loneliness. She believed that if maybe she allowed herself some grace, some room to believe that she could fall again, that maybe it wouldn't hurt so much. But the ice that surrounded her cold heart would not melt, no matter the time she spent down in that balmy, warm, and wet bamboo maze. The only one she was fooling was herself. Not even Hattori believed her feelings to be honest and she was glad for it. She could feel her teeth grind together as she pushed the well of emotions down. A memory of them, her and Vidarr, atop that waterfall resurfaces instead. What had she told him then? What had she felt in her chest? That passion. The hatred. The ignition to light a blaze so high it would envelop all of Auster. Where had that gone? Why had she settled so quickly? While she was thankful for the company that Tojo-kai had brought, they were not her family. They were not who she was meant to spend the rest of her life with. But would she be better off alone? The answer to that was always no. Why do you stay? Vidarr knew the right things to say. Tenshi sighs as she looks away from the willows and again at him. Meeting those icy blue eyes that were so alike to hers, she feels her skin shudder. "Because I fear being alone," the admittance is full of shame, regret, and disgust. The journey to these continents, the journey to the south to find the Hattori who was believed to be dead, all of it had struck a cord in her heart. All it did was remind her of how alone she was and after he allowed her to stay, she welcomed the company faster than anything. She had enjoyed the giggle of pups and the chatter of others. The noise of the pack had allowed her to forget her true feelings. But what was so bad about being alone? Why had she not given herself time to be alone more? Was it simply complacency that left her longing to be embraced by someone? To allow herself to settle somewhere she didn't belong because going to bed at night alone was terrifying. How could one not call her a fucking coward? There were plenty of wolves in Tojo-kai now that they didn't need her. Sedna was a magnificent healer and Fuji was on her way to becoming just as great. The new girl, Kiriko, was spirited and lovely. Raijin was pleasant, the boys, Usagi and Kuroo, weren't going anywhere either and neither would Askell. Their numbers were small now that most of the pups had gone off on their own, but they still had numbers. Would Hanzo miss her? Would he ask her to stay? Part of her knew that he wouldn't care. Part of her knew that she was lying to herself. That she shouldn't have settled and let herself believe that he could open himself up to liking her. She was of the mountains, the cold and ice. He was of Iga, royalty and grace. They were from two completely different worlds that were not meant to mesh. Where had she gone wrong? What had she done to deserve this? Why was she allowing it? "If I left, I would not know where to go," she finally adds as she holds his gaze steady.

Feelings were complicated. Emotions, all of them... Viðarr would be the first to admit that he didn't know how to deal with them properly. In his eyes, they're something that he can simply bury under other things. Emotions were buried under things he understands-- bury them in alcohol, in plunder, in bloodshed. That is how the shadow handles feelings. All of those things had a price, but they were small in comparison to the toll that true processing would take. There's a reason that Viðarr is the way he is, after all.

Tenshi is cut from a very similar cloth. Still, her introspection is something that Viðarr doesn't envy. If she was trying to bury those feelings, it didn't seem to be entirely going her way. She wonders if she's made the right choice... but he does not pry. There was a fire inside her, and it drew him in. Had that flame gone out, or was it just dormant, somewhere beneath the surface? Though he could not make an enemy out of Hattori's pack, the shadow considers for a long moment. There are things they can do with that spark, and channel that energy into something that could benefit them both.

And there's the idea that she doesn't want to be alone. Viðarr nodded softly, as this is something he understands. There's safety in numbers, yes. Giving up happiness for safety, for stability? It sounded like a fate worse than death, at least to the shadow. Maybe she felt differently, and maybe it was a dramatic train of thought. Still, the viking studied Tenshi with an intense gaze. He was thinking, processing. "What if you were not alone?" It was a loaded question, one that came with an offer attached.

While she says she doesn't know where to go, he has an answer for that too. "You can come with me." Viðarr had already resolved to speak with Celeste about parting ways, especially with Rota's return and the impending mouths to feed. As soon as he was confident they were safe on their own, he would take his family and be out of their hair. The girl had come far, and Viðarr was proud of her. Spreading her own wings would be important, and he had his own quest to continue on as well. Maybe he was getting ahead of himself, but Tenshi's company would be more than welcome. Still, it would depend on what she had to say about it.

"Viðarr"

She nearly lost her breath when Vidarr asked about the possibility of her not being alone. How would that even be possible? Her lips parted slightly as she fought to find the right words. Closing and opening her mouth, she wasn't sure what to say. Looking away briefly to the creek that wove through the willows, she focused on her breathing. It was only a few seconds of silence before her steel gaze made it's way back to Vidarr. Those baby blues and shadowed face. While Hattori had been nice to look at, there was something more comforting about Vidarr's features. Something wild, untamed, and inviting. Something she craved. A deep breath caused her to gasp as he followed up with something she was not expecting. Her eyes peeled wide as her ears tilted forward to attention. Against her will, her tail flicked a few times. But she didn't want to be too hasty. She had questions she needed to ask. She had to choose her words carefully. "Would we be staying somewhere permanently?" It was the first question, but not the last. "Who else would be with us?" Tenshi knew he had family, she remembered their previous conversation. "I would need some time. I cannot just leave Tojo-Kai without speaking with Hattori first," her chin nods slightly as she resolves that she would leave. The idea of returning to the mountains. Of being in a closer-knit family unit. Of having a chance at a life she would ultimately enjoy more than living in the bamboo. "If I choose to be with you, where could I find you?" Tenshi finally asks as her expression settles into a tense nervousness. She can feel her heart quickening with excitement and a hopefulness she hadn't felt in a long time.