[se] climbed right back up the cliff

Noe

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail
Strategy sets the scene for the tale

As much as Noe might hate Sohalia on a personal level for the destruction she'd left in her wake when it came to love affairs, she had to admit that the Heart had done a good thing by opening the doors to Abandoned. Although, to be fair, that might have been a council decision. Oh, gods, what if Sohalia was just a figurehead? What if the council just wanted someone naive and easy to control on the throne? The thought made her queasy.

But Sol's willingness to jump into problem solving mode had Noe shooting a smile at her best friend, following along in Sol's wake as the girl followed the tracks away from the meteor site. "That's the problem, isn't it? It looks like she's doing a good job," Noe admitted softly. "You know, with the whole welcoming-Abandoned thing. But maybe that wasn't her idea?" she mused. "I don't know. I've tried to ask around about her, but it's like nobody has anything bad to say."

I'm the wind in our free-flowing sails
And the liquor in our cocktails

Soleil

I was born a lover
And I will die that way

Soleil frowns when the tracks go down into the hollow of a tilted tree, roots having lifted partially from the soil with the blast and creating a makeshift den. But there is still only one set of pawprints, and it's far too close to the impact zone for it to have been the original den. Bringing Noe to her side, Soleil gets down on her knees and peers into the den, careful to keep a sharp ear and not lean too far in lest she inspire whatever was within to snap at her.

That sharp ear is still at work as Noe continues her questions, and Soleil frowns ever further, considering. "I mean with an entire council of older people to support her, she's less likely to make dumb decisions right?" She can't shrug well on her hands and knees, but the weird motion she makes is clearly an attempt at it. "So long as she has the sense to run things past them first, she's probably safe." Though why they are cool with a teenager running Stormbreak is a question Soleil doesn't have the answer to. "They probably don't want to risk their positions or get in trouble if they tell you," she points out. "Only they would have that info, so Sohalia would know immediately that it was one of them who let it slip." So while she isn't outwardly encouraging it, maybe Noe will get the message that she needs to be sneaky.

A tiny, low growl comes from within the little den at the sound of her voice, and Soleil's attention returns raptly to it. She makes a little rumbling noise in her throat, aiming for the chuff of comfort her mothers used to make for her before Caido and mourning her inability to do more. Whatever is inside goes quiet, and then Soleil grips her head with one hand and falls sideways into the mud as something breaks in and sets her entire head aflame with sensations and instincts that are definitely not hers and which don't feel like they can fit. "Fuck!" Soleil shouts uncharacteristically, eyes shut tight against the pain while within the den something stirs, clearly not nearly as bothered and intent on finding its way to her. When she manages to open one eye, it's to come face-to-snout with a small white wolf cub. "What?" It's a wheeze, and while it's to the world at large, she hopes Noe has an answer for it because she suddenly has the urge to not let the pup out of her sight.

Lavender forever, kiss it till it's better
Honey sticky fingers for life

Noe

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail
Strategy sets the scene for the tale

"Am I just crazy?" Noe asked, allowing herself to be pulled along with Sol as she knelt to inspect what appeared to be a den. Maybe. To be honest, Noe wasn't paying much attention, so focused was she on the dilemma presented by a certain Heart of Stormbreak. Gods, if the other girls wasn't just so perfectly perfect... "But, like, why is she even the Heart? What does she have that her council doesn't?" Surely she was just a pretty face. She wasn't even from Stormbreak!

But her teenage rage dissipated immediately as Sol shouted a curse. Noe's dark eyes snapped to her best friend. "Sol! What's wrong?" she asked, dropping to her knees beside the girl and the hole, her hands reaching out to grip at Sol's shoulders as she leaned in - only to notice something in the den move. With a yelp, Noe sat back, though she maintained her grip on her bestie, staring with wide eyes between the wolf pup and Soleil. "Ummmm," she said stupidly. "That's a wolf." As if Sol couldn't see that with her own two eyes.

I'm the wind in our free-flowing sails
And the liquor in our cocktails

Soleil

I was born a lover
And I will die that way

Surely Noe isn't the only one who's crazy, because, "Yeah. That's a wolf." It comes out stunned-dumb, staring at the bold little creature marching straight for her without any of the bafflement or hesitancy found in the two young women gawking at it.

Soleil stares as the cub passes right between her two palms braced on the muddy earth, brushing up against her forearms and pressing its side into her thighs as if choosing her hunched-over body as its new den. An emotion that is definitely not hers tickles in her chest - something like peace and safety, and a decisive certainty that both those emotions are entirely warranted.

With the disorientation of the initial bonding fading, education starts creeping back in, and Soleil turns a wondrous gaze toward Noe as she starts to straighten and gather the cub into her arms where it lies docile and clearly pleased with her body heat. "I...think I just bonded," she utters, eyes huge.

Lavender forever, kiss it till it's better
Honey sticky fingers for life

Noe

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail
Strategy sets the scene for the tale

The wolf, as it turned out, had no fear.

Certainly it was braver than the two girls who knelt beside its makeshift den, for it marched out and made straight for Sol, curling itself up in the cavern made by her arms where she knelt in the mud. It was all Noe could do to stare, stunned and intrigued and maybe a little bit jealous, as Sol gathered up the little wolf pup in her arms. Not that she was upset - no, she was thrilled for Sol! - but there was, perhaps, a little part of her that ached to find that even her best friend could bond where she herself was still left companionless.

She swallowed down the envy, focusing instead on happier, more supportive emotions, and looked between Sol and her wolf, perhaps a little bemused. "What does it feel like?" she asked, wonder shining in her dark eyes.

I'm the wind in our free-flowing sails
And the liquor in our cocktails

Soleil

I was born a lover
And I will die that way

Soleil can scarcely focus on how to explain what it feels like, because feeling it in the first place is so intensely exotic, even as all the pieces fit into place and settle down so quickly that it's equally terrifying. She says exactly that, turning a slightly helpless expression toward Noe as she sits back on her shins and picks up the wolf cub to hold her against her chest. It's a natural motion given how many pups she has wrangled in her life, but the sensation she gets from the new bond is still all sorts of weird.

Glancing around at the toppled trees with a frown, Soleil reaches for Noe's hand and tugs gently, urging her back toward the trail. "C'mon, let's go back to the inn. I don't want any of us out in the rain for too long." They've explored what they wanted and now have an extra party member - that's as much adventure as Soleil is willing to have today.

- Fin!

Lavender forever, kiss it till it's better
Honey sticky fingers for life