For Valor

@Valeska and pretend this is close to Elysium's borders!

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She stretched, waking up from her sleep. She had fallen asleep on the top of a mossy bluff, which was not that bad because of the moss. Her ears flicked as the birds around her tweeted and sang their songs of a new day. The sun was rising steadily, the first rays already hitting her. She was warmed by the rays as her fur blazed in the light of the new day. 

She then got up, as she wanted to get something done. Suddenly, there was the sound of someone padding towards the bluff's edge. She remained calm, however, like she had been taught. 

"Hello, friend. What brings you here?" Valerie cheerfully said, sitting back down as if to watch the sun rise.
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Rising with the first rays of dawn, Valeska had begun her early morning rounds refreshing the scent markers along their borders. While she maintained that all were welcome within Fate's Respite (as long as they behaved themselves), it made sense to denote where their territory ended and where it began - especially with two other packs so close, it just made things a little easier to manage.

Movement startled her, and she paused. There was no scent of Vanderfell, nor of the other pack-scent that occasionally wafted along the breeze toward their home. It continued to stir, before a feminine voice called out - "Hello, friend. What brings you here?"

As Valeska approached, she could see the voice belonged to a fox; she couldn't remember the last time she had interacted with one, and she quirked a brow, wondering what would bring such a normally reclusive creature to their borders.

“I am Valeska, and this is my home,” she returned politely. “May I help you with something?”

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“I am Valeska, and this is my home.” She had waited till they spoke to get up and turn around; thus, she did. Oh, and how polite they sounded! She saw it was a she-wolf, with beautiful whites and greys. 

"Greetings Valeska, I am Valerie." Valerie responded politely, not wanting to anger a wolf as beautiful as she. 

“May I help you with something?” Valeska asked Valerie. Oh! She did say this was her home. She must've thought Valerie wanted something because of being so close. 

"No, thank you though. I just fell asleep here for the night, and I've just been traveling around, exploring and such." She explained, but then thought of something. 

"I know this'll be... different for someone of my species, but do you know of any packs that are accepting members?" Valerie then asked, unsure about asking. But Valeska seemed like a nice wolf, and she smelled of a pack.
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Valeska couldn't help but marvel at the number of lost souls dropped at their doorstep the past few weeks, but she didn't mind - their open door policy applied to all who wandered in seeking shelter, though at this rate, she would have to start ramping up hunting parties to keep up with the extra mouths to feed. Valerie seemed nice enough, much like the siblings who had appeared earlier on; being a fox gave her pause, however. She wasn't sure how such a creature would adapt to pack life.

Nevertheless, they already had that brat of a bird. What was another oddity in the long run?

“The door of Elysium is always open,” she stated, glancing back toward the mountains that towered over them. “We would like to make this a place of learning - you are not required to have skills to make a home, here, but what do you like to do? What is your - ah - strength?”

Valeska eyed the fox with some intrigue. Her limited knowledge of them besides their skittish nature brought up no leads, so it would be a good opportunity to learn.

“Here we worship the Five; it is not necessary that you do also, but the gods weigh heavily on every decision. Much of our way of life is inspired by their goodness and mercy, and we wish for like-minded spirits to join our ranks in following their code.”

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“The door of Elysium is always open.” Valeska offered, which to that Valerie responded with curiosity. 

"Is that your pack?" She wondered, but then the wolf spoke again. 

“We would like to make this a place of learning - you are not required to have skills to make a home, here, but what do you like to do? What is your - ah - strength?” She asked about Valerie's hobbies and skills, which made her think. 

"Hmm, I'd say that I like to weave flowers and leaves into circlets to wear - but my skills are in hunting and stealth." 

“Here we worship the Five; it is not necessary that you do also, but the gods weigh heavily on every decision. Much of our way of life is inspired by their goodness and mercy, and we wish for like-minded spirits to join our ranks in following their code.”

Valerie was intrigued, her eyes flashed with curiosity. The Five? Gods? Hm, she did like the sound of that. "The Five? And gods? I do think that I like the sound of that. Could you tell me more, perhaps?" 
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She seemed nice enough. Her hobby of weaving flowers and circlets complemented her airy demeanor, though they generally only wore such things during ceremonies and rituals. She mentioned her affinity for hunting and remaining unseen - that was a skill, certainly, and most useful at that. They needed more hunters to help fill their caches, especially with so many youngsters in the pack.

“We will happily welcome you into our home as one of us,” she said, wondering how the others might take news of a fox among their ranks. Still, they had to abide by their mantra - no soul turned away.

Well, ignoring nasty exceptions.

Valerie made the grave mistake of inquiring further into her belief system, and the High Priestess lit up like a holy beacon. Did she wish to become a convert to their way of life? “The Five, also known as the Pentacle, are the five great deities. Houtu is our All-Mother, overseeing life and death and the unending cycle of renewal. The four below her are gods of the seasons, of certain elements, smells, embodiments of traits,” she went on excitedly, breathlessly. Not many ever asked about the gods, so it was a refreshing change of pace. “Sylvanus, of spring - Rhys, of summer - Aether, of autumn - and Nivia, she who brings winter. There are many other details, but I do not wish to bore you.”

She did.

She desperately did.

“Do you also worship?”

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“We will happily welcome you into our home as one of us.” Mm, she was accepted into Elysium? That was good to hear - it seemed like Valeska liked Valerie enough to let her join. 

"Thank you, it is much appreciated." She bowed her head in thanks. 

"The Five, also known as the Pentacle, are the five great deities. Houtu is our All-Mother, overseeing life and death and the unending cycle of renewal. The four below her are gods of the seasons, of certain elements, smells, embodiments of traits.” Oh, was this so? Valerie nodded along, processing the information and being even more intrigued about this pack and who they worshipped. 

"Hmm, this is interesting..." 

“Sylvanus, of spring - Rhys, of summer - Aether, of autumn - and Nivia, she who brings winter. There are many other details, but I do not wish to bore you.”

Ooh, so the five gods were like the five gods she and her old group of foxes worshipped. "No need to worry about boring me, I would love to hear more." 

"Do you also worship?" Valeska was wondering about who Valerie worshipped? 

"Yes, although the gods that I believe in aren't so different from yours. Hoku, the mother of life and death. Nova, the goddess of Spring. Itri, the god of Summer. Comet, god of Autumn. And last, Celeste. Goddess of Fall." She explained about her gods, nodding her head occasionally.
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She couldn't wait to see the look on Harper's face in particular. Then again, perhaps she might take better to the strangeness of a fox than 'new wolves with secrets' (she scoffed inwardly), but it mattered little. No harm would come to any of them within the comfort of their home - it just may take some getting used to from all sides. Plenty of fresh blood had been coming around lately so it seemed only natural that the more long-term residents would be on edge.

“Perhaps they are the same gods,” she said thoughtfully, wondering how the little fox held such a similar belief system. “It is true that their names can change through the world - like how a rose is called so in this tongue, but in mine, it is pоза — rose.”

Hoku and Houtu alone sounded suspiciously familiar enough to make sense.

“We celebrate the seasons with festivals in the gods' honor - though we have been lax of late. We plan to host great celebration soon for Sylvanus, which all of Elysium are welcome to; we also hold friendly competitions based on the time of year.”

Valeska cracked a smile, envisioning a fox, of all things, engaged in their worshipful activities.

“Would you like to help organize it?”

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"Perhaps they are the same gods.” Valeska offered this up after Valerie explained about her gods. 

"Perhaps." 

"It is true that their names can change through the world - like how a rose is called so in this tongue, but in mine, it is pоза.” Valeska told Valerie this as she nodded her head. 

"Yes, names of many things change to language's whims. That is true." 

"We celebrate the seasons with festivals in the gods' honor - though we have been lax of late. We plan to host a great celebration soon for Sylvanus, which all of Elysium are welcome to; we also hold friendly competitions based on the time of year.” A celebration? Valerie liked celebrations. And there were also competitions? Mm, she also liked that. 

"Mm, that sounds nice. I'd like to do that." 

"Would you like to help organize it?” Valeska wondered if Valerie wanted to take part in the celebration? 

"Yes, I'd very much like that. I'd love to help out, especially with a celebration for a god." 
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Valerie proved to be surprisingly agreeable toward her suggestions, taking each self-assured statement in stride as she nodded her assent. The High Priestess was used to being argued with or ignored outright, so the willful attention of even a fox - however unusual - pleased her. They would hopefully have much more to talk about as they ventured toward the dens, but for now, the golden female seemed distracted and ready to move on.

“Not just one god,” she reminded her teasingly, wondering how far she could push her luck with the new recruit. “The Five are worshiped equally, but Houtu is given a sacred place of honor as the creator of all life - and the Four who aid her.”

Valerie answered quickly, making no effort to get out of the impending celebration at all, even going so far as to seem... enthused. Interested, at any rate.

“Well, let us get you settled, and then we shall prepare for the feast. Since it is for Sylvanus, we place emphasis on the fresh herbs of spring to pay tribute, with many wildflowers to decorate our dens and gathering-spaces,” she continued, motioning with her head for Valerie to follow her. “The god of this season is bounty itself, and we must spare no effort in showing our thanks. Come - let us go, and I will guide you around Fate's Respite.”
 

{Exit Valeska}

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