The trio had set out to the north. Well, more like the northeast. In any case, the three of them had departed the plateau in search of a potential new home. Fox did not think they would find it on the first try, but she wanted to look around and see what the world had to offer outside of where she had already been. With Fox leading the way (per Peregrine's request), they traversed the mountains that hugged their current home, making their way to the other side. Once Fox had seen down into the valley, she immediately adjusted their route to go toward a bright red forest.
Peregrine and Lasher traveled with her, although their traveling made conversation sparse when it occurred. If anything, Fox was focused on their outcome: finding a home that they could all share together. They were making good time, and soon they entered the bright red and orange forest, the leaves changing in full force. It was, for lack of a better word, on fire. Fox blended right in, and she slowed once they came to a small creek.
“Stop for a drink?” she suggested to her two traveling companions. She was also curious to see if they had anything to say about anything between the plateau and where they were now.
In the meantime, she lowered her head and lapped greedily at the water.
Peregrine was in a taciturn mood as the three of them set out from the plateau. His heart felt strangely heavy as they walked away from his homeland with the knowledge that he might soon be leaving it for good. He didn't want to do this, yet aside from his silence, he tried to appear at least somewhat enthusiastic about their voyage. It was good to get away with both of his lovers.
He fell back and walked behind them, admiring the view (ahem) for a long while when Fox proposed they stop for a drink. Peregrine hadn't been paying any attention to their surroundings and blinked suddenly as his vision seemed to fill with red. He glanced upward at a fiery canopy. The treetops literally appeared to be flame. It was a gorgeous sight, though Peregrine frowned slightly and thought cynically, There's no way I'd leave the plateau for some leaves that look pretty three weeks of the year.
"Sounds good," he replied a bit distractedly, padding closer to his two companions. He nudged each of them. "There's no water features here," Peregrine mused to Fox, catching her eye. He wasn't just talking about a source for a drink, he was referring back to their conversation. In other words, this place wasn't going to make his list.
Excusing Lasher here so I don't overly powerplay him in this thread. Ebony, feel free to drop him back in if you want to. :)
None of them were at each other's throats, so that was a good sign. Although Lasher and Fox didn't outright forgive one another in a heartfelt display, they were amiable enough and caused no verbal or physical conflicts just yet. After taking a drink and listening to Peregrine's comment, Lasher excused himself (presumably to take a piss or a poo), leaving Fox and Peregrine to their own devices. Once he had departed, Fox turned to Peregrine, water still dripping from her chin.
“True,” she replied.
“But I didn’t expect to find our home as soon as we stepped outside the plateau.”
She paused, glancing around and wondering if they would even find anything at all. It was quite possible they would come back empty handed (pawed?) and resolve to stay at the plateau after all. She knew that was one possible outcome, but she couldn't stand the thought of not trying to look around for something better. She was the ambitious sort, after all.
When Lasher excused himself, Peregrine stared after him, then turned back to face Fox when she spoke. He nodded, then stepped closer and licked her cheek. He hoped he didn't seem to have a totally bad attitude about this whole thing. It would definitely take some adjustment to get used to the idea, especially if they did find something out here.
"I can't decide if I'd want something similar to the plateau or something entirely different," he admitted. "I like that it's up high. It feels safe. A mountain might be a good alternative, especially if it had a waterfall," he thought aloud. "If not that, then a hidden lake or something. I don't think I necessarily want to go to the coast. It sounds like it's a bit crowded there anyhow," he said, thinking of the bay and the Nereides.
Fox had never lived on a mountain. Her home had been a forest, the creek had been sparse forest, and the plateau was mostly forest. Granted, they all had slightly different landscapes, and each one was unique, but she wondered if slopes would really be that bad. As Peregrine said, they'd be more protected, in a way. And if they were accustomed to walking on the angled ground, they would have an advantage over anybody who attempted to thwart them.
“The sea isn’t my cup of tea, either. But that’s why we’re out here,” she reminded him, “to see if there’s anything worthwhile.” And if nothing surfaced, they would remain at the plateau. It was as simple as that. Perhaps after seeing a plethora of unsuitable territories, it would actually make Fox feel more at home. But that was to be seen, and they had only just begun searching for a place to settle.
His ears remained tilted toward his wife's voice while Peregrine scanned the forest thoughtfully. There were so many scents on the air — most of them belonging to prey animals — that it was a wonder nobody had laid claim here already. As a Gamekeeper, he should've been interested in such an abundant area, yet nothing about this forest called out to him in any way.
He spun slowly, finding himself facing back the way they'd come. He felt a strange tingling down his spine and he thought, Home's that way. True enough, the plateau lay in that direction. Yet as Peregrine stood there, broad black paws planted in the fiery leaf litter, he realized instinct and intuition were calling. He had no logical reason to feel this way, yet suddenly the swarthy male knew they'd gone in the entirely wrong direction. They needed to head south and maybe a little bit east...
Squinting, Peregrine smiled to himself. Was he really going to trust in a little tingling? "Yup," he announced, then peered at Fox. "We're in the wrong place. We should head back to the plateau... then go southeast from there. Don't ask me why. I just have a feeling. Let's find Lasher and go," he said with his first hint of enthusiasm, taking several steps backward before catching himself.
Turning, he said softly, "Or we could stay and really check out the area." He swung back to face her. "Yeah, let's keep exploring this way. We can head that direction tomorrow. No need to rush, right?"
Fox's ears splayed against her head when he mentioned south and east. Any other direction would have been perfectly fine, but... “You’re talking about heading straight for Swiftcurrent,” she reminded him. If they went further east, that wouldn't be a problem, but if they went even a little bit too far south, they'd end up right next to her former home. And she couldn't stand the thought of that. It would be doing just what Ferdie and Jace had done to the creek, and she would not be a hypocrite.
Not wanting to kill his enthusiasm, she offered an alternative. “I think if we head more east than south, we should be fine. And why not trust your intuition. I’m just heading out in whatever direction my feet take us.” Peregrine was along for the ride, but he was more than welcome to take the reigns. This was supposed to be a collaborative effort, after all. While she knew that they would have to act quickly, she certainly didn't want to rush things. They weren't being forced out of the plateau, after all.
She gave a soft, low howl to let Lasher know they were moving on, and waited for his arrival, giving Peregrine a chance to speak in the meantime.
"No, no," he said, shaking his head and smiling at her, "I mean southeast from the plateau. That would take us across Whitefish River, toward the hot springs and that huge lake. Remember when we ran into each other there that one time? Southeast from there," he clarified, nudging her. "Not from here. Sorry, I guess I orient myself around the plateau's location. It has been the center of my universe for a long time," he finished sheepishly.
When Fox fell silent after calling for Lasher, Peregrine said, "But I really think we should keep exploring here first, at least for the rest of the day. We can go in that direction tomorrow. In fact, I think Junior's pack ended up somewhere around here and I'd like to see if we can't pinpoint their location while we're up here. Sound like a plan?"
Their companion appeared to rejoin them and Peregrine waved his tail and lapped at the male's ocher cheek. He then faced Fox, motioning for her to keep leading the way through Rising Sun Valley. The lands to the southeast — the Great Bear Wilderness and beyond — could wait until tomorrow.
One more from you for EXP purposes?
Fox breathed a sigh of relief, realizing it had just been a misunderstanding between them. She had no desire to go anywhere close to the creek if possible, and knowing that she would not need to made things much, much easier. She actually didn't remember where she had met him at some big lake, but if he said it had happened, then it must have. She was known to have a terrible memory, especially when it came to names and locations.
“Sure,” she said with a smile, putting her muzzle under his own to let him know everything was good between them. When Lasher returned, she pointed them north and toward the coast. She had not been up that way since eating eggs with one of the strange males who lived amongst Junior's pack, and she found herself hoping that they were doing well. It was an odd sensation, considering she had always been so hostile toward other packs.
With Peregrine and Lasher in tow, they headed toward the sound.
His reassurance put her at ease and the party of three proceeded northward. Sure, it was the opposite direction from where he intuited they would find their pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but that was fine. He really did want to catch up with Junior if he could and, as it turned out, Fox knew exactly where to find the sisterhood's pack.
Looking forward to the prospect of wishing Junior a happy half birthday, Peregrine nudged his mate and his lover, then trotted ahead toward the coastline.