Serach had lost count of how many days it had been since @Drestig and @Jessie had failed in their attempts to uproot the rest of the pack. He had stormed out of the meeting in a blind rage. He had been furious, upset, and betrayed, the scene of the meeting incessantly replaying over and over again in his head. It had been enough to drive him mad - enough to drive him away from the Bend for several days until he had attacked enough sticks and chased enough rabbits and squirrels to get the rage out. Even once he had returned, he had remained aloof from the rest of them as much as was feasibly possible. Nobody had sought him out to chastise him for his outburst during the meeting, but he could not help but feel the weight of their collective judgement upon his shoulders. It would have maybe been better if @Triell had spoken to him, but the newly reinstated pack leader had not done so and Serach had been left to sort through his emotions all on his own.

Having made the decision to remain as separated as he could, at least for the time being, Serach found himself wandering through the wood his path more aimless than determined. Pausing to urinate on a tree, the subordinate was startled midstream by the distinctive crunch and crackle of twigs being stepped on. His nose wrinkling, he finished the task at hand before moving towards the sound. "Drift?" He called, trying and failing to make his voice not sound hoarse from lack of recent use. Perhaps if it had been anyone else, Serach would not have called out, but it had been a long time since the two had spoken and the youth was curious as to what brought Triell's youngest son out into the wood today.

It took a moment too long for @Drift to respond, and that was all Serach needed for his curiosity to turn to suspicion. When it did come, Drift's response was high-pitched and frantic. The guard hairs along his back rising, the older cousin wasted no time in following the sound of Drift's voice. Bounding through the trees, he closed the remaining distance between them in a few short seconds, coming to a sudden stop when he saw that the younger wolf was clearly alone and in no immediate danger - at least, not that Serach could see.

Squinting at him, Serach tilted his head, peering at Drift curiously. "What do you mean your sick?" He wasn't close enough to see the lumps on Drift's legs, covered as they were by fur, and by all other appearances, Drift seemed to look okay. Granted, Serach was miserably untrained when it came to thinks like illness and remedies. He knew he could eat grass or foliage to help an upset stomach, but that was about it. Coming closer, his nose twitched as he tried to sniff Drift. He didn't really smell sick either. What was his little cousin playing at, exactly? There was something wrong - the tone of Drift's voice and his facial expression made that clear enough, but there was nothing that Serach could see.

Serach moved closer, any hesitation overridden by the desire to help his cousin heal from whatever ailment he had that was causing @Drift so much distress. He had seen his packmates grow sick with pains in their stomachs or other minor illnesses, but he had never seen a wolf react as strongly as Drift was reacting right now. He was no healer, and with little luck he tried to guess who he could take Drift to if there really was something seriously wrong. Scrunching up his brow in thought, he peered down at the offered leg. Triell maybe? He would at least know who to go to for help, he thought, his pale eyes scrutinizing every bit of the boy's leg to see what he was being shown.

When he saw the single black dot, he led out an audible sigh of relief. His looks of worry and concerned faded to a smile and he chuckled quietly as he nudged Drift's nose with his own. "You're going to be just fine," he told his younger cousin, doing his best to make his voice more reassuring than laughter. "It looks like it's a flea, or maybe a tick. They come right off if you scratch them though," he explained, lifting his forelimb and rubbing it along his muzzle in a scratching movement to demonstrate. "When I get them, I like to roll around on the ground or up against the trunk of a tree. Or taking a long swim can help too. The little critters can't swim, I think, so they die." He paused, wanting to give Drift the time to let the information sink in and come down from his panicked state.

Serach couldn't hide his smile, nor his tail waving freely behind him as he looked on at Drift with playful amusement. He didn't laugh though, even as he could see the gears turning in Drift's head as he tried to understand just what Serach had told him. He knew Drift had an aversion to water (or maybe it was just an affinity for mud), but he made a point of underscoring that there were two options by nosing a small twig on the ground.

"It's all going to be okay," he said reassuringly as Drift asked him if the bugs would spread. With a shrug of his shoulders he continued, "Honestly, we all get them. Especially in the spring and summer time when it gets warm. The best thing to do is just try and get rid of them as quickly as you can once you notice." Serach wasn't honestly sure when he'd learned that, although he was sure he had once had a similar experience as Drift and Fenru, @Kisla or his mother had explained it to him. "Why don't we head to--OH MY GOD, what are you doing?!?"

His question interrupted by Drift's bloodcurling scream, Serach could only stare in horror as the younger wolf scratched on the ticks off of his leg, resulting in a small splatter of blood where it once was. It had clearly spooked Drift, and his resulting scream no doubt scared every other living thing within a 10 mile radius. "DRIFT!" Serach half yelled, half growled. "Calm the fuck down! That's it, let's go. We're going to the creek," he ordered, bowing his head and pushing on Drift's shoulder to get the boy to move. At least in the river, the young man wouldn't see the blood.