She tried to go on daily walks to rebuild some of her strength. Towhee had a long way to go, through after several days of climbing to the caldera's rim, she finally found the energy to walk down the far side. She even made it to the borders, though she knew attempting a patrol would be foolish. It would wear her out, possibly even preventing her from returning to the Hobbit Hole to rest. And she would be useless in dealing with any kind of trespasser.
But while she was here, looking across Lake Rodney, she wondered if she might be able to reach a certain set of ears over in Brecheliant. Well, it was worth a shot. Towhee howled for
@Bridget, then settled on her haunches. She could rest a bit while she waited to see if the medic turned up.
It wasn't really like Bridget to hesitate to come when a friend was calling, but could you blame her? Both times previous when she'd hopped by the Caldera she'd been met with pretty much the opposite of friendly and she wasn't sure she was up for another round. She knew for certain that Teya wouldn't take another round sitting down either, and while her freind's protectiveness was pretty damn flattering, she wasn't thrilled to test the limits on it.
She was at the edge of the lake when the call came, though, and flicked her ears. Ah, sure, fuck it. If she wasn't on the borders, Bridget would peace on home, but if she was it couldn't hurt to say hey.
As luck would have it, she was. Family let you out on good behavior, did they?
Bridget asked as she drew in closer, but didn't approach too close. Truth be told, much as she liked Towhee, she was a bit less of a fan of her kids. And if they were around, she wasn't keen on setting anything off.
"Bridget," Towhee breathed the woman's name when she appeared in the distance and ranged closer. Normally, the Sovereign might have sprung to her feet and met her in the middle. Yet she remained still, waiting for the medic to come to her, saving her strength for when she needed it later.
Her lips twitched at Bridget's quipped greeting, though her mouth soon drooped into a thin line. "I heard about what happened. I wanted to—I'm sorry for the misunderstanding. Are you okay?" Her orange eyes roved over Bridget's figure, wondering how badly she'd been hurt.
As Towhee inspected her, Bridget returned the favor. She looked better at least. Maybe not one hundred percent, as she could see a bit of the weariness that seemed to linger, but her leg looked a world of better. Seemed at least their medic knew what they were doing, though she would take a little credit for the groundwork.
No, I'm fine. I'd apologize back for sticking my nose out a little too far there, but I think the lesson's learned. Sometimes a reminder isn't the worst thing.
She chuckled good naturedly. Fennec's teeth had definitely left their mark but she'd high-tailed out before any real damage could be done.
How are you? I came by earlier, but couldn't really stick around. You look good.
She did, and while Bridget didn't put the meaning behind it that a different tone might have implied, she did keep that same warm and friendly smile.
Bridget didn't seem to hold it against any of them, which was a relief. Towhee let out a breath, smiling faintly at the medic's assessment. She was definitely on the mend, though it would be a while yet before she was back to 100%.
"I've been sleeping for what feels like weeks on end but I'm still tired as fuck. And weak, to boot." She made a scoffing noise. "But hey, I'm alive," Towhee added, holding Bridget's eye, "thanks to you."
The mention of an apology rattled around in the Sovereign's brain for a moment before she said, "I heard Rue really had to play the diplomat because your pack mate was upset? Understandably. Is, ah, everything okay there?" She had heard about it from her Regents, yet she wanted to hear the other side of the story, at least by proxy.
She couldn't explain exactly what it was that drew her to Towhee, but a big part of it was that right there. She had been a pretty open book from the start and the way she just laid that appreciation out like that warmed the medic. It also lured her into coming a little bit closer and sitting down, still out of bounds, but relaxing back on her haunches.
Wait, someone came here?
She only needed one guess as to know who, but this was her first time hearing about it. Shit. I tried to tell her it was no big, but she didn't seem to buy it. I hope she didn't cause too much trouble? I haven't heard anything much since, so I take it at least the diplomat situation went down fine.
Damn, she was apparently more out of the loop on this than she'd thought. She hadn't expected Teya would actually come down here.
Not that she could exactly blame her, because if she'd come home to a packmate bleeding like that, she'd raise hell too. But she'd asked her not to, and that rankled her a bit.
She had not anticipated this being news to Bridget. For some reason, the two altercations had blurred into one event in her mind, though as she tried to think of what she'd been told, Towhee remembered they were two separate events. Her lips parted, wondering if she'd just made matters worse by mentioning it.
"Yes, though I forget her name. Sorry. She was here with my... ex, apparently," Towhee decided to share, her brow furrowing as she relayed this information. "Anyway, yeah, I think Rue cleared the air. I just wanted to be sure..." But it didn't seem like anything more had come of it, so that was good.
Although she had accomplished what she'd hoped by calling Bridget here today, Towhee found she didn't want to leave just yet. For one thing, she could still use some time to muster up the energy. For another, she liked Bridget and felt indebted to her. And though all her friends seemed to die or disappear, making Towhee question whether she should allow herself to be close to anyone, she could use a friend.
"How are things in Brecheliant otherwise?" the Sovereign wondered. It was small talk, sort of, but she was genuinely curious about the pack and where Bridget fit into all of it.
Right, now she thought she remembered some mention of the kids' dad not being in the picture. Maybe? Honestly, the few days she'd spent as caretaker had turned into something of a blur in her mind. Sleep deprivation did that to a body.
Definitely sounded like a story there, and a doubly awkward encounter. Bridget's interest showed clearly in her raised brow and the look she gave, but she didn't ask just yet. She did wonder idly how bad it would be to ask Teya about it, but decided against it. She wasn't sure how to broach this whole thing with her friend just yet and it would probably come from another angle entirely.
Brecheliant is pretty great.
Bridget responded, electing to just answer the question. We took a few hits recently, but sometimes there's really nothing you can do, when it's time. A few have been struggling with it, understandably. I've just been doing what I can to help out.
She knew she was dancing around it, but the understanding look as she thought of Eljay and Maia and Teya and all of the kids was for Towhee too. She remembered Teya speaking on how she'd taken the news.
Luckily there hasn't been much need for my skills back home, lately.
she finished, with a small shrug. When she got antsy, there was always the outside, and Towhee was a perfect example of how often that could shake things up. Even the local scene had some pretty rad destinations to check out.
She didn't miss the look of curiosity that passed over Bridget's face, though if she wanted to ask about it, she addressed Towhee's question first. The Sovereign's ears flicked when the medic mentioned a few hits, immediately thinking of Wraen and how much she missed her. Then she realized Bridget had mentioned hits, plural and her heart sank. Towhee wasn't particularly close to anyone else in Brecheliant, though she wondered if Eljay and Maia were okay; and what about their kids?
"You've lost others? Besides Wraen?" she asked, even though she didn't know if she wanted to know the answer.
She didn't even realize what her words had implied until the question came. Did Towhee know the other two? We did. Tambourine and Ibis. He was Wraen's age, she was... young.
Neither of them was more or less to her, but the latter felt less inevitable. It was always going to be different when someone with more life ahead of them had that time cut short. She didn't mention that they'd lost a leader in Ibis - it wasn't really the part that was important.
Thats why I can't really fault Teya. And I hope... well, I'm glad nothing happened, here.
Her voice got a little quieter at that, thinking about the way Teya had been. She couldn't explain it but it felt like, between them, something had changed. And she didn't know if it was her fault, if it was Teya herself who had shifted, or if it was something else entirely.
Nothing to be done now, though. Sorry if this gets too personal, but your... their dad. Is he a reddish guy, looks a little similar to... one of the kids? Reyes?
She didn't know the name of whatever pup it was that barred her from the entrance, but she'd been pretty similarly colored to the wolf Teya had brought home with her. That, mixed with news that he'd been on the borders with her, painted a pretty good picture of who Brecheliant's newest member was.
Only one of the two names was familiar and it wasn't anyone she knew personally. Towhee felt a measure of relief, though she frowned. What had happened to them? Were the deaths related or was it just like that saying about death coming in threes? She almost asked, then she remembered what Bridget had said about her skill set not being particularly required, as well as, "but sometimes there's really nothing you can do, when it's time." That made it sound like it wasn't illness or injury, just natural causes of one kind or another that couldn't be helped or prevented.
All she could really say was, "Sorry for your losses."
Ah, yes, her name was Teya. As far as she went, Towhee only had hearsay to go by. She said nothing, though she silently agreed; she was also grateful Rue had been able to deescalate the situation. While she stayed quiet, she observed the troubled look that passed over the medic's face and was just about to inquire about it when Bridget distracted her with a question of her own.
"Yes, that's him," the Sovereign replied. Where she lacked in tone, she usually made up with her expressions. But her face remained blank. Especially after everything she had been through lately, she actually hadn't given him much thought. She knew he'd made a couple of attempts to come speak to her, only to be stopped at the borders.
Recalling Bridget's piqued look a moment ago, she explained, "I caught him throttling one of our kids, so I kicked him to the curb." With all the losses she'd suffered, should she have hesitated on willfully tossing another out of the fold? She couldn't help the intrusive thought, nor the voice that always answered itself by saying, What rational explanation is there for attacking a toddler?
"Anyway," Towhee said, interrupting her own inner voice to admit, "I don't know how he knows Teya or where he is right now."
Bridget let out the wolf-equivalent of a whistle at that little reveal, but she didn't cast her own judgement in the mix. She had no idea what incited a father to attack a cub but she knew it happened sometimes. Sometimes it had "rational" reasons behind it and sometimes it didn't. It did pique her curiosity. Was Towhee overprotective, or was it bad enough to warrant kicking him to the curb.
It wasn't any of her business... well, it was sort of her business. They had kids in Brecheliant. Speaking of -
He's a part of Brecheliant now. Why I asked, and how I know him.
She replied, and despite the conversational tone, she did watch a little more carefully for Towhee's reaction to the news. She didn't feel the need to keep any of that secret, not with the awkwardness already all out there. She must've met him somehow.
Wasn't as if they truly talked much, nowadays.
That line was just going to get her frustrated, hell. If I could, I'd make sure he stays out of your fur for a while. Unfortunately I don't have much say in all that.
She added, hoping that might lighten the mood a little. Course it could very well do the opposite. Shit, actually, probably would now that she actually thought about the words. Whoops. She smiled apologetically and laughed. Guess I could offer to kick his ass if he does?
She found this information both surprising and unsurprising all at once. It made sense that he might settle nearby, so he could try to weasel his way back into their lives. That perhaps wasn't the most charitable word to use in the situation though Towhee was too exhausted to speculate about the morality of this issue any further or really concern herself with Reyes at all right now.
She smiled tiredly. "I appreciate the sentiment. And I honestly don't have much more to say on the subject other than keep a close eye on him. He's proven to be a wildcard." And that was Brecheliant's problem now, for the most part, though the Sovereign was under no illusion that Reyes would simply decide to respect her wishes and conveniently disappear.
But she would have to deal with all of that later, not now. Towhee opened her mouth to tell Bridget she should probably head back now when she quite literally jolted at a sudden realization. "Tierra, we found her," she blurted. "Well, my prodigal brother did. She's back safe with us." She could've kicked herself for not mentioning it sooner, though to be fair, she sort of had snakebite brain these days...
She didn't respond much of any way at all, and Bridget could sense a wrap up when she heard one. Yeahhh, that was on her. She was the one who brought up the ex thing.
Wait, who? Bridget blinked at her blankly for a moment, then internally smacked her palm to her face. Shit, right! I'm glad.
Fuck, she'd completely forgotten about the whole reason Towhee came charging back home. She'd been so tired when all that happened, and then the Fennec thing, and then the fight with Teya... hell. This is why I don't have kids, she thought, and then with amusement - well, one reason of a few.
I'm glad you're feeling better. And if you need anything, you know where to find me.
Bridget gave her side a quick scratch, then went to stand. She could have lingered, asked a few more questions, but she didn't want to push it. Towhee was clearly tired and so far the only topics they'd explored had been delightfully awkward. Just call.
Apparently Bridget had forgotten too. They really had a pretty good excuse though. Towhee easily gave the medic a pass, then gave herself one as well. She could be a bit scatterbrained at the best of times and these certainly were not the best of times.
"Me too," she said, probably unnecessarily. But there was genuine mirth in her tired orange eyes and a twitch in the tip of her tail as she remembered that Tierra was back home safe.
Perhaps sensing the Sovereign's weariness, Bridget began to excuse herself. She welcomed Towhee to call her again and the invalid said with as much authenticity as she could, "I'll do that. I know we don't know one another well, though I already consider you a close friend after what you did for me. I'd—I'll definitely be staying in touch. See you later, Dr Bridget."
Dr. Bridget. A little formal, but she didn't mind it. Bridget smiled warmly back. Feeling's mutual. My time's pretty valuable, I don't offer it to just anyone.
Bridget winked. So be sure to take advantage of it, alright?
Secretly, she wasn't sure she bought it. She'd met plenty who she hit it off with only to never see them again, and for all she knew, Towhee was just being polite. She had a pack to run, a family to raise, and a whole lot more shit than Bridget was ever willing to take on. Chances were she was being more polite than anything else.
But she hadn't bullshitted her yet. Later then.
With a final farewell flick of her tail, Bridget turned and began the walk back towards Brecheliant.
There was something about Bridget that Towhee found compelling, even beyond the fact that she was quite literally her savior. She looked forward to striking up another friendship with someone outside her inner circle at the caldera, especially after losing several of them this year.
"I definitely will," she promised, making a point to raise her right paw to wave, now that she could. "Later," Towhee echoed, though she actually hoped it was sooner rather than later.
She turned away from the lakeside herself, shuffling slowly back toward the caldera. She checked her pace to make sure she didn't overexert and exhaust herself. It took a while but by the time Towhee slumped inside the Hobbit Hole, she felt depleted but accomplished, and very glad she'd made the effort to call on Bridget today.