As new as she was to this land it appeared that many had heard about her planned event today; she had been worried somewhat that no children would attend. Rhaegal was but one pup, a Prince still, but could he spread the word and convince others to come listen to the story of a wayward traveler who had been blow, quite literally, into an unfamiliar land? It was a lovely morning despite such misgivings and she shakes them off with a stretch of her forelegs and a toss of her crowned head. Jade eyes catch sight of a gray and steel colored pup racing down to foothills to her call and Sorcha's lips quirk into an amused smile as she waits patiently for the child to meander into her midst, as she no doubt intended with her quick steps.

"I am," she says in reply, tilting her head to memorize the face of Embla. "I am Sorcha." There is a burning need in the eyes of the girl and it is Sorcha's goal to satisfy that need, to feed it as well with the story she wishes to tell. Three boys appear next and the figure of Rhaegal is easily discernible and her eyes twinkle at his sudden display of excitement as he zips away from the other two princes and places his forepaws on her rock to yip at her. She responds with a bark of her own, playful and welcoming. "It is good to see you too Prince Rhaegal, and your brothers." Soul-deep eyes consume the two other princes, memorizing them as well with a dip of her head.

The meadow was filling fast with pups as a cream and reddish tinted girl trots in and rubs against Embla, no doubt related to her, and then greets her. "Hello child," she replies jovially and another girl appears, her voice sweet and tentative as she steps close to Sorcha's rock. Sorcha leans down to catch her words with a kind look. "Everyone is invited to my stories, Semele and Camilla, and you are quite welcome." Then in bounds a darker girl with striking white markings who takes her seat next to Semele and Camilla, likely a friend or relation, and Sorcha knows it is time. Waiting too much longer would make the pups anxious.

She stands once more and lifts one paw before landing it onto the rock so that her claws scrape against it to draw their attention and wait for a hush to all over the young ones. Then, she begins, her melodious voice filling the clearing.

"There once was a boy who wished more than anything to become a mighty hero. It is, perhaps, a desire that most boys feel," she intones, flashing a wink towards Rhaegal and the Prince's. "He was not of a great, noble bloodline and was a simple hunter for his pack. He was no ruler, no prince, only a member and just becoming a man and we shall call him Osprey. In his childhood he had watched as the Princess Thistle grew to be sweet and lovely and everything a man could want in a mate. Whoever mated with her would one day be ruler of the pack but he did not think of her like that. Osprey watched her for all his years until he matured and then he realized why."

She paused for a moment with bated breath before leaning forward somewhat with a breathy exhale, heightening the moment. "Love. He loved her. Yet he had many other suitors that wished for her attentions and many of whom were not of pure spirit as he was for Osprey was as bright as the moon and free from the chains of darkness. On his fourth year of life he went to the Alpha, Thistle's father, and he asked for the chance to prove himself worthy for the Princess. Unbeknownst to him Thistle had been watching him all his years as well for he was a handsome fellow, brawny and smart, and she had always hoped he would ask for her as his mate."

"Thistle's father, however, was not so convinced that Osprey was what the pack and his daughter needed, and as such he was harsh with the man. No, he said, you are not good enough for her. Please, said Osprey. I will do whatever you ask of me so that I may convince you I am worthy.

For a time, Thistle's father thought and then he decided. Three tasks, he said, because all great heroes must complete three tasks. First you must find the witch of the north and convince her to give you the bone necklace she wears around her scruff. The necklace was said to hold the power to make one invisible should they desire. Fine, Osprey says, yet he worries about how he should do that. But Thistle was worth much to him.

Second, you must battle the cougar to the east, the very one that consumes the souls of it's victims before eating them. Once you have slain the beast then you must bring me some of it's pitch black fur, for this cougar was no ordinary cougar. It's fur was as dark as shadows and glistened with starlight beneath the moon. To decorate my den, the Alpha said.

And last of all, you must go south to the river of tears and bring back some of the healing water as it is said that it can heal almost anything."

Now she pauses once more, eyeing the children with a half-smile that holds secrets. "And so Osprey set out first to go north to visit the mighty witch of the north. It was quite a journey and he entered the tundra were the ground was solid ice beneath a sheet of snow and he grew hungry from the lack of food. Each night that passed made his trip that much harder as the cold gnawed at his skin and ice began to stick to his fur, but he finally found her. She was as white as the snow she lived in and sat with the carcass of a fat hare in front of her. Hello, Osprey said, mighty witch. I have heard many stories of you.

The witch looked at him with her silvery gaze and he saw the bone necklace of claws and teeth that had somehow been woven into a necklace and placed around her scruff. You are a long way from home, she said. I have missed the comfort of others and you are a handsome lad. Osprey thought she was pretty too but she was not the one he loved. I have come, he said, in hopes that I might retrieve your necklace for I have a love back home that I wish to become my mate but I am not worthy yet.

She smiled at him now with a sly look. What do you offer me in trade for it? It is quite valuable. Osprey thought long and hard while she waited with patience in the cold. You are as white as the snow you live in, surely you do not need the necklace to become invisible? The prey here would never know where you were and you seem clever enough without it. But, if you give me the necklace then I will promise you a place in our pack. She had said, after all, that she was lonely.

Hmm, she intones. You are right, I do not need the necklace and I have been feeling lonely as of late. I will give it to you, Osprey, but next summer when I come to the south I expect a place within your pack. Fine, he says in relief, for Osprey intends to honor his bargain assuming he can finish his other two tasks. So the witch shook off her bone necklace and gave it to him and he promised to see her in the summer as he turned and left the tundra and headed east to find the cougar that everyone feared."

She takes a moment now to pause in her story and smile curiously at the children. "What do you think Osprey will do next, children?" It was always fun to engage their active minds and find out what they would hope to happen.