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+--- Thread: Grouse Thicket I am not throwing away my shot (/showthread.php?tid=30121)
I am not throwing away my shot - RIP Niamh - October 10, 2018
Though it wasn't exactly Niamh's responsibility, she- like any other pack wolf- took it upon herself to keep an eye open for any sign of Ceara, who had seemingly gone missing. Truth be told, it was odd for her to wander off without being on a mission. Ceara was a try-hard, and it wasn't like her to miss roll call. As much as Niamh disliked Ceara for reasons she couldn't even explain, she had to agree that it wasn't characteristic of her to wander off without telling others where she was going and when she'd be back. Had she been on a mission, it would've been different...But something was amiss about this. Though Niamh thought Ceara was a total dramaqueen anyway (takes one to know one, Niamh), she had to agree with the others- this wasn't right. She shouldn't have been gone for so long, without previously passing her absence by a leader.
It was safe to say Niamh wasn't terribly upset to see that Ceara was gone. Of course, she didn't want Ceara to be injured, sick or dead- but simply being out of her hair was nice...Or it would have been nice had it not caused the other packmates- particularly her significant other- so much alarm. So for Colt's sake, she decided she'd put in an attempt to find Ceara, though the whole time, she couldn't help but wonder- would they all do the same for her, if she went missing?
Having shown Ceara around a bit, through the Thicket where she might be able to dig herself a better den, Niamh revisited the place she'd seen Ceara last. The area was abandoned, though, with no trace of Ceara having been in the area for a few days. The thicket was still right on their borders, and perhaps she should have searched further- but Niamh also had a role to attend to, and as far as she knew, Tegan was already out searching- with some new apprentice he'd taken under his wing. The idea was laughable, but she was interested to see the outcome of his labour.
The sun was just beginning to set as Niamh tilted her head back and called out, searching in particular for Ceara to see if she might answer. Her voice would carry farther than her feet could carry her on that particular day, but she remained still, hoping that she might hear and answer.
RE: I am not throwing away my shot - Tuathal - October 10, 2018
Why had he come here?
A chill carried up from the distant sea, though he could no longer taste the salt. He had travelled well away from there, to a land more familiar to him. Too familiar. He shifted through the forest like a man on stilts, cautious and careful, and half expecting to catch the sound of laughter and the flash of fire between the trees. Instead, only the edge of the Plateau peered between the branches of the autumn-touched woods, and when he listened to the hum of the wind, he could only hear the whistle between the leaves. The whistle, the blow, and in between, he imagined her name...
Her name - his fur rose and he whisked his head to lock downwind, and he felt his chest sting with the familiar longing just to see her. He couldn't, of course - he doubted she even wanted to - but he found himself tipping his head toward the sky. Stupid, stupid - and as his mind caught up with his heart, he clamped his jaws shut and cut short the call, but not before her name had already slipped between the bite of his teeth to carry through the dusk.
A chill carried up from the distant sea, though he could no longer taste the salt. He had travelled well away from there, to a land more familiar to him. Too familiar. He shifted through the forest like a man on stilts, cautious and careful, and half expecting to catch the sound of laughter and the flash of fire between the trees. Instead, only the edge of the Plateau peered between the branches of the autumn-touched woods, and when he listened to the hum of the wind, he could only hear the whistle between the leaves. The whistle, the blow, and in between, he imagined her name...
Her name - his fur rose and he whisked his head to lock downwind, and he felt his chest sting with the familiar longing just to see her. He couldn't, of course - he doubted she even wanted to - but he found himself tipping his head toward the sky. Stupid, stupid - and as his mind caught up with his heart, he clamped his jaws shut and cut short the call, but not before her name had already slipped between the bite of his teeth to carry through the dusk.
RE: I am not throwing away my shot - RIP Niamh - October 11, 2018
Almost as soon as Niamh had called out, a voice answered hers...It was a voice she did not recognize, but echoed the name she'd called out, and immediately, she wondered if this wolf might know what had happened to her. Instinctively, she wanted to jump to the conclusion that this wolf had had something to do with her disappearance...But the wolf who'd answered her hadn't quite answered hers, only more or less mimicing her name. She had to stay calm, and figure things out.
From the sound of it, he was a few miles away, and it would take her time to get to him- but Niamh was impatient. Instead of dashing off in that direction and potentially losing him altogether, she called out again. "Who are you and what do you know of Ceara?" She asked, her tone urgent. She was prepared to hunt him down...But without knowing who he was, there was a high probability that she'd never be able to hunt him down. After all- she couldn't smell him, and had no idea exactly where he was. It'd be hunting for a needle in a haystack; just because he'd howled once didn't mean she'd be able to pinpoint his location and identity.
RE: I am not throwing away my shot - Tuathal - October 14, 2018
Just as his call faded out, a different voice rose up to replace his - not an echo, not his own - and he skittered back before he steeled himself and cupped both ears forward. The voice was feminine and not Ceara's, but it spoke her name. This other one knew his sister, and he realized, then, that hers had been the voice he had heard on the wind.
Her call had an edge that unsettled him - demanding, and full of urgency, yet lined with concern, and he wasn't surprised. The cropping of the Plateau he could glimpse between the trees still reminded him of the life he'd left behind, the pack his sister still fought for with tooth and claw. Would they remember him? Did he want them to? Was this one of them?
"She's family," he called back, careful in the words he relayed. Ceara had friends here, a life, and a family - and though he tried not to care about what they thought of him, he couldn't help but wonder if he had hurt Ceara by leaving her again, and whether that made him an enemy here. "Who are you?"
Her call had an edge that unsettled him - demanding, and full of urgency, yet lined with concern, and he wasn't surprised. The cropping of the Plateau he could glimpse between the trees still reminded him of the life he'd left behind, the pack his sister still fought for with tooth and claw. Would they remember him? Did he want them to? Was this one of them?
"She's family," he called back, careful in the words he relayed. Ceara had friends here, a life, and a family - and though he tried not to care about what they thought of him, he couldn't help but wonder if he had hurt Ceara by leaving her again, and whether that made him an enemy here. "Who are you?"
RE: I am not throwing away my shot - RIP Niamh - October 19, 2018
She was family? Niamh paused, hackles raising for a moment before they settled back on her shoulders. The voice didn't belong to any of the Blackthorn males that she knew, but then again...Blackthorns tended to crawl out of the woodworks here and there, so it wasn't too surprising, she guessed. She considered that fact for a moment, when he asked who she was...She remembered something about Ceara having a brother, a littermate that she'd been fond of...But she hadn't really gotten to know him. But whoever it was she was in communications with now didn't give her a name and that was a bit disconcerting. She could only really think of one thing to do, in that moment, that might prompt him to give her more information.
"Niamh Blackthorn," She called out, before she added- almost defensively- "Also family." And then, to the point- "She's missing." Her heart beat rapidly; of course, any other pack member could have heard her calling out, and might have thought her title strange- but she could always explain herself later....Right?
RE: I am not throwing away my shot - Tuathal - October 20, 2018
His eyes widened and he hitched a step back, muscles taut and motions stiff. Ceara was... gone?
And suddenly, everything made sense. The urgency, the questions, the probing.
Missing. It was like someone knocked the wind right out of his chest, even though he was still breathing, and the world lurched underfoot. Ceara was missing, and before he could think he found himself throttling through the thicket in the vaguest direction of Niamh Blackthorn's voice. He didn't even wonder if he would find her; he remembered their scent, the common thread that tied the Plateau together. If he lost her, he would find that thread. He would follow that thread, and he would find her.
He would find her.
... Ceara was gone.
RE: I am not throwing away my shot - RIP Niamh - October 22, 2018
Niamh waited for a response, and began to growl quietly when she received none, both suspicious and peeved that she’d possibly made contact with someone who might have information- but they’d gone radio silent. Maybe declaring herself as a Blackthorn was a bad idea...Maybe this wolf knew there was no Niamh Blackthorn...So she called out again, hoping that they might answer her so she could find out which Blackthorn she’d been talking to.
There was always a chance that this wolf had been lying too; maybe this wolf had something to do with Ceara’s disappearance...So she continued to rove throughout the area, hoping she might cross paths with the (other) possible imposter.
RE: I am not throwing away my shot - Tuathal - October 24, 2018
The world fell silent, save for the rustle of grouse and the snap of the twisted tanglewood as Tuathal pushed his way through the dense undergrowth of apple trees and bushes. He didn't really care about keeping his cover, and even if he did, that was stupidly impossible with the way the branches contorted in a wild twist to barricade him in the air and on the ground. Sharp tines snagged his fur, and branches cut him more than once - but his pain hardly slowed him. He hardly felt it at all. The burn in his shoulders and blood along his brow were inconsequential next to finding Ceara, and Tuathal simply kept moving on.
When Niamh's call rushed out again, his ears turned and his body followed, crashing diagonal from the line he'd been cutting forward. She was closer now, but much further east than what he'd set himself toward, and Tuathal met her with a desperate shout - in part to herald Niamh toward him (there was really only so much bush-whacking a guy could take), and in part to stop her from moving further away.
RE: I am not throwing away my shot - RIP Niamh - October 24, 2018
Niamh’s mood only improved when she heard a sharp, loud bark, obviously a plea for her attention. The male wasn’t too far away so she made her way in his direction, pushing through the thicket until she could see him, and make out the earth tones of his pelt and the trademark dorsal stripe that marked him as a Blackthorn. She thought his scent was mildly familiar- and called to mind the fact that Ceara’s littermate had been in the pack for a short period of time- but she hadn’t bothered with him.
She gave him a brisk nod but continued to regard him with some caution, squaring up her shoulders as she sized him up. ”You her brother?” She asked somewhat stiffly. He looked the right age, and had the right markings, but she didn’t want to assume without getting an answer first.
Niamh was able to get a bit of information out of Tuathal, but not enough to be helpful for finding her whereabouts. If anything, she'd found yet another wolf to help her search who could go further than she could, as she was still fairly confined to the pack's borders.