Bury It

Open to anyone, but special tags for @Lynx & @Stella

This couldn’t keep happening! The adults might be accustomed to pack-members wandering off without a word, but not Leo, he wouldn’t be. His mom was still out there somewhere, Aunty Moon had barely made it home, and now Kateri; She can’t be lost too! The young Vuesain was tired of doing nothing, sitting around, letting the adults go on their searches, all to no avail. He wanted to act, needed to!   If only it was that simple. He’d hardly even been outside the borders before, never off the mountain, and he knew only little of the world out there. But there were other wolves down in the valley, other packs and lots of places where his big sister might be hiding, too lost or afraid to come home on her own; How can they possibly search them all? They needed his help, and he wanted to go, to stop being a scared and obedient little boy, he was almost as big as the grown ups now, it wasn’t right to still be treated like a pup.   It was with all these thoughts swirling in his head that Leo had left the lands of Sanguine Cove and started climbing the protective ridge around Lost Lake, to look out over the lands below that he had only ever looked upon from up high. Standing on that precipice, the furthest he had ever gone from the pack in the past, he gritted his teeth, torn between his desire to go looking for his lost family, and his need to protect those who were still left here; Stella…! He couldn’t abandon her, but if he stayed, he’d be abandoning Kati, wouldn’t he? A deep growl rumbled from Leo’s chest, a rarity for the otherwise so composed boy; What should I do?! Thoughts ”Speech”

Lakela @DA

(This post was last modified: Jan 02, 2022, 11:36 PM by Leo.)

She couldn't have gotten far, was Chan's thinking. The darkest inklings were that she'd tried to explore and fell victim to one of the many pitfalls beyond the valley's protection. It was all too likely, and it gutted him. He'd experienced others losing their children before, even here on the mountain, but that was likely why this was affecting him deeply.

He'd seen this happen before, and it was just as much his fault then as he felt it was now. He was the leader. They trusted him to keep them safe, to keep their children safe.

Chan crested a snowdrift and saw a disappointingly-tawny blotch against the white and slate landscape. Not Kateri. He pushed through the snow to approach Aleister's son, not having to really wonder why the boy might be out here but curious as to why he appeared... frozen.

"See something?" he called out once near enough.

There is a small pile of bones gathered on the ground, there might be some marrow left in them. +2 Health

The sudden call made him jolt, head swivelling around to face Chan. Meeting the leader’s gaze, Leo’s ears flattened back, a bitter shot of guilt rising from his stomach. But it was only small, overpowered by his worry and, to the boy’s own surprise, defiance! So what if he wasn’t supposed to be here? So what if he wasn’t old enough to go looking on his own?   With a soft rumble of discontent, Leo turned back to the view, his ears still tilted back towards the adult. “A whole lotta nothin’,” he finally answered, sweeping his dual-coloured eyes over the snow-covered forests, just a blur of white and brown, further obscured by mist. “It’s impossible to spot anything from up here!” He huffed a deep sigh, sitting down heavily, a puff of snow rising around his golden flanks. When his head turned to look at Chan again, the steel was gone from his eyes, replaced by something much more vulnerable; “No news?” Thoughts ”Speech”

Lakela @DA

Chan slowed the nearer he drew, posture and gaze unassuming as he waited for the child to answer. He didn't want to place expectations on him, not when he was going through something no one his age should be asked to deal with. Frustration appeared to seep from the young Vuesain, and understandably so - the older wolf found himself nodding in agreement, gaze traveling away from Leo to pan over their bleak surroundings.

It returned when the boy's tone changed, and Chan's ears leaned backward apologetically as he answered.

"No."

He wanted to have more to say than that, but the things that came to mind were reassurances that the pre-teen already knew, such as how they were all trying. Instead, he was silent a moment, before it occurred to him that it was possible there wasn't a third pack member wandering around nearby. He didn't want to pry and poke, but with one child currently missing, he couldn't ignore the possibility that Leo was also on the verge of becoming so himself. It was his father's decision to make, and Chan had no idea - would Aleister want him to turn his boy around, or let him make his own choices?

"You lookin' for her too?" he at last decided on asking.

(This post was last modified: Jan 03, 2022, 01:13 AM by Chan.)

He watched the adult pleadingly, but he knew the answer as soon as he asked the question. If Kateri had been found, he would have known already. Still, his shoulders sagged at the single work, a sigh escaping his chest; Nothing…!   The silence stretched between them, heavy as the thick layer of snow under their paws. But was there any more to say? She was gone; Gone like mom… And with every passing moment, her return became less and less likely.   Leo was about to turn back on his own – his short bout of teenage rebelliousness had not been enough for him to challenge the acting leader, however chill he might be – when Chan spoke again, making him pause. His face scrunched up, ears flattening back at the question. “I’m trying but…” He started, looking down at his paws. There was a lump forming in his throat and he had swallow hard to clear it before he could continue, lifting his head to meet Chan’s eyes; “It’s no use, she’s not here!” He shook his head, gesturing towards the Lake before his attention turned back to the slope and the forest below; “She’s out there somewhere and I can’t help her!”   Tears stabbed behind his eyes, and he blinked furiously to keep them from showing. He hated this! Feeling so helpless, so useless. Kateri might be older, but she was still his sister and he felt as much of a need to protect her as he did Stella; If only I knew how…! Thoughts ”Speech”

Lakela @DA

The emotion that surged within the child's voice expressed itself well. Chan listened, gaze following Leo's motions from their home to the rest of the world. That's what he thought, huh? Was it his gut, or had his sister maybe said something to him... ? The list of possibilities was too long, and there was so little available to them to narrow it down with.

"There's more nooks and crannies to this place than you think," he offered, tone even, "and it takes time to get down the mountain, even if you've done it a thousand times."

It might seem that they'd already checked the valley thoroughly to young Leo, but Chan was far more confident that they hadn't. That didn't mean he necessarily knew better, however.

"You could be right, though. Maybe whatever held her up, down there ended up being closer? We have friends in those forests, on both sides of the mountain. If we spread the news, we'll have eyes looking for her everywhere."

It was something more, something to bolster hope. At least, that was what Chan intended. It certainly wasn't an empty promise, either - if Kateri was not recovered soon, Chan would be scouting to the Backwater to alert @Viorel as well as sending a party to meet with the faceless @Adelard of the Chasm. It wasn't a guarantee, that was for sure, but it certainly increased their odds.

(This post was last modified: Jan 04, 2022, 06:28 AM by Chan.)

Leo felt instantly humbled by Chan’s straight response, gold and aqua gaze cast down to his paws. Of course, the current leader would know the mountain much better than a pup who’d barely been outside the borders. Sure, he’d looked, but could he really say he’d checked everywhere? No, he wasn’t that arrogant, not by a long shot. But still, something in his heart told him Kateri had wandered beyond the mountain. Otherwise, it just seemed unlikely that they wouldn’t have found even a trace of a trail; And that she hasn’t found her own way home…   And apparently Chan had some of the same misgivings, or at least he didn’t outright dismiss the boy’s rash outburst. Leo looked back up at the adult, curiosity and hope both alight in his two-colored eyes. This was not the first time he heard of other packs of course, or even specifically of the Cove’s allies, though it had always been in passing. There was still so much he didn’t know about these strangers and the interrelations between packs. But in this moment, his curiosity was curbed by the pressing worry, and his only question was: “Really? They’ll help us look?”   True, the boy ached to go searching himself, but the most important was that his sister was found; The more wolves searching, the better! Thoughts ”Speech”

Lakela @DA

Chan nodded with a smile that hoped to encourage faith.

"They will," he told him, because just the wolves being aware and going about their usual activity was an increase of search radius. He trusted that at least @Viorel would do more than that, but he wouldn't elaborate on a promise that rest on shoulders other than his own. Chan spoke simply and honestly.

"Both of them told us that if we need them, they'll be there for us, and I believe they will because they know we're here for them, too. And... if they don't, well... we'll just have to scour the forests ourselves, won't we?"

Leo, her parents, her other siblings - all would require action if @Kateri's disappearance continued at length in order to cope with and process the loss, and Chan (along with many others, he was sure) would not let them go through it alone.

Leo watched Chan with big, hopeful eyes as the acting leader assured that their allies would help look for his sister. He wanted to believe it, trusted that the adult wouldn’t lie to him, and yet, it was hard to put his faith in strangers who lived somewhere deep down in the woods. And grown-ups had been known to lie, to try and spare the feelings of young pups.   That’s why it was so surprising when Chan went on so candidly, speaking of the possibility that they might be on their own; And including Leo in his plan B. The boy visibly straightened, a glint of fire in his two-colored eyes as he looked to meet the older wolf’s.   He was used to blending into the background, to ducking his head and quietly following the rules without question. But in this moment, a wave of courage suddenly flushed through him, and he blurted out: “I wanna go!” Almost startling even himself. His ears instantly flattened back uncertainly, but he kept his eyes on Chan, swallowing once before continuing more quietly: “I… I wanna help, look for Kateri.” He licked his lips, waiting for the response, fully prepared to be turned down; But at least I asked… Thoughts ”Speech”

Lakela @DA