Firefly Glen i wanna love somebody

and we're back online! for 1/3 of the brat pack, @Lyra

they'd traveled back up together... here, in the big wide world, to make something out of themselves. dante had always made it clear that they were meant to do something, not just lie around on their butts all day. terance agreed. but, along the way, they'd gotten separated. terance didn't know where his sister was, and though he'd spent an entire month in a detour to find her, he didn't, and couldn't linger any longer. he knew better than to wallow in the past, and he trusted his sister to take care of herself. she was strong that way, he had faith that she was okay.

but, originally, they were headed to osprey's brother, peregrine, in hopes of getting settled there. their mother had promised that they would find a home there, so that's where they went. the backup plan was some man named charon. terance remembered him-- vaguely-- from an interaction a long time ago, but 'perry' always seemed like a better option, since he was family.

slowly, he lowered his rump to the ground. terance was of a proud build, his father's son, and now that he was almost a full year old he was beginning to really fill in. his eyes were still his mothers, though, and gazed up at the starry sky just as hers did. he had a love for astrology, no matter how lame it seemed. the stars danced a different way every night, and yet they still managed to keep their formation... no matter where you went. terance loved it, it always felt like an escape. so he sat and stared at the stars, wondering if his family was staring at the same ones.

<3

She slipped out under the cover of night, too restless for sleep. She felt like she had fell partially into Alya's persona with her love of scouting and exploring, and so allowed herself to be consumed by it. Lyra's fear lay in the back of her mind as always however, ready to flare up at the drop of a hat, but for now, she trekked boldly from the safety and familiarity of her home. She knew her other halves and the rest of her family were within a howl's distance, anyway.

With quiet, gentle steps, she made her way through the glen she had stumbled upon, admiring the way the fireflies were just now beginning to light up the night. The stars above still shone more brightly, however, the moon also lending its vibrance and casting an eerie yet beautiful glow upon the territory.

Lyra was about to sit and soak in the atmosphere before her eye caught a dark figure. He sat so still, she almost mistook him for a tree stump before she picked out his scent — an earthy, wild smell that struck her curiousity. Intrigued, she stared, watching him simply stare up at the sky. She was wary though and, taking advantage of the fact he had his back turned to her, Lyra gingerly continued making her way towards the thicket.

maybe if sarah would have been with him, he'd not gotten so lost in the stars. her safety worried him, and though he had moved forward without her, and he did trust that she could take care of herself... he was still worried. he stared into the sky and eyed each constellation his mother had shown him, trying to gather some confidence that sarah was one the other side of one of those stars, staring back at him. truthfully, he worried more for his mother than sarah... she'd been so sick when they first headed out, and though both of his parents were healthy, they were old. he worried he'd go home one day and they'd both just be... gone.

his anxieties-- what few the boy had-- consumed his thoughts as he stared into the night sky. it was the only place he allowed himself to worry. but, he was so focused, he didn't notice the shadow that crept up upon him.

He hadn't seemed to have noticed her, which suited Lyra just fine, yet she did wonder why he was so engaged with the stars. Almost as if he was lost deep in thought. She stared at his back, a thick slope of dark fur, and was briefly reminded of Cypress — the sad, mysterious boy whom she and Alya shared a crush on. The thought made her heart flutter and, even though she wanted desperately to slip into the obscurity of the dense foliage and disappear into the night, she hesitated.

She had been wrestling with her shyness and the fact that her sisters were out there, forming their own friendships and having adventures. She went along with them, of course, but was almost never alone. But she could make a friend. Someone other than Hydra and Alya. All she had to do was...

"Hi," came her voice suddenly, soft and shy but not entirely her own. Though she immediately regretted saying anything and ducked her head, feeling bad for disturbing the stranger. Torn between apologising and fleeing, Lyra made an awkward lurch back in the direction she had come from, hoping to slink away before he noticed she was there.

he was in his own world, and though it was stressful, he was calm-- the sky helped. it wasn't until a voice drew him from his safe-space and back into reality-- causing a low growl. it wasn't until his gaze fell upon a shadow that his darkened face lightened up. "wait-- i'm sorry," he quickly said, standing. he wasn't going to chase after her, but he felt bad. the way that she slunk back made him feel awful, like some sort of monster, and to a girl. his father would be disappointed.

"you scared me," he offered, emerald eyes scanning hers. they were sapphire's, deep and blue and glinting in the moonlight. "my name is terance," he added, a few more words than he'd ever care to say to a complete stranger, but he was feeling guilty-- and lonely.

The growl did nothing to ease her own guilt and even added a tinge of fear as she retreated. Mistake, this was a mistake! Her heart thrummed harder now but for a different reason, slowing only slightly at his apology. She forced her paws to stop despite her instincts telling her to run, digging her heels into the dirt and turning nervously to face the boy.

He was larger than Cypress — larger than most wolves she had encountered, in fact. Ears flattened against her skull, Lyra stared at the space beside him, uncertain. She scared him? She supposed she had snuck up on him. She was too used to her sisters innately knowing exactly where she was, even if she tried her hardest to be stealthy. It was next to impossible to sneak up on them. Other wolves, however...

"S-sorry," she apologised in turn, looking up quickly to catch a glimpse of his verdant eyes. "I'm..." she hesitated, debating whether or not she should adopt one of her sister's personas. "Lyra."

"lyra," he echoed, relieved she did not leave in a hurry. he really did need the company, and though he'd never say so out loud, he was pleased that he'd found some. "i was looking at the stars," he then offered, a small offering of conversation. he lowered his rump back to the ground, the fur along his shoulders beginning to lie flat again. his green eyes scanned her for a moment, hoping that he could get some sort of read off of her... but she just looked a bit nervous, anxious-- certainly timid. he hoped she wouldn't stay that way, he didn't like frightening people he didn't mean to, people who didn't deserve it.

and besides, he really just wanted some company.

When he repeated her name, she felt her heart jump again, and she looked away shyly — embarrassed, even. Is this how Alya felt around Cypress? She couldn't imagine her self-assured sister ever being so bashful. Hydra most certainly wasn't, she knew that much. His explanation as to what he was doing caused a small smile to light her features up, and the girl slowly made her way back to where the male sat. He was a star-gazer like herself and her father, then? "Y-you're an astrologer?" she asked quietly, coming to a halt near Terance, but still not too close. She still wasn't sure.

she settled, at least a bit. "yeah," he responded vaguely, looking to her with a curious gaze of his own. was she? "are you?" he asked her, his nose pointing back up towards the sky. he didn't want to overshare, but he didn't want to seem so boring... if he was boring she'd leave, and he'd be alone again. if he was alone, he'd only think of sarah, and he didn't want to be sad right now. "i used to stargaze my mom when i was little, she taught me all the constellations," he decided to share. did she know the constellations? he could teach her, he'd love to teach somebody.

I'm an idiot, I meant astronomer not astrologer lmao

She glanced up at his answer, meeting the vivid green of his eyes for a brief moment before she looked back at the sky quickly. The dark blanket above them was speckled with all sorts of stars; she had been taught that if she looked closely, there were differences between each one, however minor. Are you? She hesitated, wondering if she truly was one yet. She had only just begun to learn and, despite her fondness for the sky, she had a lot to learn still. She knew more about the plants of the earth than the stars in the sky.

"I'm still learning," she answered with a small smile, though it broadened as he shared that his mother used to teach him. "She would like my dad; he knows all about the constellations, too." She paused, glancing at the sky again, before adding, "which one's your favourite?"

LOL honestly i didn't even notice... derp

his lips curved in a soft smile at her answer. "that makes you one," he offered encouragingly. he didn't know that much, really. terance was aware of the constellations and a few of the minor phenomenas that occurred in the night sky, but he was by no means an expert. he considered himself an astronomer regardless, an aspiring one, at least.

her question warranted a flick of his ears as he thought. this was a hard question, for there were plenty that he liked, for many different reasons. there was one-- though terance doubted it was a real, well-known constellation-- that his mother showed him the first time they went stargazing. she always said it was superfun coconut, the exiled fairy. he could see it now from where he sat, but he didn't dare share one of his favorite memories with a stranger-- no matter how sweet and comforting her presence seemed.

"that one," he instead said, lifting a dark paw to point at a cluster of stars. he leaned towards her a little bit to make sure she knew where he was pointing, clearing his throat to further explain. "taurus-- the bull. my mom always said that that was my star-sign, 'cause i was born in may," he told her, head turning to see lyra's reaction better.

Her brow furrowed at his answer, but a look of understanding slowly overtook her perplexed expression. Oh. She had never thought of it that way. It made sense, she guessed. Hydra had been calling herself a guardian before she had been officially bestowed the title. Though Lyra wasn't sure if she wanted to be the astronomer of Moonspear, however. That position would forever and always belong to Charon. She felt more at home among the herbs and plants, anyway. Things she could touch.

Her gaze flicked to Terance as he shifted and raised a paw to point out the constellation. Taurus. She had no idea what a bull was and, as she stared at where he gestured to, she tried to make out what the stars were meant to depict. She smiled, for it must hold some sort of sentiment for him, though, and she looked to the boy with a curious tilt of her head. "What's the one for August?"

truthfully, terance didn't know what a bull was either. from what his mother always said, it was like a cow (which was like a fat, bulky deer) with horns. that was always enough explanation for him, as he would never question either of his parents and their knowledge. her next question gave caused him to purse his lips in thought for a moment. "well, early august is leo, and late august is virgo," he told her, and in turn pointed out both, "leo is a lion, and mom always just said that virgo meant a nice lady."

he'd memorized all the star-signs because he thought they were so interesting. he knew there was a way to interpret them according to their alignment with the moon and other plants (which he was still learning), but terance wasn't quite sure how that was done. maybe he'd learn one day.

Honestly, Lyra had no idea when exactly she and her sisters had been born, but she liked the sound of virgo so decided to go with that. She was all the more pleased with her decision as Terance explained the meaning of the two constellations. She had never heard of a lion before, but fancied herself a nice lady (though she wasn't sure how Alya and Hydra would take to being called that).

Turning back to the sky, she eyed the taurus constellation once more, making note to ask Charon if he knew what it was. Surely he would. He would also most likely know what a bull was, too, maybe he'd even be able to tell her what a lion was!

"Where are you from?" she suddenly asked, gazing back at Terance curiously. His scent was mingled and wild; she couldn't pick out any particular smell from another. He certainly didn't smell of these lands.

terance stared for a little while longer, his tail tapping against the grass a few times as he thought. when she asked a question, he smiled a bit. "i was born in donnelaith, just off the coast," he said, almost proudly. he hadn't gone back to visit, but dante and osprey talked so highly of it. they'd asked him to go meet up with deirdre and emaleth and aria and constantine and all the rest of the clan, but he had yet to do so. he figured he'd find some roots first.

"we left when i was younger, my mom was sort of sick so we moved south for the winter. we've just traveled ever since," he added, noting the amount of words that left his mouth. it was obnoxious, but he supposed that was what happened when you told a real story-- osprey always had giant globs of words fall out of her mouth, but he never minded them, they were always so interesting.

Donnelaith. She smiled at the word, finding it beautiful — intriguing almost. The coast was a place she had yet to visit (she and her sisters talked endlessly about travelling there one day), but Charon had told her he had lived on the coast for a time. In fact, one could almost see it from Moonspear's peaks, especially on clear nights where the moon and stars reflected off the surface of the sea. Tonight, in fact, would be a wonderful time to view it.

Thoughts of possibly inviting Terance to her home were short-lived, however. He was a stranger — a nice one — but still a stranger. She didn't think Charon nor Amekaze would take kindly to her bringing home a wayward boy in the middle of the night. So instead she shifted, moving ever so closer to him, and smiling as he spoke, feeling it fade slightly as he mentioned his mum again. He seemed to be close to her, and she him, and she was sad to hear she was sick during the winter. "We?" she queried, curious who else, if anyone, he was travelling with.

she moved closer, and terance eyed this motion not with red cheeks, but with caution. she was sweet, and he really enjoyed her company, but he was a lone traveller-- caution was the only way he had handled things since he'd been alone. he did not moved away, but his gaze made a notable glance to the space between them.

his teeth clicked once, and then he responded, "my family." there wasn't much of them, but as the three pups grew and dante and osprey decided to have more kids... they were basically their own pack. "my parents and my two sisters... i've got two more little sisters and a brother now though," he added the last part as an afterthought, tail wagging a bit.

Wrap this up in the next couple of posts? <3

The look, though subtle, was not missed by Lyra. Her keen eyes picked up the shift in his own gaze, the fleeting, almost wary glance at the empty space between them. She felt her own cheeks become hot with embarrassment and she quickly sidled slightly away again, dipping her head as if apologising for the advancement. She hadn't meant to make him uncomfortable.

She avoided his verdant gaze now, instead looking away and then up to the sky once more, mentally scolding herself for being so forward. His talk of his family being their own little travelling pack did coax a small smile, though. She almost went to mention how she had two sisters as well before remembering the third — Korei. Almost out of guilt, she held her tongue.

Instead, the girl slowly got to all fours, stretching as she did so, the universal cue that the conversation was coming to an end. In truth, his awkward glance had caused such an overwhelming sense of self consciousness, Lyra wanted nothing more than to escape his presence. She was fond of the boy, really, but also felt a sense of shame for trying to get so close. "Uh, I should probably head back, it's getting late," she murmured quietly, quickly stealing a glance at Terance before looking back to the direction she had come from.

ofc ! <3

once again, terance found himself regretting his previous actions. before, he'd completely snapped at a totally innocent, sweet girl. and now, he'd doubted her character with a shifty side-eye. what an asshole. she moved away. he didn't want to follow her, that seemed to weird-- he didn't want to come off as any weirder than he already was. damn. he just sat.

they looked upwards, avoiding each others gazes and leaving an uncomfortable presence around them both. if terance hadn't been so socially deprived, maybe he would've up and left right then-- but lyra's company, no matter how awkward, was too precious to him in this moment. he dreaded being alone again. but it was unavoidable, terance was not outgoing enough to spark a new conversation up and poor lyra's feelings had been hurt one too many times. she probably had loads of friends wherever her 'home' was, because she began to act like she wanted to leave. he watched as she stretched. wondering if she'd merely gotten uncomfortable-- but she said exactly what he thought she would, and his ears fell.

"yeah..." he muttered, standing slowly, "me too." but terance had no home, no family. maybe the caldera, with peregrine and his family, but for now he was alone. "it was nice meeting you lyra..." he added, wondering if that would make up for any of his earlier caution. he hoped so, because he rather enjoyed her presence.

The awkwardness between them was nearly palpable, and Lyra almost willed the earth to open up and swallow her whole. Just as Terance was doing, she too was inwardly scolding herself for being so forward. They were still strangers, really. How the heck did Alya and Hydra do this? She wanted to ask them when she got back, but then she'd have to relive...this.

Thankfully, the boy didn't ask her to stay — even though, deep down, she sort of hoped he would plead for her not to leave his side, at least for the night. She stayed facing towards Moonspear even as he got to his feet and muttered some pleasantries. This caused a coy smile and she summed up the courage to look back at him.

"You..." should come to Moonspear with me, was what she had meant to say but she caught sight of his boyish, sparkling emerald eyes and felt her heart jump, all courage scattering immediately. "Bye, Terance," was all she managed to quickly choke out before scampering into the shadows, certain her face was bright red with embarrassment.