ibis is back -- he smells her before he sees her, that familiar, sea-salt and soft grass scent amongst the trees, and barrels in that direction immediately. "ibis!" okeanos cries, relieved and overjoyed. he knew she'd come back to him eventually, but that did not lessen the pain of her absence. it is hard to be one of two slowly orbiting in a big lonely forest, though he cares for mal deeply, more than would be honorable to admit.

he comes to her and wraps her in his warm fur best as he can, burying his face, briefly, against her neck to reassure himself she is well and present. "i missed you," he admits, pulling back, "but -- how was it? how are our moms doing with everything?" part of him still feels guilty for not going along to check in; elysium remains too sore a spot for him right now, though he does miss his mothers and his baby siblings. soon, some day, when everything is not so fresh and raw.

guilessly he accepts her answer, having no reason to suspect otherwise. "i hope you told them hi for me," he says, teasing a little, to try and win back her smile. when she redirects, his eyes flash guiltily and lower. ah, yes, things with mal. "ah, um. i told him about his dad," okeanos admits, "and i kind of wish--i don't know. do you think i shouldn't have?" he asks earnestly, watching for her reaction. since their conversation, things have been... awkward, at least. he can't help but feel he set them back.

"and cam's gone, too... we need to try and find more wolves, if we want to be able to stay like this," he adds gloomily, the residual cheer at ibis' return fading from his expression. no, things have not been great, though he hopes his sister's reappearance will help perk both of them back up.

rather than answer his question about mal, she latches onto cam's absence. he winces away from her shrill tone; he hadn't thought she'd be so upset by the news. cam is young, sure, but not so young he can't fend for himself, right?

sheepishly he tries to explain. "not closely," he says, "he's -- you know, i don't think he wanted a keeper, or anything." and also i was busy, um, mostly playing at flirting with pretty silver-furred girls and trying to figure out what to do about mal, he adds quietly. his face pinches in concern at her expression, reaching out to try and press a reassuring touch to her cheek. "it wasn't my place to interfere with him," okeanos says softly, "if he didn't want to stay, i couldn't have been the one to make him."

his expression pulls tight in sympathy. he doesn't know if he's right, but ibis' trust -- her unwavering faith -- is an incredibly sacred gift to him. "you don't have to apologise," okeanos tells her quietly, returning her affection with tender ministrations of her own. it only makes sense, and ibis is so sweet, so sensitive. "i know," he says, "i don't think you're wrong for worrying." he sighs, pulling back a little to regard her fondly. 

"maybe we'll find him again some day," he offers, drawing, as always, on olive and seabreeze, their strength found in patience and the assurance of fate, binding them all together. "and if nothing else, we helped him--i'm sure whatever happens is what's meant to happen." (this is as much for him as for her: holding onto what's meant to be, will be also eases the grief of lily and ariel's loss, okeanos' own guilt over staying far away from elysium...)