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for Yanggadi Saghani and Annabelle ! set same day as this thread

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the herd has gathered along the lower slopes, where the last stubborn grasses survive beneath a thin crust of frost. their coats have thickened considerably since summer, and fa’liya finds herself envying them as the morning wind combs through her own.

fa'liya moves quietly between their great bodies, familiar enough now that few bother to acknowledge her passage. a cow pauses to sniff her ear before returning to her grazing, a gesture fa’liya receives with a faint, affectionate flick of her tail.

the mountains rise pale against the southern sky. somewhere beyond them lies the place she has visited recently, though she keeps her attention upon the living company surrounding her. her breath catches unpleasantly when she attempts the incline. she pauses, swallowing against a familiar tightness in her chest, and turns at the sound of movement behind her.

Yanggadi Saghani lead the sleet woman, with her bundle of roses and mint, to where Fa'liya was likely to be. Amongst the caribou themselves. How fitting, considering the sleet woman was found with their ghosts in the same manner. As he catches Fa'liya’s scent, and eventually slight, he considers this fact. Sleet woman was bright like the ghosts he saw in the swamp land, and Fa'liya is dark more like the caribou before them.

Two sides, and he felt more confident than ever his interpretation was correct.

He looked to sleet woman, flicking his head from her towards Fa'liya, indicating she is the one they must approach amongst the caribou. The moonlight allowed easy sight on the clear area, though clouds did darkened the world here and there.

He came to her side and nudged her, taking a sniff of the gift before heading over towards the ghost talker. His approach was not that of any aggression, but it was likely the caribou would not enjoy his particular presence…but maybe, they would accept sleet woman?

With stone in mouth, he looked to Fa'liya now, and lowered his head in greeting. He dropped the stone, and awaited sleet woman to come to his side.

”Fa'liya, we have come at the order of Cen, for you are to determine what the spirits intended for her fate, for I had found her at peace with among Eena, Uhka, and Oga,” he said in lanzadoii, and turned his head to see if sleet woman was here to offer her gift. He would flick his head, indicating so.

”This one does not speak in word, nor does our word she understand, but we come with gift. This stone is one the caribou spirits had touched this night. She brings you these plants as her offering,” he closed his eyes as he nosed the smooth black stone towards her, part of his heart flaring red, wishing to possess the stone that was so important to him already. Perhaps one could tell a bit of his hesitation as he looked to it, but ultimately he lifted his head and took a step back, allowing sleet woman to offer her gift.

He was ready to make his argument for her, but waited with patience on this night for indication of what the procedure is from Fa'liya.

Annabelle had never seen so many caribou gathered in one place. Their great bodies moved peacefully through the clearing, heads lowered as they grazed beneath the moonlight. They seemed entirely unaware of her presence among them. She watched with quiet wonder, her pale eyes following the occasional flick of an ear or swish of a tail. They were so lovely! And so very much bigger than she was. They reminded her of her spirit friends, only well…not spirit.

Still, she made no attempt to approach them. Instead, she remained close to Yanggadi, patiently waiting for his signal. The bundle of roses and mint rested carefully in her mouth, their sweet fragrance filling her nose. She didn't want to spoil the flowers before she had the chance to give them away!

When he finally nudged her and flicked his head in Fa'liya's direction, Annabelle's ears perked. Oh! It was time!

She stepped forward, approaching the dark-coated wolf with small, measured steps. Her tail began to sway behind her, betraying the excitement she could hardly contain. Once she stood before Fa'liya, she lowered her head and gently placed the bundle upon the earth between them.

There! Her gift!

She took a small step back, careful not to disturb the roses, and looked up at the ghost talker with an expectant expression. The blooms were a little uneven, and perhaps some of the mint had become ruffled along the journey, but Annabelle thought they were beautiful all the same. She hoped Fa'liya did, too.

A soft, pleased hum slipped from her throat. She dipped her head in a little bow, then glanced briefly toward Yanggadi, as if sharing in the satisfaction of having brought their gifts safely to their destination. Her gaze returned to Fa'liya. She couldn't explain why she had brought the flowers, or tell her that the mint might help if her tummy ever felt poorly.

She could only offer the gift and hope its meaning was understood.

Fa'liya Yanggadi Saghani

a ripple of unease passes through the nearest cows as their heads raise from the frostbitten grasses to regard the approaching wolves, and fa’liya follows their attention with mild curiosity. her father's son she recognizes readily, and yet not so much the pale creature accompanying him. her ears turning forward when yanggadi saghani lowers his head in greeting.

hello, yanggadi saghani, she offers, somewhat breathlessly. her gaze wanders toward the woman at his side, then returns to him as he begins to explain the purpose of their visit. cen has sent them, apparently, although it is the mention of eena, uhka, and oga that gives her pause. she straightens a little, listening with an attentiveness she seldom affords ordinary conversation.

the three spirits are familiar to her, and she finds it peculiar that they should have shown themselves to someone beyond the saatsine. particularly one who cannot speak their language. peculiar, too, that they should have sent her here.

fa’liya looks again to the stranger, considering her pale coat and the pleasant eagerness with which she presents her flowers. something unpleasant stirs in the back of her mind. the dream returns to her in fragments: another creature, canine in form, whose appearance she had struggled to reconcile with the rest of her vision. she has thought of it often since, and now, confronted with a stranger apparently favored by the same spirits, she feels that old uncertainty take on a more immediate shape.

it is an unreasonable association, she tells herself. the spirits have never been especially forthcoming with their intentions, and she has learned the folly of assigning meaning to every coincidence. nevertheless, she cannot quite dismiss the feeling.

her gaze lowers toward the offerings. the stone is dark and smooth, and the flowers have been gathered with obvious care. she noses gently through the mint, recognizing its fragrance before withdrawing to regard the woman herself. thank you, she says, although she understands from yanggadi's explanation that the words will mean very little. she dips her head in return, hoping the gesture might suffice.

she has seen them? fa’liya asks him after a moment, her pale eyes lingering upon the stranger. there is a faint incredulity in her voice, tempered by something considerably less comfortable. i cannot tell her fate from a stone, yanggadi. her tone is gentle rather than reproachful. i must know what happened.

With a turn of his head, he sees the sleet woman looking to the caribou with awe, almost as if she had never seen any before, perhaps other than the spirits. Odd. Could she have never seen them, hunted them, eaten them? She was mystery, and very much an outsider in many respects.

But perhaps that is why the caribou spirits led her to him. She may be an outside, but she may be meant to learn the ways. And with this, he looked to sister Fa’liya. Who, thankfully, very respectfully called him by his full name, a thing he greatly appreciated.

Sleet woman understood what he meant with no verbal direction, and offered up her plants. Yanggadi Saghani was curious, and watched with mahogany eyes as she did so. She seemed so excited to do so, so genuine with her offering. Fa’liya noses the plants, and from what he can tell, that are at least mildly acceptable. He knew little about these plants, but…he felt perhaps he needed to pay more attention to them going forward.

Yanggadi Saghani heard the hum of the woman, and he responded in kind with a small grin. She had done well…he thought. Maybe. Honestly, he wasn’t sure. Fa’liya was in charge at this point. He hoped that sleet woman understood the thanks, and he gave her a very small nod in hopes of expressing something went right.

Fa’liya questioned him then, commenting the stone could not say much. He huffed a little at the stone, eyes stared at it for a second. He was a little disappointed. The spirits had touched it…he had seen it! Yet they left no sent, no fur…nothing! He is left with only memories, a thing that cannot be shared as physical proof. He looked back up to Fa’liya, determined.

”Fa’liya, it was a thing to be seen. I wish you had been there, Fa’liya. Dusk had come. In the swamp trees, I saw light. Light, Fa’liya! I went to it, and Eena, Uhka, and Oga were there…but not there. They were like fireflies if their lights stayed on, but with no scent! They ate the grass, and yet no leaf was touched!” he was stepping forward then, completely engrossed in his own telling of the story. His face was bright and alert, eyes lost in the memory of it all.

”Amongst them, she was with them, right next to them! They accepted her, just as these caribou accept you. They did not run. There was no fear. They brought her to Saatsine, and then…Fa’liya and then, they disappeared into mist!” he exclaimed, nose rising in the air as if he was watching the mist float into the air right before him. Never had Yanggadi Saghani been so passionate about something, but it was real! He knew it! Paw tapped the ground next to the stone.

”They had touched this stone…so I decided to keep it, even if it shows no sign of it…but I know it was true, and thus I offer it to you, as my truth,” he looked to Fa’liya then with serious eyes, wide and bright on this night. ”She may not speak our language, but there must be some reason she was brought to us,” he turned his head to sleet woman now, eyes softening…he felt the burden of concern now. Everything was in Fa’liya’s words in. She held all the power over sleet woman. Her fate was to be determined by Fa’liya, and Yanggadi Saghani did his best to argue what he felt was truth.

The wind blew cool around them, though his heart beat hot, awaiting what was to be.

the more excited her brother becomes, the quieter fa’liya grows. she watches him recount his encounter with considerable enthusiasm, her ears turning backward at the mention of the spirits' peculiar behavior. there is little reason to doubt him, although she finds herself wishing that there were. the three caribou have appeared to her often enough that she recognizes something of their nature in his description, particularly the absence of scent and the strange manner in which they departed.

it is the woman's presence among them that troubles her.

she remembers the starving cow, the calf risen, the wolf whose appearance had complicated a vision she had already struggled to understand. until then, she had never encountered such a spirit, and she has spent the intervening months wondering why it had been shown to her, and now, listening to yanggadi speak of a wolf welcomed among the three, she feels something cold settle beneath her ribs.

fa’liya looks toward the stranger again. such an innocent creature, apparently. she has offered flowers, and regards the caribou with an affection fa’liya recognizes in herself. it seems unkind to regard her with suspicion for something she may not even understand, and a familiar image troubles her recollection, something glimpsed amid the peculiar happenings of visions she has not yet managed to put behind her.

i believe you, she assures him gently. i know them. they have visited me also. her gaze lowers to the stone, and she considers it for a moment before looking toward the herd. one of the cows has resumed grazing, apparently satisfied that the visitors pose no immediate danger. but i do not know why they brought her. the admission troubles her more than she cares to reveal. perhaps they wish for her to remain with us. perhaps there is something she must do. she pauses, studying the stranger's pleasant expression. i cannot know until they tell me.

she looks to her brother again, a little apologetically. i will ask them. but we must be patient, yes?