3/13/2025, 5:15 PM
An apology, and Aurelia's crown dipped under the weight of Solulfur's attention. Sol's brow quirked downward slightly, a pensive frown creasing her features. She was relieved to see the familiar face of one she would trust with....this. This was an untapped and deep-cut well of grief nestled in beside the Sun-wolf's heart, this land and all it represented. It surged within her like the tide, threatening to fill her lungs with the saltwater of her own cold sorrow. Amongst the scents of wind-scoured pine and ice-capped snow, Solulfur's own blended seamlessly into the mountain. But winding through the wintery breeze was now something richer, deeper - foreign to these lands yet it put the Black Sun at ease.
A hunt, Aurelia said. Solulfur reached up with a paw to scrub at her tear-stained cheek, ruffling the fur there before seeking to meet Aurelia's gaze. It made her feel...strange, to know Aurelia had been on her trail, for Solulfur's company, when they'd been transported here. Warm, but not like the fierce fire Solulfur carried within her - the self-driven edge of ambition that she cultivated and fueled with painstaking care. This was something different.
It's alright, I'm...Your company is always welcome, Aurelia.
This is where I was born.She did not say home, and that was not a mistake.
The Jawbone. We're right at the heart of it - I don't know how...I followed the petals, and then I was here. It's like the caves, but...She bumped her shoulder against a jagged wall of stone, brushing the edge of her tail against it. There was an instinctive drive to mark this territory, even though she knew it wouldn't last.
Even though she knew she didn't want it to.
Solulfur didn't want to be stranded here, alone, away from her pack, away from the Frostfang's now-familiar terrain, away from...the Shakti-Vaes, Solvi, all who'd grown so important to her. And she would never, never wish for Aurelia to be dragged across realms, separated from what remained of her family, stranded from all she'd worked so hard to build - no matter the gain Solulfur might stand to acquire. The realization was another ten-foot-tall wave within the flow of her emotions, threatening to eclipse the sky and earth alike.
But it's real.She finally finished. This friendship, it was real; as steady, as sturdy as the mountains they had both grown up on.
Would you like a tour?The Black Sun flashed a toothy, bright grin.
Or...have you ever tried your paw at hunting mountain goats?
