Shadow and Memory

Part 2

He smiled, he had hoped she would ask about this. It would give them something to talk about, and hopefully the subject would get her mind off of their predicament. "My people have two languages." He explained, walking slightly ahead of here where his better vision in low light let him peer ahead into the tunnel for possible dangers. "Our own dialect of the common tongue, and the wolf tongue." He explained, ducking under a low hanging rock outcropping. "We learn both when we are children, so we can always understand others of our kind, whatever form we are in. We speak the common tongue in human form, the wolf tongue in our wolf form. The Varulfur, the form in between, lets us speak both."

She nodded, and he could see that it was working. The talk helping to get her mind off of her worry. "So you could speak in this other language in that form? I'd like to hear it sometime."

He nodded. "Yes, though you wouldn't understand any of it. A wolf's throat can't pronounce human speech, no matter how intelligent the mind is, though we have a little more range than most. So it's a lot of growls and yips and so forth. It's a very physical language too, a lot of meaning is conveyed with body language. We do as much talking with our ears and tails as with our mouths."

Something about that seemed to strike Carol as amusing, as she snorted once, then let out a few soft giggles. "Life among your people must be very strange."

It was Wulfric's turn to chuckle at that. "I think the same about your world, it's quite different to mine, sometimes I don't know how you manage." He smirked.

She nodded thoughtfully. "I suppose it must be very different the other way too. I'd heard a few things about your people before, but not much of it seems to have been true." She mused.

Wulfric nodded. "I've heard the rumors as well. Strange barbarians, savages who howl at the moon and worship wolves. Most of what I've heard about my people is pure fiction." He shrugged. "I suppose that's what happens when we live so far away from everyone else. No civilized people are interested in braving the harsh lands we call home just to come and learn about us. So most of the contact we get with outsiders is when a pack comes down to do some trading with the north most parts of the Vadenland."

She let out a soft 'hmm' in thought, looking down at the recurve bow she still held. "I'd heard your people didn't even have tools bore advanced than stones, but that was clearly wrong. She looked up at him. "This is a very nice bow... do you want it back?" She offered it to him.

He considered. Much as he loved his axe, his bow was second most precious to him, being of fine workmanship and a relic of his home. But she'd proven herself quite adept with it, so if they did run into trouble down here she could probably help him if she was armed. Besides, being able to hold onto a weapon of her own would probably be good for her courage. "No, you hold onto it." He said, unhooking his quiver and passing it to her to fix onto the simple belt she wore as part of her traveler's guise. "Take this dagger too, just in case. I've no need for it now that I have my axe back."

She nodded and took the offered weapons. Wulfric was gratified to see her fixing the quiver to the back of her belt and getting it situated in a comfortable position for an underhand draw. Again she moved with the kind of practiced familiarity that only long experience could bring. "What?" She asked, noticing him looking at her.

"Nothing." He said quickly. "It's just that you've been properly trained in how to use a bow. Not a talent that I often see in Vaden nobility."

Carol snorted and nodded. "Yes, I would have thought not. Well a lot of nobility practice various arts, mostly just to satisfy their own ego or to look good in front of each other. Most ladies in my place would have learned some kind of decoration or musical instrument. But I saw my older brothers practicing their archery and going on hunts with father and insisted that I follow in their footsteps."