Umbra Copse I Heard You Came Calling

For @Morganna. Mid-day.

Lowering his head to sniff at the snow-covered tree root, Serach breathed in deeply. There were wolves in these woods, that was for certain, which meant he was headed in the right direction. He had lost track of how many months it had been since the tiny black wolf had shown up on his borders to announce that she had set up a pack of her own to the south. Serach hadn't been there to greet @Sahalie himself, but Aponi had told him about her visit. The wounds had still been too fresh for him to seek her out, and since then he'd lost track of time. There was no real catalyst that had spurred him south today, but something had clicked and so he had bid his mate goodbye and headed towards the barren woods of Umbra Copse to see how his strong-willed cousin was faring.

But the further south Serach went, the more his apprehension about the meeting grew. The scents of his neighbors were growing stronger, but Sahalie's scent was not as prominent as he would have expected it to be. Had he gone in the wrong direction? It was certainly possible, but his mental map had placed Quaking Vale firmly to their south, and he doubted that the sparsely populated woods - really more of a swamp - could support more than one pack. So when he reached the pack's borders, he took his time to sniff along the scent trails to try and pick out the Tainn girl's scent. Unable to locate anything recent, he finally lifted his head and howled out. He called for Sahalie, but it was clearly a question more than a summons. If the girl herself didn't answer, he hoped that one of the Vale members would.

There's a road that takes me home

Morganna Archer

A howl for Sahalie wasn't what she had expected, and her head tilted for just a moment before picking her way towards the border. There she spotted a pale man, something familiar prickled at the back of her mind but she couldn't place it in the daylight, or yet anyway. He smelled enough of other wolves that she doubted he was here seeking admittance and her tail rested level with her spine, an easy wave offered as she barked out a greeting. "I 'aven't seen Sahalie since she left the Monadnock with her friend. Was this where she settled then?" After all, she was only a new addition to the Vale, and she had no intention to stay for much longer.

There is a family of deer nearby. Hunt Opportunity

So sorry for the delay. Flu-season has wrecked me.

Serach wasn't left waiting very long, but the woman who approached him was not the one he was expecting. She was black-furred like Sahalie was, but she was of average height and stature, and her pale peach eyes were not the fiery orange ones that was the signature trait of the Tainn family. She approached him with an easy wave of her tail and Serach's pale one flicked behind him a few times in a quiet response. Her words got straight to the point of his visit, but they earned her a furrowed, confused brow.

"I guess I don't know for sure...this is Quaking Vale, isn't it?" Perhaps he hadn't gone to the right pack afterall. And if that was the case - where the hell was he? "I'm Serach Donata, the leader of Oak Tree Bend. Sahalie visited my mate several months ago and told her she had settled and started a pack in The Deep, and I guess I thought this was it."

baby i'm back now, feeling how i used to feel

Morganna Archer

Morganna nodded when he asked if this was Quaking Vale, matching his introduction with one of her own, "Morganna Archer. When I got 'ere it was jus' my brother Niles, 'is mate Castel an' one other subordinate," though it would be evident from the number of scents that lined the borders and rested in her coat now that that was no longer the case, the pack swelling in short order once her companions had arrived, "Cas was in a bad way, an' now she's gone we'll be movin' west. We've got a few health concerns ter address before we tackle th' mountain but we'll be gone before spring comes." She was almost certain this wasn't the news he was hoping to hear on a visit to the neighbours but it would save him chasing ghosts in an empty forest down the track too she supposed. "I could call @Niles an' see if 'e knows any more'n I do about where she might have gotten to?"

Going to assume that she calls for @Niles here, but let me know if she doesn't and I can edit my post!

The nod of her head confirmed that Serach was in the right place, but everything else she said went right over his head. He had no idea who any of these wolves were nor did he really understand how Quaking Vale had come to change leadership between Sahalie and her friend Kino to the woman in front of him now. So with a confused look on his face, he merely nodded his head and quietly said, "I see." As Morganna continued, explaining that Quaking Vale was soon to be no more, he couldn't help but feel a pang in his heart on his cousin's behalf. How would she feel if she returned to find that the wolves she had entrusted her pack to had decided to not only make it their own, but move it all the way across Relic Lore?

"If you wouldn't mind, I'd appreciate it. Sahalie is my cousin, you see. If she ended up at the Monadnock, then I'm sure you heard about what happened in the Bend last winter - can't say we parted on the best of terms, but it's been long enough that I wanted to check in on her. Surprised she isn't here...leading a pack of her own had always been a dream of hers."

And then, while they waited for Morganna's fellow leader to arrive, he decided to broach another topic. "You said you were moving the Vale west? Can I ask why?"

baby I'm back now, feelin' how I used to feel

Morganna Archer

When the man before her wanted more information she threw her head back to summon @Niles, "'e's not much o' a talker but we'll see if 'e can fill in th' gaps fer yer." She offered with a smile, nodding along as he mentioned some drama in the bend. Her own knowledge of it was vague, beyond Spieden showing up on her borders with her children in tow and Sahalie and Kino following in short order. "These things 'appen though, I thought Spieden was m' Nonna come back ter haunt me at first, but it turned out that Skana was 'er ma, she was a subordinate in m' mother's pack when I was a pup." She gave a small smile, only just now considering that it was a miracle they hadn't met before. "She went back ter th' ocean with one o' m' subordinates ter keep an eye on her n' th' kids," Though she wasn't sure he'd want to know what happened to his former co-lead she'd add it in there none the less.

When he asked why she was moving she stopped for a moment before speaking, "I was born in th' willows, m' sister is leadin' there, m' brother is leadin' up at the heights, I want ter go home. We hadn't planned on comin' 'ere at all an' we'd already started ter settle but Niles needed help. Can't blame th' two that were left fer wantin' ter leave the ghosts behind, they were pretty much gone when we got 'ere." and it wasn't her duty to keep the hearth fire lit for the dead, or for wolves that might never return. Her own ambitions had been put on hold for long enough.

Gray has said she won't be joining us, so we can continue without Niles.

Morganna tilted her head back and called for her brother, who would hopefully help to answer Serach's questions. Talker or no, if he had been in Quaking Vale long enough to become its leader, then surely he must know something of its founders. Until then, he was content to get his history lesson from Morganna. Although he could not help but wrinkle his brow at the mention of Spieden. She'd lost her mind and imploded the Bend in the process - to say he did not think of her fondly was an understatement. But he kept his mouth shut and merely nodded his head politely, murming a quiet, "I see."

He was more interested in her response to inquiry as to why they were leaving. Her emphasis on home resonated with him and he found himself nodding along in understanding. "I can appreciate that. I was born in the Bend - never been anywhere else and don't plan on leaving any time in the future. We've got our ghosts too, but I suppose it's different because they're mine ya know," he explained with an easy shrug to her shoulders. "You said you're from the Willows and an Archer - are you Elettra's daughter? Never met her myself, but my mother and uncle knew her from their days at Swift River. Held her in high regard. As for your brother, I do believe he's the partner of my mate Aponi's daughter...suppose that makes us distant family too." He smiled, finishing his words with an easy chuckle and a wag of a tail. He did not seriously consider them to be family, but it was interesting to hear the connections across Relic Lore laid out before them.

baby i'm back now, feeling how i used to feel

Morganna's brow's drew down for a moment when her brother didn't respond, though she supposed it was probably to be expected. He was still grieving, there was a chance he could even be out of earshot. Her attention was quickly drawn back to her companion however, a knowing smile crossing her face when he spoke of the ghosts being his own. That was something she could relate to, "Even if yer did leave, yer'd find yerself wantin' ter go right back anyway. Better ter spare yerself th' energy in th' first place." It wasn't like she was talking from experience or anything, or so she silently told herself.

When her mother's name was mentioned, she wasn't exactly surprised. After all, her mother was, well, she had always been something else hadn't she? "Yeah, I'm th' oldest, Ravenna's leadin' th' Ridge now, an' Greer is mates with Kyna, if that's her." Her tail had taken up a steady wave, it was an interesting set of circumstance to be sure. Given he was practically family anyway, she stepped aside with a cant of her head. "Doesn' look like Niles 'eard me, but do yer want ter rest before headin' back?" And actually, now she thought on it... "Say, yer wouldn' 'ave happened ter 'ave a subordinate that goes by..." Her brow creased as she wracked her brain for the name, "Cat-taily? No tha's not right... umm, Cattori? Pretty sure she 'ad a thing wi' m' brother. Woulda been spring b'fore last."

Morganna Archer

@Morganna I'm going to fade out in my post, but feel free to respond again and/or archive!

There was no response from Morganna's brother, and it seemed that Serach would be denied the complete answers to the questions he had been looking for. He wasn't perturbed, however. He had already gotten more information than he had expected he would, all things considered. Morganna herself was pleasant enough, and they seemed to be kindred spirits when it came to their feelings on home. He chuckled at her remarks that he would just be wasting energy - he could not have agreed more with her assessment.

She confirmed for him that she was, in fact, a daughter of Elettra Archer. He had never met the Willow matriarch, but he did know that the Archer family had spread like wildfire over Relic Lore. He would bet an elk bone that if he ever ventured to all four corners of the forest, he would find an Archer occupying that space. He nodded his head in confirmation, at the question, "Yeah, Kyna is her name. Can't say I've met Greer though."

He was not expecting her to offer him rest, but he was thankful for it. Dipping his head lower, he stepped towards her and ready to follow. "Thank you, I appreciate it," he told her. "And that's alright about Niles, I learned the important thing - that Sahalie isn't here any more." Everything else was just details, and eventually his curiosity about those would fade. Following her into the Vale territory (a strange sensation for someone who had only ever visited his sister's pack before), he shook his head in the negative at her last question. The Bend had recruited many members over the past two years, but none that he could recall that would go by that name. "'Afraid not. If they lived in the Bend at the time, they certainly didn't use that name." He was completely wrong, of course, but Serach had no way to know that particular aspect of his mate's past life.

Fade out. Assume Serach follows her.