Another world

Note: After meeting Hotaru, but before meeting Viviene | For @Edelweiss!

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After whatever that was, Obelisk continued, skirting around the two other packs that seemed keen on taking up the tundra. they were all so close to one another, and why? Well, the sire had no idea, but it was certainly frustrated. With every step he took, it seemed he risked stepping into pack territory, and at this point, it was really damn annoying.

With a sigh, he'd turn towards a single pine tree, where he'd curl up as light snow began to fall. He was exhausted, and most certainly deserved rest, but as the crunching of snow began to approach from where that pack-wolf had been, Obelisk raised his head.
“Are you following me?” He asked vindictively, squinting. As the snow continued to plummet, he couldn't spot the difference between this stranger and the girl from before. All the fur blended in and camouflaged against the backdrop.

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My, wasn't he conceited? Thinking he was good enough to be followed by the likes of her. "No," she rumbled in response, lifting her head from the arctic hare she had tried to track down. Sigh "I was trying to track prey" And "why? Do you deserve to be watched?" Fresh from girlhood, Edelweiss's emotionless and uncaring tune didn't 'mature' with her. She had already been a mature little thing, but now it was just another reminder of how differently she treated others.

Keeping them as far away from her as possible. That worked so far. His voice had carried enough over the snow that she heard him, and nobody else was around. She assumed he spoke to her directly. She would be right. Accusing her of bullshit... How maddening. She was not aggressive in tone, but it was clear her voice was flat. Not accusing back, just stating a sour fact. Did he warrant suspicion? Was she supposed to be keeping an eye on him? If she was, she didn't know. Nobody told her about this blackened man in Shiroshika.

"I assume you thought I was someone else." She added before he could say anything. Another statement of the facts at her paw. Oh well, the hare was long gone with them chit-chatting. Time to focus on this one. Edelweiss did not seem to be very offended. Her hooded eyes stared at him, void of expression.

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"No, I was trying to track prey." Obelisk squinted. This didn't sound like the same girl from before. This one sounded different . . . More annoyed, really, but Obelisk assumed it was the snow blocking her way when it came to hunting. Who would even want to hunt in weather like this? It seemed useless. "Why? Do you deserve to be watched?"

The man gave a mix of a snarl and a chuckle, shaking his head, though, of course, she continued. Obelisk furrowed his brows as a smile came upon his face. My, she was an impatient one, now wasn't she? Constantly talking over him . . . It was actually getting quite annoying. "I assume you thought I was someone else." Finally, her attention was on him, and Obelisk would only offer her a last chance at kindness, thumping the ground with his tail as the snow worsened. She could come sit over here if she wanted to, the sire surprisingly didn't mind, but if she made some sort of snarky remark about it, well . . . That'd be her last chance.

Simple.

“Mm-hm,” He hummed with a confirming nod. “She's part of your pack. The girl I thought you were, that is – she's pale like you.” Perhaps that'd give her some sort of idea about who he was talking about, but otherwise, he couldn't really recall any other information. Had she given him her name? Perhaps. Obelisk couldn't remember. “What are you doing hunting in this weather, anyways?” Because he had all day for small-talk.

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He offered her a spot next to him, but she did not move close to strangers. Especially strange men. She remained where she was, but no she did not make a stink about his offer. "You will have to be more specific" Was that amusement creeping into her tone? "most of the wolves in Shiroshika are all pale. Some even more than I." Except for Antares, but he always would stick out like a sore thumb among the ivories and greys.

Why was she hunting? Simple too. "The snow covers my frame and also my scent. It is harder for prey to see me coming" It only meant she had to work harder, which was not something new to her "are you doing the same?" Edelweiss directed to him "creeping up on pale Shiroshika wolves in the near blizzard so your black coat cannot be seen?" She lifts a brow, but it is clear in her tone for once; she is merely trying to joke with him.

She really does not care why he's out in this weather. Even if what she joked was to be true; it'd just be met with her leaving him in the dust. Snow dust. "Of course not" she mused "you didn't want to be bothered by one. I am trying to joke. Poorly." She was at least honest about that.

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My fingers got a lil excited soz

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A surprising amount of amusement was creeping into this snarky woman's tone, and Obelisk felt himself quirk a brow curiously as she spoke. "You will have to be more specific, most of the wolves in Shiroshika are all pale. Some even more than I." With a sarcastic hum, he scanned her up-and-down, squinting as if he couldn't tell whether she were a pigeon or not. Not only that, but she remained where she stood, without making a comment. Huh, perhaps she was a little more relaxed than she'd originally seemed . . .

"The snow covers my frame and also my scent. It is harder for prey to see me coming, are you doing the same? Creeping up on pale Shiroshika wolves in the near blizzard so your black coat cannot be seen?" This time, he actually chuckled, Obelisk curled his tail around his body in an attempt to soak up any possible warmth that might linger across his pelt, even though the snow that'd begun to sink into his fur made him quite cold. “In my defense, she came up to me. I wasn't stalking her, just examining your borders. Is that so bad?” He joked back, even though what he was recounting had actually happened.

"You didn't want to be bothered by one. I am trying to joke. Poorly." Huh, he thought she was doing fine. With a shrug, Obelisk clicked his tongue, tilting his head curiously. “I thought your joke was good. It made me laugh. Isn't that the point?” Because if it wasn't, then . . . What was the point of jokes? Not that he liked them that much, but he was fairly certain that the point of a joke was to laugh.

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She was quiet as he spoke, giving reason and logic. Her eyes went back to almost deadpan, the spark is gone once she guessed he wasn't offended by her 'joke'. Instead, he laughed at it. She didn't know what to think about it. Despite her emotionless gaze, a brow quirked a bit. "The point of a joke is to laugh, yes" she agreed "though you would be the first one to laugh at my feeble attempts thus far." So this pale wolf of Shiroshika knew the man, perhaps by name, and he was examining the borders when she found him. Curious.

Was he also doing such a thing when Edelweiss met him? The other pale wolf could have questioned his intentions. "And, it depends if your actions were bad if you wanted to do bad things" Edelweiss pointed out "usually vagabonds do not sniff pack borders, nor come at all close to them" She would know this "the stench alone makes them turn the other way. So perhaps your Pale Lady was curious why you came so close to Shiroshika?" Of course, it was just a guess.

Edelweiss knew he was joking, but she could not help the warning. Not a direct and aggressive one, not against him. Just a warning of potentially worse things out there. It was up to him whether he took it to heart or not. Her pack didn't seem keen on driving away anyone that wasn't allowed near. They kept to themselves mostly. They were not fighters, or so it seemed. She did not give that information out to the black-hued man.

She shrugged lightly. "This is not Shiroshika land, nor anyone else's. But I cannot speak for the fierceness some take with protecting their borders" Almost possessively obsessive "I would be cautious with whose line you inspect in the future. I hear some wolves take prisoners for lesser offenses." In any land, that is. Not just this one. Even in her own, men captured what they could not control in an effort to control it further. She only assumed this world was the same as others.

A hodgepodge of various beliefs and systems.

"A word of caution to you from a former vagabond." She reveals this without a care, not bothered by who knew. She was obviously not part of a bloodline here. Was she concerned at his flippant actions? Not really. She would be loathed to admit it, anyway. Edelweiss didn't openly care about others in the sense of displaying warmth. But she did concern herself sometimes. If he was going to be so careless, she might as well remind him.

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"The point of a joke is to laugh, yes, though you would be the first one to laugh at my feeble attempts thus far." That was . . . sad. Did Obelisk have a low bar of expectations when it came to humour? Sure, laughing was good and all, but if he laughed at every single joke – shitty or not – he'd be laughing for the rest of his damn life, and if anything, that sounded like a nightmare. "And, it depends if your actions were bad. If you wanted to do bad things,"

Did he? No, no. Even Obelisk knew that he was just curious. The sire could never bring himself to unnecessary violence . . . of course. Of course. "–Usually vagabonds do not sniff pack borders, nor come at all close to them. he stench alone makes them turn the other way. So perhaps your Pale Lady was curious why you came so close to Shiroshika?" “Perhaps . . .” He mused. It felt like something was turning in his head though, like something surfacing out of water. In reality, it was just the timelines aligning, and the author being able to say– “Hotaru, Princess Hotaru. That was her name!”

"This is not Shiroshika land, nor anyone else's. But I cannot speak for the fierceness some take with protecting their borders. I would be cautious with whose line you inspect in the future. I hear some wolves take prisoners for lesser offenses." Yeah, he knew. The Shiroshikan princess had already worked it into his skull within the few first moments of meeting her, and he was glad to've been eventually let go. With a nod, he listened as she continued. "A word of caution to you from a former vagabond."

“You're not of Shiroshikan descent?” The man asked; she'd looked just like that princess, it . . . made no sense, unless they only sought the palest of pale coats to make sure that they camouflaged into the snow at all times. It'd make group-hunting easier, but Obelisk worried that he wouldn't be able to differentiate them if he wasn't confident with their mannerisms or personalities yet. Obelisk was quite the people reader. “You certainly look like you could be, if that . . . I don't know, makes you feel any better.”

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Hotaru. Ah, yes, the pretty young thing in Shiroshika that spoke to her about clouds and other things. "I've met her, yes" she nodded "but no, I am not part of their family" She shook her head "it probably looks that way due to our coats, but we do have other colored wolves in Shiroshika" Antares for one stuck out like a sore thumb. She knew what that was like "we have no bias, to my knowledge." The people were welcoming and curious.

Edelweiss lifted a brow again at him, stumbling over his words. "Will it surprise you to know I have never seen a pale-coated wolf until coming to this world?" She was blunt about it, but not unkind. Merely telling a story of another time "my people were dressed in browns... Anything earthen. I, alone, had a coat as white as the moon" Because of Artemis, they said. No, sisters, because she had been adopted "my people found me abandoned as a pup. They took me in."

Raised her, loved her. When they didn't need to do such a thing. "The Tundra suits me for this reason. I know what it is like to trek among the foliage, a ghost" She shrugged "makes for easier hunting and stalking if I am in my element" But. She shot him a pointed look "though we'd both be out of place in the Desert." Was that a joke?

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Well, the lady did know her. That was . . . good? Bad? Would she report back to the princess and say that the creepy sire was still floating around? Well, whatever she did, Obelisk would continue to listen as she spoke, waiting for the snow to die down before he slipped out from the shelter of the tree and continued onwards. "–but no, I am not part of their family. It probably looks that way due to our coats, but we do have other colored wolves in Shiroshika; we have no bias, to my knowledge."

"Will it surprise you to know I have never seen a pale-coated wolf until coming to this world?" “Really?” He ventured, truly bewildered by the fact that one may not find such a natural pelt coat in their entire life. It seemed like a tale, a fib, especially since she herself was pale. Obelisk quirked a brow, as if disbelieving. "My people were dressed in browns... Anything earthen. I, alone, had a coat as white as the moon. My people found me abandoned as a pup. They took me in." Ah, yes, now that made sense.

“Hm,” He'd only hum as she continued. There wasn't much to offer besides perked ears and an open mind. Obelisk awaited for her statements to end, before offering his own question. “We would,” He replied with a chuckle. “I'm Obelisk, by the way. What may your title be?” They'd talked for a while now, surely they'd gotten to know each other well enough to swap names. What sort of standards did this lady hold? She'd basically recited her entire history to the man.

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He did not seem to believe her, not at first. Slowly, the lines of his face worked into a more accepting expression. He did not seem to understand, so Edelweiss elaborated. "The canines of my world before here," she said, not bothered by giving information that did not carry to this world "were separated by coat color. The natives were earthen in my land, as their territory made them adjust and adapt for many years until they fit in perfectly." Her eyes left his face as she stared around.

"I found it to be a logical adjustment from nature," Edelweiss mused "if they had wide, open plains and barely any cover; they were blonde and cream. North of us, to fit in better with the snow, was greyscale and white" She still held no bias toward anyone with a different coat color though. It was just a telltale sign that you belonged in a specific location where your coat would not hinder your abilities. She shrugged. "wolves rarely saw other coats; no one did much travel."

Obelisk introduced himself, and she blinked once out of her explanation to turn back to him. She had no formal title in Shiroshika, but did he mean her name? That seemed more acceptable. "Edelweiss" she gave, taking care to pronounce it correctly the first time for him. She would not repeat herself "you seem surprised I would give out information. But it holds no weight here, so I do not see any threat."

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"The canines of my world before here, were separated by coat color. The natives were earthen in my land, as their territory made them adjust and adapt for many years until they fit in perfectly." Well, he supposed that made sense, but did that suggest that she'd hailed from a world beyond her previous, or was it simply a birth defect, hindering the pigment in her pelt? Obelisk hummed curiously, his paws itching to tear apart her fur and understand why she was so ghostly compared to the descriptions of her long gone wolven-brethren. He breathed quietly.

"I found it to be a logical adjustment from nature, if they had wide, open plains and barely any cover; they were blonde and cream. North of us, to fit in better with the snow, was greyscale and white. Wolves rarely saw other coats; no one did much travel." “I'll never understand how people stay in one place for so long, when the life of a nomad is waiting around the corner. So much more entertaining, and exciting, and . . . peaceful.” He hummed to himself, a small smile growing upon his face as his gaze clouded over. he zoned out as he observed the pale-ladies face. Edelweiss.

"You seem surprised I would give out information. But it holds no weight here, so I do not see any threat." Obelisk chuckled, shaking his head. He wasn't exactly surprised, just a little shocked at her willingness to hand out small truths that could quite easily pile to knock down an empire; inevitable chaos, one of the best kinds. Obelisk smiled. “It's all too easy for things to be spun into an untruthful quote; I could be a monster, you know. What tells you that I'm not? That I offer you a place beside me, while ivory only pummels down further?” Genuinely curious, he was.

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"I assume it is because of many reasons, over one little easy answer."

Tradition. Stubbornness. Pride. Whatever you wanted to call it. She shifted her weight somewhat. "Though I would not call nomad life peaceful" Edelweiss began after a gentle hum "some wish for continual stability and safety. Many wolves group together because they are weaker apart." She had already admitted her weakness in protecting Kalvin alone. That is why she joined Shiroshika in the first place; to give the boy a better life than she could on the road. In the end, a community is what you make of it.

She shrugged. "I fail to see what you'd gain by using such information against me" Edelweiss replied bluntly "I am not going to break down and wail over the hue of my fur, and my people are not in this world" She had told him nothing interesting, nothing that could cause harm to herself. She was not at all worried "and it is true, I do not trust you enough to come closer. But that is the same for anyone I have just met." He was nothing special in that regard. She was always going to be cautious. He was but a stranger. Why should she go closer to him? Just because he offered? That was foolish.

As for the pouring ivory. The fact that Obelisk also has not attacked despite his subtle annoyance over this snow only adds to her belief he is patient. And it is true, the man could be waiting for a chance to attack. She doubted he would. He seemed to require a need, or else he'd be bored with her prattle long ago and just lunge. She kept this to herself unless she was wrong in the very end. "So, to answer your question, I do not know if you are a monster."

Nobody knew what they were capable of until their patience broke. Frankly, she didn't think she was wrong in her assessment of him. "You could just go on when we part and attack someone else for all I know" Edelweiss wasn't going to run after him and tell him off. He was a big boy. He could handle the potential mess he made. Even if they were bad. "But that's your decision, isn't it?" That's what he went on about previously. "You're free. You don't answer to anyone else." She glanced away briefly, spying that the snow had become nearly a blizzard around them.

"Parting sooner than later," she remarked, eyes zipping back "it is becoming a mess out here, even for me. I know where I can go back to, but you should find shelter for yourself." Was that some hint of concern? Perhaps, perhaps not.

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"I assume it is because of many reasons, over one little easy answer. Though I would not call nomad life peaceful." Well, perhaps that was the wrong word. Obelisk smiled, though shrugged wolfishly (as always) as Edelweiss continued, listening as she stated her case and defended her opinion. She seemed like a pacifist, Obelisk thought. "–some wish for continual stability and safety. Many wolves group together because they are weaker apart." “To hide within the crowd seems . . . weak, to me, though I suppose it's smart, at the very least. Wouldn't weaker wolves be dead-weight?” At least, that's what he thought. Maybe he shouldn't lead a pack, otherwise he'd probably cast out the weak and keep his strong wolves closest to him.

It seemed like the smartest move, but he doubted anyone would follow a cruel leader; of course, the elderly, injured and young would be allowed to stay, but any able-bodied wolves who aren't bettering themselves? He'd gladly cast them out, but perhaps he was just trying to justify himself. "I fail to see what you'd gain by using such information against me, I am not going to break down and wail over the hue of my fur, and my people are not in this world. And it is true, I do not trust you enough to come closer. But that is the same for anyone I have just met." “You're smart then, to not let any stranger get too close.” He complimented with a smile.

"So, to answer your question, I do not know if you are a monster." Though he very well could be, perhaps he was just waiting for the right moment to pounce, gathering information to deepen his teeth within the pale fur, but perhaps he just wanted to seem strong, and big and scary. Maybe Obelisk just wanted to appear menacing; that thought wasn't necessarily wrong, but it was kind of sad to think that he wasn't already menacing. “And I do not know if you're particularly kind, or whether my mannerisms have found themselves itching your skin with annoyance yet,” The sire's mouth quirked up with amusement, listening as she continue to speak once more;

And she was right, Obelisk probably wouldn't attack her, not right now, at least. She hadn't really done anything to deserve it, had she? Obelisk doubted so. "You could just go on when we part and attack someone else for all I know. But that's your decision, isn't it? You're free. You don't answer to anyone else." The man chuckled; the life of a nomad truly was free, and he thought himself lucky to be able to find respite in his own fur, but perhaps the differences between him and Edelweiss could provide a sort of . . . enrichment in the view of pack-life. “The life of a loner comes with no ties, nor bounds, though it lacks in the safety department. Perhaps I'll sniff around some other packs and see whether they beat my ass, or take me in.”

"Parting sooner than later, it is becoming a mess out here, even for me. I know where I can go back to, but you should find shelter for yourself." Ah, was she trying to get rid of him? In truth, the woman was right; it'd be best for him to go now, but he wouldn't dare to say that some part of him would miss chatting with the pale lady. With a dip of his head, though, Obelisk begun to standing, looking out among the snow as it seemed to lighten. It would be best to go now. “I'll be on my way, then. It was a pleasure to meet you, Edelweiss. Perhaps I'll stop by sometime, hm?” He was joking, of course, but he wondered if the dam would appreciate his company once more. He certainly enjoyed hers.

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Potential Fade!

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"Why does a sick or injured herd animal keep being allowed into their group, and not cast out then?" Edelweiss replied plainly, quirking a brow "perhaps the herd believes a predator will eventually cull them. Perhaps they truly rely on each other, in some way, despite their weaknesses" In the end, pure speculation "even if it is to make the predator target those sick and ill first. You could say the stronger ones protect themselves better with the weak around. It makes them feel big and safe." Like a tyrant. It was almost disgusting.

She huffed as the conversation continued. "If I was annoyed by you, you would no doubt have heard this expressed" She pointed this out "or I would have just walked away" She did not force social interactions. She was not lonely and pining for them. The fact is, she spoke plainly for once and someone listened to her. It was up to Obelisk to take her words or leave them. He ventured he may stop by again. "That is your choice, isn't it?" She would not traverse the Tundra looking for one blackened wolf. It would be a waste of her energy to look over such an expanse when he admitted he was a vagabond.

For all she knew, he had been warned away from Shiroshika. Edelweiss would ask Princess Hotaru personally once she got back. She wouldn't want to welcome someone at the border of Tsukiishi that was not supposed to be there. "Just be careful that you don't die, Obelisk" she added over her shoulder, beginning the trek back "you do not want my face to be the last pleasant one you spoke with."

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