The words "almost there" echoed almost ceaselessly in the male's mind as he narrowed the distance between himself and the peak that he sought to repopulate. Only a few more miles lay between Mount Shadow and its former leader, a few more hours of travel with the hope that no familiar faces would cross his path. His encounter with Nymphe had been safe enough, though it had the merit of filling him with the knowledge of the strange sickness that had been spread via the valley's great lake. That, and he had made a new acquaintance with a wolf from Nova Mountain, though he had neglected to tell her his common name to prevent news of his return being spread too quickly.

Acting and charades were an activity somewhat new to the silvery canine, but he found himself quite entertained by the prospect of such secrecy and disguise. If it rewarded him with voiceless arrival to Mount Shadow without the gossip reaching Oni before he did, it was entirely worth the experience, however bizarre it felt at time.

Rather than take his last leg of the journey at full speed to get it over with swiftly, Cypress contented himself to maintain a leisurely pace, quick enough to cover ground and avoid iterruption but at the same time preserve his energy. A brief stop at a trickling spring had caused a small uproar with his feathered companion, but as Cypress reminded Tom, the sickness was due to the lake, not the various freshwater springs that snaked their way down the mountainside. Even this exchange could not last, however, as a wolf with a bird was rather eccentric as far as most were concerned, and eccentricity often led to awkward questions.

"A mouse with only one hole is soon caught." Random French proverb. :)

---

Pausing for only a moment at a small mountain-born brook to replenish his throat in case there were no further sources along the path to the mountain, Cypress took a brief second to glance at his own reflection. The past three months had done more to his pelt than the past year, apparently; streaks of silver nearly dominated his entire shoulder and back where they were only once sparse. It was an odd progression, however, as the patterning was not the typical greying of age, but a transformation into a richer spectrum of colour. Vanity was not one of his values, however, and he soon abandoned the waters in favour of hard earth once again.

It was a short while before he realized that his avian counterpart was nowhere in sight, and a quick glance upwards succeeded to tell that the kestrel had elevated himself to a lofty height for some reason or other. The motive behind this movement soon came apparent as the words of another broke the silence with a comment that to Cypress was altogether appalling. Eat Tom? Now, if he had been a grouse or quail the situation would have been entirely different, species which he would not have befriended anyways, but a fellow carnivore? It seemed blasphemous; then again, Cy was also biased seeing as the kestrel nearby happened to be a good friend.

Vocalizing his displeasure with a shrill screech that even caused the wolf's own ears to recoil, Cypress turned his atention to the other, larger canine. "I don't usually eat anything with weapons for killing such as my own," the male began calmly, waiting a bit longer before judging this stranger absolutely. Maybe he couldn't tell that Tom was actually a bird of prey, a fellow meateater in the grand scheme of things. Regardless of Cy's reservations to judge, Tom himself had made his decision, and made a mental note to despise anything that referred to him as prey.

Keeping a steady gaze upon the stranger, Cypress couldn't help but notice the desire with which he looked upon the nearby Tom. Clearly this male thought of birds such as the kestrel as some form of meal - a thought that mildly unnerved the dark wolf in light of his relationship with the Peeper. Finally Kimoto diverted his gaze to look Cy in the eye and voice his own opinion of the matter; to which Cypress said nothing. Clearly, the stranger hadn't understood the full meaning of his words, and he was in no particular mood to explain them. Instead he merely waited for further basis on which to reply.

Upon hearing the other's name Cypress was not surprised to find it entirely unfamiliar, as he had expected such an outcome from the multicoloured wolf. What did surprise him was Kimoto's question; a terrifically bluntDo I know you?

Yes, he thought idly, We've never crossed paths in our entire lives but I expect we're good pals... Dismissing the sarcastic thoughts with a light shake of his head that both served for this purpose and a negative answer to Kimoto's question, Cypress pivoted his small frame and directed his comment to the Creeker's own eyes as he had done prior. "No," he said in accompaniment to the gesture. Such a response did not fully answer Kimoto's query, however, so the mountainer was obliged to continue. The next matter was deciding which name to use — the uncommon, foreign Craobh, or his more famous english counterpart.

Clearing his throat to mask his indecision, Cy rumbled thoughtfully before supplying his own title. "I'm named after a tree if it does you any good," he quipped with somewhat of a grin, eyes flickering to follow Kimoto's own as they tracked his feathered companion with hunger. His eyes narrowed reflexively with each passing glance, but the foreboding stare was finally disowned in favour of another manner of gazing; that is, in the direction of Tom.

It was with patient scrutiny that Cypress continued to watch Kimoto as he seemed to vascillate between keeping his eyes on Tom and attempting to decide upon the wolf's name. Luckily for Kimoto, the Mountainer could only endure a few moments more of his hungry gazing, and it was a wise move indeed to divert once again back to the smaller male. Momentarily forgotten, the feathered raptor silenced himself and took to slightly higher elevations, circling nearby within the distance necessary to overhear their conversation. He was considerably calmer now that the creek wolf had ceased to watch him as if he was a roast chicken, but was wary nonetheless of the craftiness of carnivores. He was one, after all.

Mildly amused by the other wolf — still deep in thought in a futile stretch to come up with a name — Cypress remained utterly silent until a further question was aimed in his direction, to which he was required to answer in the name of politeness. "For the moment, but I dwelled here for quite some time before... perhaps you would recognize the name Cypress?" There, he had said it. His name was now open for sharing within the valley, as it was clear that even if Kimoto did spread the news Cy would arrive in Mount Shadow before any of his companions would. It meant little to him if the leader of Silver Creek knew of his return before he ventured there in person, as he was rarely acquainted with the pack anyway, having only met Sphinx back in the days of old concerning coyotes and war.

Cypress paced a few steps to send some blood flowing through his veins and promptly sat, encouraging Kimoto to do the same if he so wished in order to make their conversation more comfortable. Perhaps the male had simply been a little faint from hunger, and had not actually intended to appear so eager to catch his prized companion. Time would tell, it seemed.

cypress frostfur

Relatively certain that Kimoto had finally abandoned his hungerlust in favour of casual conversation, Cypress no longer kept an eye out for the golden bird that circled in the near distance. Instead he focused on the other's words and possible questions, as some would likely come concerning the black wolf's unusual circumstances. Lone wolves were not welcomed in the Salvajes any longer, and even though all prospective members were at some point loners with the abandon of the territory borders, it was unusual to see an unaffiliated wolf all the same. Of course, Cypress was hardly unaffiliated in the given circumstances, having been the Alpha male of the pack that he sought once again.

Noticing that Kimoto's query had been along the same thread as his previous thoughts, the smaller wolf issued a general nod and cleared his throat lightly before speaking. "I led Mount Shadow for a time," he began with an appropriate nod in the mountain's direction, "And it is there I intend to return." This wasn't to say that he expected a similar rank to be offered to him with open arms, but merely a statement that he was indeed returning home. Cocking a brow with curiosity, Cypress rumbled thoughtfully before putting forward a question of his own. "Where are you from?"

There was a time when he could recognize the various smells of each pack and its respective members, but Cy had been gone for a good few months and the characteristic scent markers had begun to fade from his memory. Mount Shadow was the only predominate one that he could so far identify - that one was permanently ingrained in his mind, he liked to think.

cypress frostfur

Amused by the incredulity at which Kimoto regarded him upon announcing his former rank as leader, Cypress's cocked brow quivered before he offered an affirmative "Yes. Alpha in fact." Somewhat surprised that the creeker hadn't at least heard his name in passing conversation, the smaller wolf considered the mild disbelief that had inevitably laced Kimoto's words. Cy had to admit, he was quite small for any sort of leader, weighing in at under eighty pounds, but the thought was soon dismissed as he recalled the current (or so he thought) king of Gold Moon Forest. Midas was a small wolf indeed, yet had garnered the respect of a good portion of the Salvaje valley; size wasn't everything.

Ears perked with interest as the larger male began to speak again concerning ranks and packs, and the reason as to why he had been disassociated with such a high rank. For a moment he paused to recall if he had perhaps phrased things oddly - surely his previous words would be enough indication that he had actually left the valley for a time. Obviously, departed wolves could not hold honorary seats in rank, regardless of their previous status among the pack members.

Pausing for some sort of effect, Cypress finally dismissed the reaction as a simple slow moment in life (of course ignorant of the creek wolf's mild illness) and answered once again. "Why, I left," the wolf began with a soft laugh, tilting his head with curiosity. Apparently some gossip didn't spread quite the same way that it used to; the change was surprisingly fresh, however, as sometimes it felt good to explain oneself. "I left in April and have just returned now... I have yet to speak to Oni — the beta at the time who I would now imagine would be alphess."

Concluding to leave room for Kimoto to introduce his own pack, Cypress inhaled subtly and memorized the appropriate scent that lingered upon his pelt for future reference. "Silver Creek," he mused almost absently, "Still led by Sphinx, I hope?" It was worth a try to update his knowledge as much as possible, so he would at least only look like a partial fool upon meeting with Oni, and not a complete one.

cypress frostfur

During his time as pack alpha, Cypress had considered his rule to be rather fair and liberal rather than domineering such as the packs of his homeland. He didn't abuse his power, and to be quite honest felt a bit out of place as the sole monarch at the time; perhaps things would have been different had he taken a mate and settled the upper ranks in a pair, but that was long in the past. This was a chance to virtually start over with a clean slate, except unlike the results that would come from a complete wipe, those who knew him still remained on the lands. As far as he knew, he hadn't made any enemies — save for perhaps one or two banished coyotes, a moot point.

Yes, Oni was somewhat strict, Cy mused upon hearing Kimoto's opinion of the large occidentalis, but rightfully so. She was not a ruthless canine with no respect for other pack members, nor did she demand unwavering submission with every passing glance. Perhaps she was slightly uncultured in the art of small-talk, but in reality the entire concept was one generally loathed, with most simply faking it to appear friendly and charming. Conversation with direction was one thing, but pointless comments about the weather (unless the circumstances were unusual) were painful.

Slipping out of his moment of thought as the intonated syllables of a question reached his ears, the silver-tipped male responded with a light shake of his head. "No, I've only just arrived," Cypress continued with a directional flick of his muzzle, "However, I'm sure to run into at least one familiar face before I reach the mountain." Then, perhaps, the news would spread, but it would be fun indeed to appear upon the Shadow lands without a word of advanced notice.

Collecting his thoughts in order to condense them into some sort of coherent sentence, Cy silenced himself as Kimoto concluded with a brief overview of his pack's upper ranks. The names were of course familiar, GoldenShadow's particularly so, as the two had met once upon Mount Shadow and the local had given the visitor a short tour. "I've met GoldenShadow, a good lad he is. Sphinx and I only briefly crossed paths preceding and during the Expedition." Frowning thoughtfully as he remembered the drawn-out assault on the coyotes, Cypress fell silent at that.

cypress frostfur

Whether or not he would be welcomed back home was to be seen with the passing of time, but Cypress dearly hoped that Kimoto's optimism reflected what was to come to pass. It would be terribly awful for him to finally return to his one true home and find those he once knew holding grudges because of his departure. He didn't expect to see every face that had been there when he left, as wolves came and went with time (he was a prime example) but even one or two familiar wolves was enough. It would be great to settle once again, and make himself at home in a place that was ultimately ideal for him to recover and unwind. Maybe he'd even find a companion and start a family; nothing was certain.

Taking the information that was provided to him in stride and refraining from speaking out or interrupting, Cypress's ears turned with curiosity at Kimoto's words. So Sphinx had left and returned a few months later as well, much in the same fashion as himself; how odd. High leaders didn't usually leave without a good reason, but even more peculiar was that she had returned to co-lead with the wolf that had taken her place. That being said, Cy could see Den excusing the white lady's absence and setting the leader ranks straight again — it was in his nature to forgive, from what he had experienced. They had only met once upon Mount Shadow, where Cypress had given him a tour of the north face of the peak.

It was somewhat clear that the current thread that the conversation had been running on had become thin and stretched — there was only so much about pack politics that one could discuss without crossing the line dividing fact and gossip. The latter was something that Cypress wanted little to do with, mindful of things in the past that had backfired because of miscommunication. So instead he brought the conversation in an entirely new direction. "Are you from around here? I mean, have you always lived closeby or did you travel a distance to get to the Salvajes?" He was genuinely interested, in fact, as wolves from other areas often had knowledge of different countries and occasionally languages - things that fascinated Cypress to no end.

cypress frostfur

To be honest, Cypress had never heard of a place called Mexico before, but its name had a foreign ring to it and rolled off the tongue pleasantly. "Mexico," he repeated with curiosity, finding that it tickled his vocal chords in an odd sort of way as if its origins were of another language entirely. Fluent in languages such as French and Gaelic, Cy knew little of the two commonly known Romance languages - Spanish and Italian, with the tongue of Kimoto's homeland closely related to the former. He did not really want to pry, however, so with calm respect he refrained from poking deeper into the Creek wolf's affairs and private history.

It was well done on his part to stop there, as Kimoto soon turned the conversation to Cypress and his own origin, thoughts of Mexico forgotten for the time being. The black male's accent was enough to convince anyone that he was completely distant in background from the wolves of the Salvajes, but few knew the exact circumstances of his homeland. The few that had known were likely gone now, save for perhaps Atraiyu (though he did not know if she still dwelled there). Nodding in acknowledgement, Cypress took a moment or two to describe his own roots. "I'm from Scotland," he began with a rich accent appropriate to the word, "Far out east, even beyond the ocean. A tiny little island." Cy didn't know whether or not Kimoto knew what the ocean was, but he would wait before making any assumptions either way, and would only explain if asked.

Pausing to see if he had any particular questions concerning Scotland or anything else pertaining to his past, Cypress rumbled thoughtfully to himself before posing a question that had been lingering upon his mind since Kimoto had spoken of Mexico. "Say, Kimoto, can you speak any other languages? The name of your homeland sounds foreign to my ears and tongue." Tilting his head in curiosity, the archipelago wolf left it at that, offering an interesed smile in the other's direction to encourage him to go on.

cypress frostfur

It seemed that the number of entirely foreign wolves was threatening to surpass the population that had actually lived near the valley. Cypress was from an entirely different continent, as was a companion of his from Nova Mountain named Nymphe. Both carried distinct accents and were visibly as well as audibly separate from the majority. It was odd to consider that the Salvajes were ultimately a big melting pot of different backgrounds and appearances, with wolves ranging in colour and size to represent any natural combination. Cy himself represented a minority in both size and colour, having a unique genetic pelt style and a size that dwindled next to the muscular timber wolves.

While fascinated by Kimoto's admittance to have studied English as a second language, he was also somewhat dismayed to hear that he hadn't seemed to have continue to speak his first tongue, Spanish. That or he simply had no interest given the fact that there weren't likely to be many in the area that share it, though Cypress himself had continued to speak Gaelic and French on his own time having met only one who shared the talent. Nodding to indicate that he was paying attention as usual, the black archipelago wolf smiled at the Creeker's final comment. "I'll admit that I would not have known that English wasn't your first had you not told me." It wasn't simply to flatter, as Cy honestly wouldn't have been able to tell - the wolf bore no accent and spoke entirely fluently.

As usual the conversation switched its focus and turned back to the smaller of the two, with this time Cypress answering about his ability with tongues. He wasn't surprised to hear Kimoto's assumption, as any wolf with sa decent set of ears would be able to notice the foreign spice that tainted its words and hinted at a deeper knowledge. Beginning with a Hmmm of agreement, the Shadower dipped his head in the affirmative. "Indeed, or as we would say back home, Gu dearbh. That would be Scottish Gaelic, though I have yet to come across anyone else who can speak it here. I know some French too, though, which seems to be a bit more common." Tilting his head thoughtfully, Cypress concluded his brief little speech.

The teacher comment provoked a smile from Cypress following which were no words, as when in excess they were resultingly superfluous. While he found it odd that Kimoto had chosen to abandon his Spanish heritage in the form of tongues, the mountain wolf respected the decision and questioned it no further. He probably had a valid excuse, though the subject of validity was subjective in itself and even aside from that his personal life was his own business. But onto other more significant matters.

Chuckling at Kimoto's claim of him being a "triple threat" in the wolf's own words, Cypress shook his head lightly, disturbing the soft array of silver and jet black upon his neck into crisp tufts. "Me? Awww... c'mon, I bet you've got plenty going for you — a mate? Kids?" Tilting his head as he recited two things that he entirely lacked, Cy swished his tail amiably and stretched his forelegs. He hadn't realized until then how long the two had been chatting, but apparently enough for his nearly-five-year-old legs to stiffen a tad and require a slight warming up every so often. He was fit for his age, and thanks to his size was still as nimble as when he was a yearling.

Idly raising a brow as Kimoto spilled the proverbial beans and announced that he was mate to none other than the Alpha female of Silver Creek, Cypress was quite happy for the wolf. He had only met Sphinx once on coyote business and had yet to conclude anything of her demeanor, but the fact that she was a leader said something about her attitude and ability. He imagined that the two would be a cute pair, even if he didn't really know either of them enough to exactly judge such an assumption. Regardless, it was one thing that Kimoto definitely had over Cypress, who had yet to really consider the thought of mateship seriously.

He noticed after a moment that Kimoto too had taken a moment to stretch and warm up his legs, and it seemed as if both wolves were feeling a bit of the years catching up to them. It seemed as if their conversation would have to continue on foot lest either of them seize up and shrivel into dried old skeletons, something that Cypress did not anticipate to happen for a few long years yet.

Nodding in agreement to Kimoto's proposal, the ex-alpha flexed a final hind leg and shook himself off lightly. "That's a fine idea, actually." Stepping in the general direction of both of their homes, Cypress paused to allow the Creeker to catch up and began their walk. It would be a while before either of them got home, so it was only appropriate that the entire way was filled with idle chatter. "So tell me about this Sphinx..." were the last words heard before the pair slipped out of sight.