#18366 & #10098 (don't reply otherwise, please!)

Though she'd visited the taiga often and had by now gotten quite used to it (she had to if she expected her pack to survive in the tundra, after all), it was a far different journey when Rune had more than herself to look after.

The scouts, Marten and Chestnuts, were ahead of the rest of the pack. Marten had his shoulders hunched, a sour and sulking look on his face, while Chestnuts padded next to him, eyes bright and cheery, tongue lolling out as he spoke on about how open and airy the tundra was. Rune privately wondered yet again how only Chestnuts was still oblivious to Marten's clear disdain for him. Or perhaps he does realize, but does not care? Snippets of their conversation were carried by the light breeze to her.

"-and the air is so crisp and fresh, probably because of the wind from the sea," Chestnuts excitedly rambled. "And speaking of the sea, I'm sure you already know about how, er, what's the word? How many different kinds of land there is-"
"Various?" Marten offered, his voice thick and dry. "Scattered?"

If Chestnuts was going to say anything else, it was swiftly interrupted as Stone, hurried up next to him, crooning softly as she slipped her head underneath her mate's. Chesnut's chuckled and leaned hsi head against his mate's. "What's the matter, dear?"

Stone sighed before she spoke, looking longingly into Chestnut's eyes. "I was just thinking that this was the loveliest walk we've had so far."

Chestnuts beamed and nuzzled her, while Marten sighed, his eyes rolling and slowed his pace, falling next to Nettle and Rune, who cast him a bemused glance, before he fell behind further, to the hunters at the end of the group. Rune watched him before she felt a nudge against her chest, and turned to meet Nettle's blue eyes, sharp and clear. "So Decidus," She gingerly began, ears pricked up. Rune realized she was nervous. "He looks like you then?"

"And he's about two years older."

"Right, right," Nettle looked ahead. "Just . . . making sure."

"You'll be fine," Rune let her cheek fur brush against Nettle's as she sidled closer to her mate. "You're my love, and nothing is going to change that."

"I know that," Nettle defensively retorted, her voice softening as she continued, worry now clear and thick as her voice became a thin keen. "I-it's just that . . . well-"

"Is that them?" Rune and Nettle looked up at Chestnuts, who had stopped in his tracks, Stone looking back at them as well while still by her mate's side, who gestured with his nose to two wolves about a tree-length up ahead.

"Ah, yes, it is," Rune confirmed, nodding her head. She turned to the wolves behind her, announcing, "We've arrived, and remember what I've told you." Murmurs of "best behavior" and "be good," mainly from the younger wolves made her ears flick. She pressed her head against her mate's for a moment before padding ahead. Nettle shifted her paws nervously, glancing over at Moth, who stepped forward, taking Rune's place next to Nettle, and they, along with the rest of Silverrune, watched attentively as their lead wolf approached the other pack's members.

The sun shone down, the frost glistening and the mist draped all around appearing as thick as the few patches of snow still on the ground. The trees stood tall, the wind whistling through their dark, looming branches.

Nettle shifted her paws nervously again, and shared a look with Moth.

Ashen straightened her posture at the sight of Rune and the rest of her pack.

She had insisted to Eltalis that she would come with him in place of Nuarie, in order to ensure Rune and her pack were properly cared for their entire visit.

The gruff, older wolf stood beside her, his pelt shaggy and his eyes bleary, a yawn dripping from his jaws.

"So, how many wolves are we talkin' again?" He grumbles.

"A whole pack, Eltalis," she snips curtly. "I've told this to you hundreds of times; why do you constantly forget?"

"Blame it on the old age," Eltalis snickered, stretching out, eyeing the group as it only grew in size as the pack drifted in from the pines and into view. "Shall I go grab Decidus?"

"No, he's still with Koleres and Baraia. Last minute behavior sessions, since Hailari and Hako were found planning a prank for the new coming pack."

"Prank?" Eltalis echoed, his eyebrow lifting as he shifted a curious gaze towards his alpha.

"They were going to dump snow on all the newcomers when they tried to enter the caves for rest."

Eltalis had to choke down his snort of laughter, clearing his throat when Ashen gave him a stern look. Though she was far younger than him, he knew better than to test her patience with laughing along with such pranks.

Ashen strode forward as what seemed to be the last of Silverrune came into view, and dipped her head to Rune as she approached, flicking her tail for Eltalis to follow.

The flurry did so dutifully, straightening his posture and gaining a more poised stature.

"Hail, Silverrune," Ashen called, her fur fluffed. "I am Ashen, Alpha of the Pack of the Everfrost. If you follow us; we will guide you to our pack grounds, where you will be fed and given shelter until you're ready to move on."

Rune bowed her head in response, blinking slowly to express her gratitude. "Thank you, Ashen of the Everfrost. Silverrune is grateful for your hospitality," She turned to her wolves and flicked her ear and tail, the signal for them to follow. Chestnuts bounded ahead playfully, Nettle and Moth hurrying towards Rune. Marten hopped forward at first but slowed when Thorn sidled up next to him, the two beginning to chat. Dusty cast them a glance before snorting and shaking her fur. Birch, who had been walking alongside Pinecone and Sunflower, immediately skipped over and pressed her pelt against the hunter's dust-colored pelt, while Pinecone and Sunflower watched on from their path. Eagle and Char hung back, Aspen backing them up, with Autumn licking at Eagle's ear, and Chill pausing to look back at Char and sharing fleeting glances at each other before continuing on. As Nettle hopped up beside Rune, the silvery wolf turned to the flurry. "Hello Eltalis. Twenty three wolves in total, altogether. We should be staying only for a single night at most should the current weather hold." She smiled softly, only for a moment, and then turned to Ashen. "I hope that won't be too long?"

Eltalis snorted slightly in surprise at the amount of wolves he had heard.

Sure, the Pack of the Everfrost was near on eighty members, but to have an additional twenty plus to join them?

Irimine and the others have a helluva lot of work to do... He mumbled to himself, only to wince slightly at the memory that Irimine's group wasn't at the top of their game any longer.

His gaze flickered back towards the camp briefly, before he nodded.

"Understood," he barked.

Ashen dipped her head, her eyes glittering.

"I had prepared for at least a week of staying," she explained to Rune. "The weather is quite fickle in these parts, so I wanted to ensure that we had plenty to accommodate for. I do pray, though, that the weather stays this way so that you may finally enter your proper hunting grounds." She turned to Eltalis, who nodded, and the two began to guide the pack to their camp.

It wasn't too long of a walk, with Eltalis and Ashen weaving in and out of the trees that they knew so well, pausing only to ensure that the wolves of Silverrune kept up and didn't get lost, and eventually they stood in a large clearing by a river, where quite a few wolves were chatting and playing.

It looked like the Singing Echoes had gone for another hunt while Irimine was training Ekalia on how to finish a piece of prey more efficiently, and Eltalis made a mental note to ask Odin how long they'd been gone for. Knowing when more prey would come back was always nice.

Ashen turned to Rune when they arrived at the pack entrance, letting out a low yip.

Three wolves appeared; one with pale fur and yellow-gold eyes, another with dark patched fur and ice-blue eyes, and then Decidus, his orange eyes warmly drifting over Rune's pelt, a beaming smile on his face at the sight of his sister.

"I hope you don't mind, but due to our pack's set up, we do tend to split up the hunters, scouts, herbalists, pupsitters, pups, and mothers all in different caves," Ashen explained, before anyone could speak. She nodded to the pale-furred she-wolf. "This is Marasi; one of our hunters, though we refer to them as Avalanches. Any hunters of yours can go with her to the hunter's den to prepare some resting areas," she nodded to the patchy-furred she-wolf. "This is Patches, our Aufeis apprentice. Her mentor, Akanai, is currently out foraging, but she can guide your herbalists and any of your sick or elderly to the Aufeis or quarantine den."

She turned to Eltalis.

"Of course, you know Eltalis. He is one of my flurries—er... Scouts. He'll take any of your scouts to the scout cave." Her sharp blue gaze flickered to Decidus. "And then, of course, Decidus is one of our pupsitters. He will take whoever's left; mothers, pupsitters, and pups to the pup cave."

She straightened her posture.

"This is how I sort my wolves," she said. "But if you decide you wish to sort them differently, feel free to simply assign wolves to one of each of these fine representatives; they will take care of you." She glanced behind her, her gaze briefly flickering towards a small passageway beyond the rocks. "If you need me, I'll be near that pathway," she expressed. "I have business to attend to with finances and scheduling hunting parties, however don't be afraid to alert me to anything you need. Also feel free to ask these fine wolves here; they are wolves I trust."

Rune smiled at the sight of her brother, but at Ashen's words, she forced herself to stay calm and stoic, and nodded to affirm her. "Of course." She turned to the wolves behind her, who were already moving towards the respective wolves.

With a playful bark, Chestnuts bounded over to Eltalis, leaving Stone to watch on with shining eyes, but no other expression on her moon-shaped face. "Hi, my name's Chestnuts!" He announced, and then dropped into a playbow. "I'm a flurry, too! Wanna play?" Marten approached, a smirk on his face and with a snort, told Eltalis, "He's our problem now." Chesnut's hopped onto his feet, tongue lolling out. "Problem? What problem?" He turned to Eltalis expectantly.

The hunters ended up going towards Marasi in their hunting party formations, with Muskox holding his head high and taking confident strides as he lead the Fire party, Thorn waving her tail as the Heart party followed behind her, Rook humming along as Sunflower and Birch followed behind, yipping excitedly to each other, while Stone, after Pinecone had brushed against her side, nuzzled her daughter's head comfortingly, exchanged firm and respectful nods with Dusty, who with a chuff, lead the Moon party, her face unreadable.

Rune approached Decidus, and pressed her forehead to his before anyone could stop her. "Decidus!" Her voice, just moments ago calm and composed, was now a soft, excited keen. Nettle padded beside her, a smile on her face, but as Rune leaned back, the smile faded, becoming serious. "Decidus," The sunny she-wolf stated, glancing anxiously at Rune, who gave a short, reassuring nod. "I'm Nettle. Rune's-"

"Deciduous?" A little voice piped up. Nettle's eyes widened as she looked down at Light, who wagged her tail and stared up at Decidus. "Like our old home? Wow, that's a really nice name!"

"Yes, Light," Rune softly told the young pup, gently tugging on her scruff so she backed off. "But remember, we must be polite, and being polite means not interrupting . . ."

Nettle shook her head and regained composure. "A-anyways," She stammered, looking at Decidus. Oh Great Hunt, he really did look a lot like Rune. Oh, pull yourself together, runt! Just talk to him! "I-I'm Nettle." No, you already said that, you twitter-brain!

"She's Rune's mate," Stone interjected. Nettle nearly sagged in relief right then and there. Stone continued, her voice monotone and matter-of-fact. "I'm the mother of Leaf, and Light and Saffron are Rune and Nettle's."

"Ah, yes," Rune stepped to the front, and as relieved Nettle was that her part was done, her face remained warm with embarrassment, her ears burning hot as her love continued to speak. "As you can see, Light's the more outspoken of the three. I hope the Hoarfrost pups aren't as mischievous?"

Eltalis reared when Chestnuts came bounding towards him, surprise overwhelming him at the chipper wolf he found himself faced with.

Oh, ice shards, he growled inwardly. Nuarie, you're baby sitting this one. But he cracked a smile none the less, dipping his head to the two.

"I don't play much," he snorted. "Need my back in shape for scouting."

Marasi greeted the hunting parties with a nod, her ears twitching as she looked over Muskox, Thorn, and Dusty.

"You all must be the leaders of your hunting party," she queried, her eyes glittering with curiosity. "It's a pleasure to meet you. I am Marasi, the leader of the Avalanche party known as the Laughing Echoes. It's quite a pleasure." She dips her head, before lifting it proudly. "Just this way, we've already prepared some nests for you." She turned on her heels and guided them towards the hunter's den, her gaze flickering back towards Eltalis with amusement in her gaze.

Eltalis sighed, rolling his eyes, before straightening himself.

"Alright, alright," he snorts. "C'mon, we got business to attend to." He nods for Chestnuts and Marten to follow, before turning and sauntering over towards the den he called home.

Decidus' gaze turned to Nettle as she began to speak, only to blink when he heard the small squeaky voice of a pup. He chuckled softly, offering the tiny pup a small wink as her mother gently grabbed her by the scruff.

"I was always told my name was a play on that word," he murmured softly, before turning back to Nettle, watching the exchange with glimmering amusement.

"Oh, they're mischievous alright," he crows playfully, giving a small glance to Ashen, who rolled her eyes. "I remember when Nuarie was just a pup. Little rascal just loved getting snow in everyone's pelt. I just suppose that's how puppies are," he coos. His gaze turns to Light and he lowers down until he was eye-level. "Are you excited? There are many pups for you to play with in our den. There's Hailari and Hako, two little ankle biters who just love to play tag. And if they're not your speed, we do have Manara. She's a playful one and likes to trod through the snow."

He lifted himself up, ruffling his fur as he turned to his sister.

"Shall I show you all to the den?"

Rune wasn't paying too much attention to what Nettle, Stone, and Decidus were saying too each other, trusting the two knew how to speak to her brother, and focused on teaching Light to be respectful.

"But Leaf and Saffron are boring," Light whined, huffing. Behind her, Saffron rolled his eyes and shot a glare at his sister. "They're always so sad all the time."

"It's only going to get colder and wetter." Leaf softly added before Rune could say anything else. Saffron was looking away at the time, but he was clearly listening as he nodded.

"The tundra is snowy," Rune admitted to Leaf and Saffron, before turning to Light. "But we must be respectful of the Hoarfrost. They're being very kind by letting us stay, and we must be polite. And I'm sure there'll be pups for you to play with here."

Light seemed to brighten at that, smiling, and with a soft giggle, she bumped her head against Rune's forehead. "I love you." Rune whispered to her daughter, and that was when she returned to the conversation, apologizing and redirecting the subject to the Hoarfrost pups as she noticed Nettle's clenched jaw. It was a sign that the otherwise bristling and prickly wolf was nervous.

Rune chuckled softly at that image, quieting herself as her brother crouched down to Light's level.

Light nodded excitedly, her tail wagging all the while. She and her mother shared a glance before Light yipped joyfully. "Tag! Tag! Oh, and Leaf, you can join, too!" She whirled round and dragged Leaf over by the other pup's ear. Leaf looked bored, as if this had happened an umpteen number of times before (it had).

Rune nodded simply, and while keeping an eye on Light all the way, she'd follow Decidus, Nettle pressed against her side, Saffron scuffing his paws and shoving his face in either of his mothers' tails, and Stone would be in the back, Leaf shuffling all right in front of her.