[ apparently i am all too full of muse for this child, this is a few days after aja appeared on the border over here so they haven't officially joined but probably will here ]
They had grown weary and somewhat jittery, the desire to move growing ever stronger as their body slowly recovered, they wanted to feel dirt beneath their paws once more, to see what was beyond these four walls. Such might never downplay how grateful they were to Sundance, where it not for her kindness towards them there was a chance they might have faded away, pushed too far and written their own end in hopes of escaping what seemed a certain death. It proved easier here in the suspended islands to forget the raptors which wandered the Solar City, a threat though dulled by their connection to the one Aja thought of as their mother, enough to drive them away. It had been mere whisperings of this place which had drawn the child here and they were thankful they had done so, if regretting deciding to go alone.
Struggling to rise to shaky paws they took those first steps tentatively, pausing between each to be sure they would not collapse before the next began. It made the relatively short journey to the opening of the den all the longer but they were better once they had reached it, the dragging limp of their steps was still there, at the very least there was no underlying threat of toppling over. Blinking at the bright sunlight Aja looked out into the bustling camp, the midday light strong and painful to eyes having long since adjusted to the dimmer interior.
Casting their gaze about the open space they sought out the familiar shape of Sundance, hoping she was not somewhere staring at them with disapproval for moving about without her prior approval. Swallowing hard against the lump in their throat they stepped out, ears flattening as they waited. When no exclamation of disapproval rose they slowly moved further, looking about at unfamiliar faces, unsure if they should speak with someone or simply leave. It was nice here and they harboured no desire to leave so soon after regaining what little strength they had, but if need be they would do so.
Canoris wasn't around when Aja had first arrived on the BlizzardClan islands, so she honestly just assumed she was a new member. When she watched her walk slowly from the den, Canoris wondered what the hell had happened.
Figuring it'd do no harm to satiate her curiosity, the Paladin Commander moved in. "Hey, are you new here? I'm Canoris - the Paladin Commander. What happened?" It was obvious Sundance had tended to her, so she didn't bother looking for her or Squirrel.
Not that she had to look for Squirrel. The wolf-sized blue dragon was right behind Canoris, nodding a greeting to Aja, "I'm Squirrel, nice to meet you."
Narukami was well-acquainted with the restlessness accompanying an injury or illness, especially when he was younger and faced more mishaps in training. Banishing him to bedrest did little, as he would, inevitably, escape for the sole purpose of pacing their small village to stave off the tension that always plagued him when he felt useless. Even now, with his gashes, he had refused to remain in either the medical area or the den he shared with Niko, who had been determined to keep Narukami resting, but she underestimated his perseverance in regards to these matters. He was healing at an acceptable rate, and so he did not believe it was of much importance to confine himself when he could accomplish much more without even exacerbating his wounds. Of course, he was not alone; there were many others who behaved in a similar manner when in recovery. Rosemont, for instance, had seemed incredibly obstinate about recuperation.
It would not come as a great shock to find another rest-dodger.
Drawn by the sounds of Canoris and Squirrel addressing someone -a newcomer, he assumed- Narukami followed behind Niko, who was simultaneously eager and a bit apprehensive to speak with another child, as she tended to be. Adults were much simpler for her to speak with, but he would like to say she was improving. Narukami noted the child's state, wondering how they had arrived in such a situation, though at least Sundance had tended to them. "I'm Niko! What's your name?"
TAGS ✦ ✧ ✦ — She had been trying to connect the dots ever since she had taken Aja in. Raptors...SunClan...that raptor who had shown up inviting them to the Sun Festival? Part of her wanted to ask Thea, and another part of her wanted to inform Aleksei. It was a real tug-of-war.
At the time, the kitsune had been taking a well-deserved nap in her nest. When she woke up, she found Aja...gone? Well, it seemed they bounced back quickly. With a small smile she slowly slid out of the medic den, shaking her pelt out. "Ah, you're awake." She moved closer to Aja. "Do you feel all right?"
"speech"