Nearly two weeks had passed since the night of drunken shenanigans. Following the incident, the gods had gone on with their daily activities. Thor was continuing to gather meats for the banquet. As he was in charge of most current hunts, he often ventured out into the forests, sometimes alone and occasionally in a group. In doing so, he kept a careful eye out for their four-legged quarry but hadn't seen hide nor hair of her since their first meeting.

Balder had called upon the forest creatures to ask for their assistance. Birds took to the skies, rabbits searched from their networks of underground burrows, and herds of deer searched across the plains. Nearly all eyes were looking out for her, but so far, they had all come up empty. Either they simply couldn't locate her, or they couldn't discern her from the other wolves in the area. Considering her white coat and crafty nature, it wasn't entirely surprising. One could only expect so much from woodland creatures.

Loki was doing his part as well, albeit with far lazier methods. In the days since his inebriated endeavor, he had been successfully making a fool of himself from the seclusion of his woodland cottage. Although this time, he was perfectly sober. Attempting to build on his earlier success, the god of fire found himself howling into the skies during the morning, evening, and night, curious to see if he would receive another response. He had not been so lucky. This morning was no different. Howling as loud as his voice would allow, he gave it his best shot and moved on to other business. It seemed that he would have no choice but to venture into the cold if he were to have any chance at locating her.

A puff of white smoke escaped his mouth as he trudged through the forest. In the early morning air, he rubbed his arms together, steadily warming the area in his path. With his friends busy tending to their own affairs and no luck in finding their furry friend, he was dreadfully bored. To pass the time, he had decided to take a walk along a familiar path, and possibly find a woodland creature to bother. And of course, if he happened upon their target by chance, it wouldn't hurt. He sauntered along, absentmindedly playing with a small flame in the palm of his hand. He willed the orange mass to take the form of a rabbit… then a boar… then a fox. As his mind continued to wander, he hadn't noticed that the flame shifted again, taking the form of a wolf.

The sound of rustling leaves drew him out of his contemplation. Surrounded in his own makeshift blanket of warmth, Loki had momentarily forgotten that he was wandering through the forest. The wolf in his hand curled into itself, taking the form of sphere as he turned to face the approaching wildlife. He paused for a moment, wondering if their acquaintance had finally decided to reveal herself before quickly ridding himself of the thought. She was far too careful to alert him in such a way.

Whatever was coming certainly wasn't going to be friendly, and he had no qualms about putting a swift end to it. Loki would happily roast the first creature that dared to challenge him. The bushes in front of him began to violently shake and the sound of stomping hooves told the fire god everything he needed to know. Preparing himself for the charge, he raised his hand into an offensive position and waited.

Within moments, a medium-sized boar burst through the brush, agitated by Loki's taunt. While it was no prize-winning game, a boar of that size could easily knock him off his feet if he were to allow it. He was about two seconds away from turning the creature into a hearty dinner when suddenly, a thought came to mind. Waving away his dancing flame, he decided he would have a little fun with the angry beast. He stood stock still as the creature approached, tusks brandishing menacingly. With a chuckle, he danced to the side. His braids fluttered as the boar rushed past him, skidding to a stop behind him.

"You're going to have to do better than that." He taunted, twirling one of his braids around like a pinwheel. Enraged, the boar lowered its head again and huffed, scraping its hooves against the icy ground. Smiling, the mischievous god watched the beast run at him again. He stuck his tongue out at it, eagerly awaiting another opportunity to irritate the animal. He balanced on the balls of his feet in preparation. The boar was almost upon him… and then it wasn't.

When the animal had nearly reached him, a blur of white flew from the brush, crashing into the beast. It landed with such force that it sent both the boar and itself tumbling off the trail and into the thicket. It had happened so quickly that he had to blink a couple of times to confirm what he had seen. A menacing snarl followed by an earsplitting screech confirmed the situation to him.

Curiously, the fire god followed in the direction that the boar had disappeared. Flattened brush and broken branches indicated the landing site. There was a large indentation and a crater in the snow from the initial impact. Then, it extended for a short distance until the white changed to red. Following the pathway, Loki located the boar, lying lifelessly in the snow. The furious light in its eyes was no more. Behind it, with its jaws still clenched around its neck was a familiar figure.

"We have to stop meeting like this." Loki called to the wolf, smirking as she slowly lifted her head, still holding the creature by its neck. He stifled a laugh at the display, a sense of déjà vu overtaking him. "You can let go of the poor thing. I'm pretty sure it's dead."

Yuna released the boar's throat, dropping its body into the snow with a quiet thud. Loki tilted his head slightly at her immediate reaction. It seemed that she really could understand speech. Curious, he decided to further test his theory. Part of him felt like an idiot for attempting to converse with a wild animal. He wasn't Balder, after all. But he wanted to confirm the suspicions that had been nagging at him for the past few weeks.

"Mind if I join you?" He asked, offering a playful smirk in her direction. The question had been spoken sarcastically, but he could have sworn he saw her give what looked like a shrug. As she made no motion to leave or ward him off, he leaned against a nearby tree and continued. "Question. Was that you a couple of weeks ago?"

Yuna tilted her head, trying to recall what he might be referring to. She had done many things over the span of previous weeks, so he would need to be a little more specific.

"I've heard wolves howl at the moon for centuries, but I never saw the point of it. Decided to try it for myself the other night. Imagine my surprise when someone actually answered… was it you?"

His explanation jogged her memory. She did recall that night a short while ago. She had been relaxing in the moonlight when she heard his intoxicated call. The situation had been so amusing to her that she decided to have a little fun with him. She lifted her head and offered a song of her own, howling to the skies in response. After a few moments of silence, the call came once more. Again, she offered a response, curious to see how long he would be willing to continue. After the third response, she offered a final cry before returning to her activities.

Yes, that had been an unusual night. Yuna wasn't certain what had spawned such behavior, but it had certainly given her some entertainment. Smirking to herself at the memory, she nodded to his question, before tearing into her carcass. She was hungry, so if he insisted on conversing with her further, he was going to have to do it between bites.

Loki nodded, raising an eyebrow at her response. "Thought so. I have to admit, it was kinda fun. I can see why you do it."

A huff of air resembling a bark escaped her. Was she… laughing? "I never got to thank you for your gift. It roasted quite well." Loki continued, referring to the deer that she had brought him weeks before. Again, she moved her shoulders in what appeared to be a shrug as she continued ravenously devouring her meal. Was that her way of saying 'no problem?' He wasn't sure. More importantly, why was he conversing with a forest creature?

'Of course.' Loki remembered. He was supposed to be keeping tabs on her. After finding her, which he had finally done. The second leg was going to be more difficult. Elusive as she was, it wasn't going to be a simple task. Gears began to turn in the god of fire's mischievous mind, a scheme starting to take form. He knew how he would keep track of her.

"You know, you're really good at this. We should hunt together sometime. I get the feeling you are a far better tracker than I." He said, referring obviously to her sense of smell. Yuna paused for a moment, considering his offer. It had been a while since she had a hunting companion. If she was being honest, she had been a bit lonely since the pack moved on and she hadn't been able to locate them.

Seeing that he had her attention, he sweetened his offer. "You track, I'll kill. I'll even cook it up nice for us at the same time." As he spoke, he summoned a flame to his hand and danced it around his fingertips to prove his point. Yuna barked again, amused by his foolish antics. Having him around might be a nice change of pace, assuming that he remained respectful. Her eye twitched slightly as she thought back to their previous encounter, but she quickly discarded the memory. For now, she would indulge him, since she had little else to do. She knew that further interaction with the gods was putting herself at risk, but once again, her curiosity drove her forward. Pulling her lips back in a curious smirk, she nodded her head in agreement.

Amused, Loki smiled to himself as he watched Yuna enjoy her meal. He was really doing this. The god of fire was seriously bargaining with wildlife. How absurd. Little did he know that the two of them were both thinking the same thing.

'This is going to be fun.'

. . .

The evening came and with it, another meeting with his closest friends. The three sat around the fire, laughing merrily as Loki manipulated the flames. He made the form of a dancing man and a child playing with a ball. The blaze bent to his will, twisting and turning, telling a story of the fire god's making. Balder laughed and Thor observed, drinking their brew and enjoying the show.

The shenanigans continued on until Loki got a bit too excited, accidentally tossing a small fire ball in Balder's direction. The flames dissipated upon reaching him, leaving him unharmed, to which the fire god laughed even harder. Thor smirked at the two of them. He enjoyed nights like this, even if he didn't always physically show it.

"Loki, make an animal next!" Balder suggested, enjoying Loki's fire show as much as he was.

His friend quickly complied, shifting his puppetry from the nonsensical story to various shapes. A hare bounced wildly around the center of their circle, pausing to wiggle its ears in Balder's direction. A bird soared overhead, beating its wings in time to the music in his head. A bear roared silently, lifting its massive paws towards an unknown threat. A series of butterflies fluttered through the air, one landing on Balder's outstretched finger. Or about as close as it could get before vanishing within his invisible forcefield.

The god of fire continued looping through woodland creatures, each one growing more unusual than the next. He was beginning to run out of ideas, his mind drifting to his most recent encounter. The swimming fish morphed and shifted, changing shape. It grew legs, paws, and a long bushy tail, a familiar face lifting and looking curiously around the room. The wolf howled at the invisible moon, looking once in Thor's direction before finally vanishing in a burst of embers.

Balder's smile faded slightly, shrinking into an amused grin as he watched the display. It seemed that Loki was growing preoccupied with his thoughts. The three of them had been searching high and low and, to his knowledge, had no luck finding the mysterious canid. A small sigh escaped his lips as he let his eyes fall to the still flame. "She's an elusive one, isn't she?" He asked to no one in particular, blonde locks falling over his shoulders.

Thor nodded silently; his own luck not much better than his brother's. The crackling flames popped loudly in the quiet room, with each of the siblings staring thoughtfully at one another. The silence dragged on long enough that Balder finally turned, eyes drifting to Loki as he twirled a fiery braid around his finger. It wasn't like the trickster god to be quiet, let alone for such a long stretch of time. Something was on his mind. "Loki?" He asked, drawing his friend from his stupor.

"Eh?" He blinked, only half listening to their conversation. "Oh. Yeah, haven't seen her since the other day."

His statement was answered with deafening silence, both gods exchanging a look with one another. Then, their eyes widened, realizing the gravity of Loki's admission. "You've found her?" Balder asked, gaping incredulously at him.

"Only briefly. She tackled a boar. It was funny."

"Loki!"

"Hmm?" He hummed, turning an amused grin towards his frowning comrade.

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"I haven't seen her since. I made an offer, but I don't expect her to actually comply."

"Offer?" Thor questioned, lifting an eyebrow at his friend's casual admission. Leave it to Loki to locate their missing target, make a bargain with it, then give it little to no thought.

A shrug was his response, Loki's braid falling free from his grasp. "Hunting buddies. She tracks, I kill."

"…" Balder and Thor stared at him, irritation slowly rising on their features.

"What? It seemed like a good idea at the time. What better way to keep track of her than shadow her every movement?"

A quiet sigh escaped the other two, both of them conceding. While Loki's methods were unorthodox, they couldn't argue with his logic. If the two wandered around as allies, then it would be easy for him to keep track of her whereabouts. More importantly, he could garner information about the mysterious creature. Her habits, her living arrangements, range, territory, and any other secrets that she may be hiding. And of the three of them, the fire god was currently the best option. She seemed to be strangely cautious of Balder and she likely wouldn't want anything to do with the god that smashed her unceremoniously with a blunt object.

"Forgive me for saying this, but I am a little surprised, Loki. Your history with wildlife is…" Balder murmured, his voice trailing off as he averted his gaze. He didn't want to say the words for fear of offending him, but it was a well-known fact that animals and the god of fire didn't get along very well. He had been attacked by birds, squirrels, boars, and countless other creatures, seemingly without reason, on multiple occasions. In the most extreme case, the light god had stepped forward to shield him from a spraying snake. They weren't certain what caused the immediate mistrust, but forest animals in particular seemed to have a serious aversion to him. Perhaps they recognized his impish nature.

Loki shrugged, casually bouncing a small fire ball in his palm. "Couldn't tell you."

Thor nodded, crossing his arms pensively. "For now, it is the best solution. Learn what you can."

"Yeah, yeah. You guys owe me big time." Loki's playful wink sent a shiver down their spines. Gods only knew what trickery the troublesome god had up his sleeve. Other gods, clearly. Not the two of them.