The Way It Was Meant to Be

backdated to 8/10 - 8/11ish @Valette @Leta @Hydra @Dirge lmk if I got the border info wrong and ill come back and edit

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The journey to the mountain's base wouldn't take too long, the woods only a stretch away from the borders Hydra had named Dragon's Teeth. With his sister and not mother Valette in tow, he'd stop where the jagged rocks pierced the ground like fangs that hungered for the stars. “This is it—”

It was no Easthollow, but then again Valette claimed to never live in an Easthollow. He wondered what she might think to live in lands so different from what she might be used to, unless the Thorneledge she had mentioned resided on the side of a mountain.“If you're ready we can call for the alphas.”

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Leta thrilled quietly, stealing glances at the woman who was not her mother as they walked and talked along the way (idle prattle, that meant very little... but everything, to the sentimental Leta). Leta wanted to know exactly what her brother thought about this... development in their life, even if it was not what they thought. It was strange that it sure felt that way, but... Leta did not know their mother to lie...

Then again, this place was strange in some ways. So many had forgotten important pieces of themselves. Some forgot nearly all of themselves... so Leta believed, even if she did not say so aloud, that perhaps this was so. 

Arriving to Empyrean's borders, and pausing just before where the stony fangs erupted intermittently throughout, Leta threw her head back as though to call for the leaders, which she paused in the middle of as West wisely checked on the woman first. Leta threw her a bashful look then, having clearly gotten ahead of herself. In truth, Leta was eager for their mother to be adopted into this family, too. She felt her mot—Valette—could appreciate a woman like Hydra and her husband, Dirge... and their brother, too. Jarilo. 

And once that was all said and done, they could go and find the rumored bison she had sworn she caught on the wind. But, glancing to the amethyst-eyed Valette, she wondered if that might be nostalgia fooling her there, too.
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not sure how much Hydra remembers but she is welcome to recognize Val too!

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Valette had followed the male and female. With some idle chatting they made the time go by and it did make her feel more comfortable. She had been looking for company being on the road for so long. There had been too many coincidences of recognition that even Valette was starting to become doubtful. She almost wanted to believe it, that she was their mother but logic kept her from it. She had never been with a male, let alone have pups!

They stopped at a border and the female looked at the jagged rocks. It was definitely different. Thorn ledge had been more open, though also higher in altitude. At the bottom of the cliff were what the name would suggest thorn bushes. She always stayed far away from the cliff and made sure not to be punished enough to duel. She had escaped that life. Valette glanced at West Tyree and gave a firm nod. ”Yes. I’d like to meet them,” she agreed.

She watched the hopeful glance from Leta. It broke her heart a little. If only she could be their mother. Though, she never had been one so she didn’t even know if she was a good one. Still perhaps just spending time with them, and just maybe being that long lost relative was enough. Maybe her mother Scarlett had siblings which they came from. They did talk about a Desna-something. Maybe that had been her cousin? For now she had to get accepted first.
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Leta was quick to jump ahead of them, her voice already ringing out briefly until she realized that she should have maybe waited. Luckily, nothing had changed during their trip back and Valette still wished to meet with Empyrean's leaders. For a moment he wondered what Hydra might think of it all...hadn't she been close with his mom once? Enough so to see them as family in some way.

And Valette for that matter, would she remember the King and Queen? It might have been that part of him that still hoped for it to be true...that she was Desna, but the other half argued. She wasn't the same. Not completely. Some mysteries would never be solved, but at the very least this one would be held off for later. Nodding to the two, he would tilt his head to finish what Leta had started.

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Leta's voice again rang in the mountains, and Hydra had been not too far this day to meet it. Alya was not by her side this day, though detecting the scents of both West and Leta she knew that should anything be amiss, they were plenty capable. Hydra called back to allow the group to know she was on her own way, and it took little time for her to arrive there. The matriarch moved through the treeline, already at the lower reaches of the territory and contributing to a cache she had taken from the day before when desperate for leftover deer haunch, of all things.

She had not replaced it with the same thing, but with a few other choice prey items she and Alya had acquired together.

Seeing West and Leta was no surprise, and Hydra did well to hide the lance of it she felt upon seeing the woman accompanying them. It had been some time, and like herself the matriarch did not imagine the woman would ever have left Easthollow. No doubt her children's absence might have changed things, though—Valette, also like herself, was a family woman. A woman Hydra had always respected.

There were differences, though. Strange ones. Her eyes, to start with. And even standing still, the woman looked as though years had been given back to her. Hydra was unaware that the same was true for she herself, by just one—but this...

Hydra held her tongue a moment longer, considering. Was this the same woman? The uncanny resemblance shared with who Hydra knew to be her daughter could have been answer enough, were it not for the others youth. A bastard of Valette's, then? No... that was too unlike her, and her respect for Easthollow's own matriarch did not allow her to entertain the thought beyond its initial consideration.

Revealing nothing, Hydra looked to both Leta and West Tyree; she would allow them to fill in the blanks for her, here.

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When Hydra came, Leta was quick to dip her head in greeting and submission alike, even going so far as to offer her a placating lick to the chin... which was not really a rare thing, but Leta was going to pull all the stops here to appease Hydra and get her in a good mood. Hard to tell if she was ever in a good or bad one, truth be told, but better to safe than sorry. She remained quiet throughout, and that was also not a strange thing; fair, to know why she had been called. 

“This is Valette,” Leta started with, “she is a great hunter, and we found her nearby. She may be family to West and I,” she expressed, given De-Valette had given them that much rope, at least. And how could they not be?! She searched the stoic features of Hydra for any indication that she knew this woman... but Hydra was too difficult a woman to read. Even as an empath, Hydra let nothing show... nothing that Leta could catch, anyway. 

“She would like to become a part of Empyrean,” she breathed, and then looked to West, then her mo--no, not mother, she corrected again. Best to let Valette speak to what else she could offer, right?
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Valette’s ears perked up when she heard a howl of the leader. They were on their way it seemed. She hoped that this pack would be alright, she knew little about the values of the group but at least she knew West and Leta. The female quietly waited with them until the leader appeared. Their leader was a dark colored female, the way she moved reminded her of someone but she couldn’t place it. This must be the female they mentioned then, Hydra. That name didn’t ring a bell. The female politely lowered her head when Leta introduced herself. 

She could feel the leader’s eyes going over her. Valette wasn’t too worried though. It would be nice to be with this group but if she wasn’t a good fit then she rather be denied. Maybe then she would continue to look for her sister. Leta was done speaking but she wasn’t sure if she was allowed to speak. She turned to her normal posture, raising her head a little as she showed her respect. She looked at Leta. It was weird to have someone look so much like her not to be family right? ”I hope you have a place for me in your pack. I’m a hard worker. Though I understand if there will be some sort of trial period for me,” she added
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There was little left for the woodland man to add by the time the others had said their piece. Leta introduced Valette along with what skills they knew of and then Valette would plead her case. West glanced to their alpha though what he saw told nothing of her thoughts. It was strange to them to find someone who looked so much like their mother, yet Hydra didn't seem to bat an eye.

“We were hoping to track down some bison.” If only they were close enough to be worth their time. Hauling a kill of that size up a mountain wouldn't do, but bringing what meat they could would certainly speak to their skills as well as aid the pack. Empyrean already had so many mouths to feed, but at the very least this one wouldn't be taking any more from what they had.

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It was when the name was spoken that all of her suspicions were confirmed. But it was clear that Valette did not know her, nor even her own children. Her features were schooled to stillness, indicating nothing. Leta and West, too, did not sound as though they knew their own mother—what with Leta's own words, may be. Hydra knew that she was, but to force the knowledge down the others throat would not help any of them in any way. The matriarch looked to Valette, who spoke of a trial period, and then to West, who spoke of bison—

Bison, which she remembered having come across with Bronco some time ago. Upon Moonspear, there had been no such beast; perhaps with three adept bison hunters, they could learn, and become such. “There is a place for you, if you are willing to utilize your skills for the good of Empyrean,” she drawled, looking firstly to Valette. It sounded as though she was. Next, West: “I have seen the beasts you speak of upon Empyrean, though have not yet thought to hunt them. You and yours were bison hunters,” she remembered, knowing Valette was one such wolf, too, “and Empyrean can adapt with the times, having three able ones, to hunt them with you,” she drawled. They could take the lead of West, Valette, and Leta there; Hydra had no qualms with that, if they were willing. The bison had a distinct, musky scent she would not soon forget, and she had observed it in passing on her canvassing of Empyrean's claim more than once.

“I can bring you to where last I scented them near,” she offered, looking back to Valette and stepping toward her to exchange her own scent with hers so as to indicate the woman was one of their own, now. She would bring each of them.

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Valette was glad to hear that there was a place for her at this mountain. The female instantly gave a court nod. "Of course, I would. Especially with Bison you cannot hunt them alone," she spoke. She was very familiar with hunting the beasts. One shouldn't have any fear because they would smell it and would go out to kill you instead. She looked to Leta and then to West. They had skill in hunting them too. Interesting. She would love to see their technique maybe she could learn from it. "I would like more than three wolves," she confessed. 

Valette eagerly dipped her head. "I would love to see them," she admitted and accepted the invitation of the female of exchanging their scents. She was glad to be finally settled into one place. She loved to be on the road. She was good at it. But company was nice, it was always nice. "I'm also an adapt traveler and used to carried messages to other packs," she told Hydra, just so she was aware of it and could do that also for the pack.
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“You have?” The woodland man was clearly shocked as he leaned forward with a questioning tilt of his head. How come he hadn't heard of them until now? Hydra knew he was raised to hunt bison he could have taught a few others to take one down. When winter came the herd stayed and with most of their prey coming from the mountainside, having something large that could feed many would be good to start tracking now.

Even with Hydra's approval though he found himself agreeing with Valette. In Easthollow they had called for all who were able to get the herd running. Three of them wouldn't be a very large threat if the herd was sizable. “She's right. We'll need at least five of us, but more is better.” Luckily, most of the hunt was just getting them to run and separating off the target. The three of them might be enough to get close enough to slow one down if the rest were not skilled.

“If it's not far and you can take us now then we can start tracking the herd sooner. We'll need to watch them for a while to get an idea of which ones are healthy and when to pick one off.”

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Can make another thread for watching the herd if you want? Or if you don't mind it can be behind the scenes travels and mar and I can have a thread on our own just to get this one wrapped up with her joining

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The matriarch nodded. In any hunt, more than three wolves was ideal—but when it came to bison, it seemed necessary. Hydra herself looked back to West, noting his surprise. Less familiar with them than he, she was uncertain of their own migratory patterns and did not want to provide false hope... but their scents lingered still. At this juncture, she could help them with the tracking of them... but in her condition, little else.

“We will track them to start,” she drawled, “it is not close, but that is no matter. We will see the condition of the herd, and speak more on the hunt to come once we know this,” she decided. “If that is something you should like to lead, West Tyree, with the help of Valette and Leta, I invite you to do so,” she determined with a sway of her tail. She had heard some, from him, of the tutelage he had received from his mother... and here, she would let him put it into practice. West Tyree was a sound wolf that she trusted to the task. Empyrean had able hunters aplenty; part of being a leader was coming to know the pack, and who this might be. He could work on such here, to start.

Turning to begin their trip, Hydra gestured and hummed, “come,” to all to join her on this venture. Hydra knew the way to start, but at a certain point she would need to utilize her keen senses to keep to the path the bison herd currently navigated if anything had changed. Knowing prey, it might have—but bison were a species she was not so intimately familiar with, and so their way of life was largely unknown. Up until now, there had not been a real reason to learn it... but since it seemed as though these beasts were here to stay, now was as good a time as any. Tracking them was the first step, and the matriarch was adept at such a task. She headed into Empyrean's depths, senses at work already.

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Valette noticed the shocked expression on the chocolate wolf's face. It seemed the leader had not informed him about that yet. Luckily she didn't seem to reluctant to let them go and see this herd. It made Valette excited, she hadn't really spotted them since she woke up here. She couldn't really remember how she come to know so much of the bison but she was an avid hunter. She knew that they would probably stay around the area if they had enough food. As they often lingered around plains, at least the ones she knew. She wondered if there were open plains close by this mountain.

Valette automatically listed to authority, it felt nice to belong somewhere. She just followed the dark female as she told them to follow. The female came up to the female and carried her head lower, though somehow she had to urge to hold it higher. She was pleased to be part of a pack, and to get to know the wolves. But now they would hunt first, and that made her excited and very bloodthirsty. 

I wouldn't mind a bison thread where they watch the herd

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And the shock kept coming as Hydra then asked him to lead the hunt. Of course, he would agree, but it felt sudden to be trusted with such a task, even if his favor had grown in his alphas eyes over the months since he joined their ranks. “Of course— It's an honor.” And how could he ask for more when he was already given two bison hunters that he knew— well...close enough, but he was sure Valette would be skilled enough to fill the role his mother had in hunts.

Admittedly, it had been some time since he actually hunted or tracked bison, but they would have time before the actual hunt for him to unbury those skills. Seemingly taking his acceptance, Hydra turned to take them further into the territory so they could see the herd for themselves. Leta and Valette seemed to move before he found his own paws, but he would quickly follow their pace, never once falling behind.

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