She hated to say it, though things became a little easier after Marten passed. Towhee mourned him, though strangely she did not plunge into a black depression like the one following her miscarriage. The Sovereign could not imagine what it would've been like to have
six puppies. Half her litter was dead, though that would allow her to focus more on the three children remaining to her.
Towhee took a deep breath as she ponderously walked the caldera's rim on this gray, rainy morning. She paused to stare off into the distance and frowned as she thought of her Regents. She supposed she couldn't think of them like that anymore, not after so much time had passed. Quite possibly she should put someone else into those positions—she could certainly use the help and there were several great candidates—but doing that would feel too final, like she'd accepted they would never return.
She let out a sigh and closed her eyes a moment, then opened them and resumed her walk.
Maybe
@Sifaka? But anyone's welcome! :)
His morning hunt was a success, the pair of rather large hares were buried in the single cache pit Sifaka managed to sniff out. Admittedly he wished to have caught more but the bug eyed cretins were slick and slid into their burrows. He didn't possess the patience to wait for the drove to regain their confidence, so he settled on two with the exception that he must gather another pair by sunset. The lion maned man was usually content with his catches, proud of his ability to hunt to sustain but his habits were for one, not many. His newfound pack life was going to change him quite significantly but it was a equal trade off of protection, food and a chance to find a mate, although his eyes were mainly set on the protection and food aspect.
With no sign of any wolves nearby Sifaka decided to move inland to see what the Caldera had to offer. His gait started with a trot that slowly faded into a walk as he neared more unknown territory and began to be intrigued by the new smells that peppered the area. Peace and serenity enveloped the males ears, caressing them with the songs and melodies of birds chattering in the air and in trees. Sifaka stopped to admire a red crested cardinal singing on a branch above him, he envied the winged fowl and their limitless freedom but he did not dwell on them for long and moved on.
A streak of orange caught his eye as he turned to head back, he stopped and stared at the wolf some distance away. His eyes assessing the female, her stature, gait, and fur. Sifaka could not help but notice she was carrying milk and began to think she was the matriarch. The maned male didn't leave it up to chance that she would catch sight of him so he moved to her line of sight. Whether or not she noticed him as he drew closer would not stop him from asking, "Are you Towhee?".
When someone stepped into her line of sight, Towhee halted and sucked in a breath. For a split second, she thought it was Phox. Then she registered the streaks of golden orange not unlike her own, as well as the bright yellow eyes that reminded her starkly of Raven. Her throat tightened and she bit back a sigh of disappointment even as the newcomer queried, "Are you Towhee?"
"I am," she replied. "You must be Sifaka. Meerkat told me about you." And now she took a moment to recollect what information the yearling had passed to her. Towhee distinctly recalled Meerkat using the word "pragmatic" at least twice. "Sorry I haven't sought you out yet. You can blame my kids." There was Marten's death, specifically, but the Sovereign didn't mention it.
Folding her haunches, Towhee took a seat and motioned for Sifaka to do the same. "Tell me about yourself," she said, equal parts command and invitation.
Sifaka acted as if he was on display, something to be judged and evaluated, he sat more ridged and tall than his more eased self. He wanted to show the prowess that was his build, broad powerful shoulders, thick fur and a long robust body. Sifaka was fit to give his fair share of what's owed for taking up precious space in a pack and he was going to do everything he could to ensure Towhee saw things that way.
"Do not apologize, a mother tending to her children is never to be frowned upon." He stated calmly. "Now for your question, there is not many things I can say. I come from different lands, not unlike the one you inhabit. My experience is great but my expertise is lacking. Aside from what you must already know." He said, referencing Meerkats mention of him, she had said she would after all. Sifaka was lost as to what to say next, Towhees question was still ruminating in his mind without much outcome, the male hummed deeply as he dove deeper in thought. He sifted through his memories and random assorted knowledge but out of the few handful of things he picked only one stuck out. His sibling, Fox had traveled this far but Sifaka was not sure where they ended up. He thought it worth a mention. "I do have a sibling that roamed these lands, I could not tell you where they are as they left a long time ago but I am sure given enough time I will be able to track down where they are."
Her orange eyes fixed on his face, specifically his mouth, as he spoke. Towhee couldn't help but notice that he contradicted himself several times. But as she reflected on his words, she had to wonder if maybe her overtired brain simply wasn't parsing things correctly. Towhee gleaned nearly nothing from his reply, though she placed that blame on herself rather than Sifaka.
He relieved her of the burden of coming up with something to say next, mentioning a wayward sibling. The Sovereign knew all about those. It sounded like a lot of time had passed, yet he hadn't given up hope. Towhee didn't know whether to admire him or feel sorry for him. She grimaced as she thought of Phox, her own hopes slipping through her fingers. He would never stay away voluntarily, yet it was very possible something was keeping him and may continue keeping him.
Shaking off that thought, Towhee queried, "Oh yeah?" It was a rather generic but nonetheless open invitation for Sifaka to elaborate on this story.
I tried sifting through Foxs threadlog to see if RedHawk was their toons given name or if it was Crestwood, but they gotta lotta threads so I think I'll just stick with Crestwood to be safe. Lmk if I am wrong! Tryin real hard not to screw up timelines and names, feel free to correct me if I get something wrong
.
.
A subtle shift in posture gave way to hidden emotions underneath his stoic exterior, vulnerability, though slight it was there nonetheless. His family meant a lot to him, he feared his mention of her name was going to jeopardize their or even his own safety but to go back on himself wasn't an option and sooner or later he would have to mention a name. Sifaka began with a hum of agreement, "Yes, I had hopes she made a name for herself, she was— Uhm," A brief pause to search for a description, "Arduous, after all." With only small bits of exposure to Fox he only had small portions of personality to go off of but he still possessed hope there was a chance to get to know her better. "Her name's Fox, Fox Crestwood, have you heard of anyone by that name?"
The brief pause piqued her curiosity, sharpening her focus a little. Arduous? It was an interesting way to describe one's sister. Towhee supposed some of her siblings could be difficult at times, though most likely she was the culprit there. It sounded as though Sifaka hadn't seen her in years, though she wondered if they had been close, like she was with—
"—Fox," he said, "Fox Crestwood." Towhee blinked, staring now at his face, the ruff of rusty red fur framing it. But she'd never heard the name Crestwood, not as far as she could remember, and it was entirely possible Fox was a common name for all she really knew.
"My brother's name is Phox, after our mother," Towhee answered, "but her name was Fox Redhawk. She died giving birth to us, actually. That was years ago now." Her orange gaze grew speculative, eating into his face as she wondered...
Towhees features struck Sifaka like a lightning bolt, the recognition in her eyes caused his normally unwavering stoic expression to melt away and be replaced with hints of excitement. The maned male took control of himself, dialing back what he deemed as overexcitement. A more reserved look took over and he waited with bated breath as the orange streaked female explained of her brother and mother. The mention of their last name being Redhawk took the wind out of his sails, as such his disappointment was evident with the quiet sigh escaping from pursed lips. "Ah, I see." Sifaka gave time for things to settle in his head, the whirlwind of sudden emotion was a hair startling. He didn't want to give the idea his sibling had passed any leeway, she was the last remaining link to any sort of familiarity he had left in the world. Sifaka craved family, he wasn't sure what he would do without a tether to hold him down. The male gathered himself.
"I know your personal relationship with your mother was cut short but by chance, did those around you speak of the way she looked?" He asked, digging for more information.
Although Towhee couldn't specifically remember who'd told her or when—details simply lost in time, surely—she recollected with perfect clarity, "She was small and red, with a fiery temper to match. What about your Fox? Are you thinking they could be one and the same? It's entirely possible she took her surname from my father..." Something clicked in her head and she wrung her paw in lieu of snapping fingers she didn't possess. "You know who might know, who could help us connect the dots if they're there? My sister, Rave..."
"Small and red, with a fiery temper to match."
Sifakas eyebrows raised slightly as each description matched his recollection of Fox, along with Towhees added suggestion that his sibling took her mates surname, everything was adding up. It was shocking at first but then he was reminded that this womans mother, his possible sister, was dead. Sifaka didn't want to connect the dots but there was no lying the similarities were hard to dispute. "My Fox was much the same. Small and fiery, indeed." He agreed with a nod. The orange streaked woman had begun to mention a sibling who could help but she cut herself off before the other could be named. Sifaka didn't hesitate to pry, "Your sister, Rave?"
She trailed off for just a moment before Sifaka prompted her to elaborate. "My sister, Rave, lives with the Frosthawks south of here. I can give you directions to visit her, if you like. She actually knew our mother," Towhee explained, eyes still roving openly over her comrade's face.
Was she possibly looking at her own uncle? It wasn't exactly unprecedented for a relative to show up out of the blue, though she couldn't remember the last time it had happened. It would be cool to know if there was a blood connection, particularly one that originated from the maternal side. Crestwood, she mused, filing away that information.
In the meantime, Towhee figured there might be other ways to suss out the truth. "Is Sifaka the name of an animal?" she wondered.
I am so very sorry for the wait/short reply, I will try to get better— Also I had written the females are given no last name rule (to make myself remember) but it appears I foolishly forgot it, so I will write this off as a small break in character for him
The sibling lead sounded promising in finally narrowing down the possible familial link but then Towhee asked a question that would surely hammer home the idea they are likely related. "Yes it is, named after some creature in different lands. My family tradition dictates we name our children after another animal." Sifaka wasn't entirely sure what it was that he was named after, knowledge lost to time or perhaps never gained at all. "What of yours? Are you named in a similar manner?"
There's no need to apologize! You should write as little or as much as you like at whatever pace suits you. :)
Her lips curved into a knowing smile when he confirmed her suspicions. She began nodding even before he really framed a question, quickly saying,
"Yep, I'm named after a bird. Animal names are definitely a big theme with us. Like I mentioned, my brother's name is Phox, for instance. And my own children are named after birds and a cat." And
heffalumps and woozles butterflies and weasels, though she only thought that part in the silence of her own head.
"Let me give you directions to the Frosthawks. They're really not far and Raven could tell you a lot more," Towhee suggested again in the next breath.
"I'd offer to come with you but I have the pups to look after, plus duty calls, yada yada yada..." Towhee paused before adding,
"I wouldn't mind sending some messages to her too."
Thank you! Mind wrapping this up and archiving after your post? Can power play him away if needed
Although Sifaka wasn't expecting to enjoy the journey to the Frosthawk clan, after all he was beginning to get comfy with his routine in the Caldera, but he wouldn't mind the benefit of solving things once and for all. "Please do. I expect I will only be gone a day or more depending on the journey, however I will do my utmost to return before three moons have hung in the sky." It was a promise, and his promises were rarely broken.
Sure thing! :)
"It's a quick trip. If you really wanted to, you could go there and come back in the same day. But I recommend giving yourself more time than that," Towhee concurred before telling him a few things she wanted Raven to know. Of course, her older sister would love to hear about the latest batch of pups—Towhee wondered if she'd popped out another litter too; surely she had—but, almost more importantly, she made sure Sifaka knew to tell her about Phox and to send any word to the caldera should they hear from him.