Whisper Marsh There is a map in my room

Morganna's scent was on the wind once more, hinting at their obvious proximity, but Celandine did not turn towards it. If the dark woman needed her, then she would be sure to find her. Instead the pale fae let her paws draw East, towards the mountain. Of course, she had no intentions of reaching the heights. Not with Maeve and the brood likely drawing near, so her trips away would remain short lived-for now.

It was nice being back, though the Argyris wasn't exactly sure if she would call it home. She had lived within the confines of the Lore nearly her entire life, and yet it would seem that she hadn't truly found her place. Was it the Plateau, or the Monadnock? Was it the Lagoon? Only time would tell.

Draven was still searching for Sachiel, but had been sticking closer to the heart of the lore. @Treyah has been a great shoulder to lean on when he needed it, whenever he got back from his searches. He never crossed into pack territory but he hung around within a couple hours of their borders, leaving her presents every so often. He wasn’t a member of her pack, but he sapped her emotional strength and he couldn’t let that go unpaid. He also searched for Lacey when he looked for Sachiel but both had been fruitless.

Today he was near the marsh, eyes sweeping the area every few feet. He almost missed the light coloured woman against the snowy backdrop if she hadn’t moved at the right time. Coming closer he stopped a few wolf lengths away, he wasn’t here to cause trouble. He just wanted to find Sachiel. ”You haven’t seen a dark coloured pup around have you?” Please say yes.

Celandine caught wind of the approaching male only moments before his arrival, having been more than a little lost in her thoughts. Snow crunched under the weight of her paws as she turned to meet him head on. She certainly wasn't looking for a fight, but until the male made his intentions clear, she'd hate to have her back turned to him.

When her bright gaze was finally able to rest on his form, the woman was quick to size him up. While he seemed to be larger than she was, he lacked the bulk to really contend with her. (Or at least she liked to think) It didn't matter either way, because he didn't seem like he was looking for a fight, nor did she have any intention of initiating one.

"I can't say that I have." Unless he was looking for one of Morg's kids, but they had yet to arrive, and she highly doubted this man would have known them anyway. "I've spent quite a bit of time west of here too, so I'd be hard pressed to say you'll have any luck that way either." Not impossible, but not probable either.

Draven’s heart sunk sickeningly low in his stomach as the woman quickly responded to his query. He should have known better than to get his hopes up but he couldn’t stop himself anyways. His tail dropped lower as he deflated, and with less enthusiasm this time he asked his follow up question, ”What about a girl? Tawny I think, named Lacey.” He realized that this probably sounded weird but he couldn’t bring himself to care much what anyone thought of him. He just wanted his son to be safe.

He nodded in appreciation to her advice, so the west was probably clear. That left only this area and then his only option would be to cross back over the mountain and search the northern part of the east. This narrowed things down a bit, gave him some formation of a plan. ”Um, since the early fall Sachiel has been gone. I don’t know about Lacey, she’s my friends sister. I don’t even know her but I promised I would help look.” It only seemed right.

Celandine offered the man a solemn shake of her head, indicating that she had not seen either of the cubs west of the marsh. "I haven't seen any cubs at all." It must have been the season for wanderlust. Children were like that, but to be gone so long... well it didn't tend to fare towards good news. All hope was not lost though. Morganna's kids would be fine to fend for themselves should any issue arise. Hell, they were on their way here from Torbine, a month long journey, all alone. "I'm sorry I don't have better news for you." This interaction could have been much more useful had she had any information to give.

"I'll let the others know to keep an eye out for a Lacey, and...?" She let her voice drift out, waiting for the man before her to fill in the blank. "If they're west of here, one of us is bound to run into them." Oh, and perhaps more importantly. "Where should I send them if they're found?" What was the point of finding them if she had nowhere send them?

The woman so far had no good news for Draven, but he supposed that she was pleasant enough anyways. She might not have had anything that he was looking for but she was friendly and seemed willing to send the pups in the right direction if she stumbled upon them. The dark male never once stopped to wonder if she might be lying because frankly he had no reason to. Who would lie about not seeing pups that were obviously missed and being looked for?

To her pause the father quickly jumped in to fill the blank, ”Sachiel,” it was the second time in this conversation he had said the name and it made his heart ache. The Leigh child was just that, a child and while his scent had smelled of a stranger when he left the thought wasn’t much comfort. Especially after hearing Treyah’s story of pup-nappers.

It was her next question that made him blink with pause. He was hardly ever in the same place two days in a row as he tried to find his son so where should he be directed to? Tilting his head slightly to the right he tried to ignore the impending headache that came often these days. He wasn’t eating nearly enough and it was beginning to take its toll. He fought through the dull ache long enough to settle on an answer, ”To the heart I guess. There’s a pack there, Charred Ash Draw and it’s lead by my friend who lost her sister.” That gave answer for Lacey but he wasn’t sure if Sachiel would just go to a strangers pack. ”If you see Sachiel tell him that Treyah will look after him until I’m back.” If he would even go to the Draw.

Celandine took in the details, filing them away for later use. There was a pack named Charred Ash Draw in the Heart. They were currently missing a girl named Lacey, and this man.. who did not seem to be from the formerly mentioned pack, was missing a boy named Sachiel. These were all very useful things to know. Not that she had any plans to use the information against them, quite the opposite really, but it was good to know just in case.

"Have you tried the Ridge yet? I'm sure they'd know if a pup passed through the area." Or not, since it didn't seem like they had retained any of the hold they had before the split. At least that's what she gathered from her conversation with Ravenna. "I know there is no point in my saying this, but don't be too hard on yourself." She said it, not because she felt for him, but because it was what she was expected to say. Being nice to him now could save her trouble in the future.

"Cubs wander, and if you're concerned enough to be looking for him, then I'm sure that he was taught well." Celandine offered the man a reassuring smile, though whether her words reached him, she'd never truly know.

Something in the back of his memory twitched at the mention of the Ridge but it was too far gone to ever retrieve it. Something from very far back in the past someone must have mentioned it. But had they been friend or foe? And had they been mentioned while he was still a child within the Crest or was it after joining the Cove? Draven spent very little time trying to figure it out, both of those packs seemed like another lifetime ago, one that was equally heartbreaking.

Shaking his head at her question he had no idea how to respond to her statements other than uttering a polite, ”Thank you.” Truth was, nothing she could say other than knowing where Sachiel was could make him feel better. Draven probably would never feel better unless he found his son, even if the boy never wanted to see him again.

It seemed like they had come to the end of the interaction but the man wasn’t sure how to leave. Instead he shuffled awkwardly on his paws and looked vaguely in the distance.

Celandine nodded to indicate that he was welcome to the information, though she had none. A pity too. Had she been able to offer him something, the pale woman could have gotten herself another favor. Either way, she hoped that this man would remember her willingness to help in the future, should an occasion where such a thing was needed arise. "I hope you find what you're looking for." She left out the cub's names on purpose, lest their utterance cause this man any more distress.

She watched as he awkwardly shuffled his paws, clearly antsy to continue his search. "I better let you get to it then." Turning, Celandine called once more over her shoulder. "I hope that we meet again sometime, under better circumstances." She'd find a way to steal a favor then.