There were cracks in the pads of her feet that were already threatening to open as Toad came to the base of her now secondary home. It had been a fair bit since she had ascended the mountain. Her time had been swallowed by the formation of Firefly Glen. The borders were coming along, she was meeting new people, and things were altogether shaping up quickly. Still, starting from scratch felt strange to her.

It wouldn't be the last time she ventured across the Moonspear border. She did so freely and comfortably, feeling good about having Hydra's blessing and knowing that the Ostregas in all of their fierce glory would back Osiris and his followers faithfully should things get tough.

Toad had no real purpose to her visit. She was taking a brief but valuable break from her new duties to be in a place that felt comfortable. The forest was cool and damp. The newly fallen leaf litter felt strangely pleasant on her weary paws. Perhaps today she would curl up somewhere warm and familiar; perhaps she would dust herself with mica and sparkle as Bronco did so often. She sighed, smiling calmly.

As she spotted Dirge, Toad felt her heart leap with mild excitement. It had been some time since she had seen her leader, and she was more than pleased to be helping his enterprising son. She strode up to Hydra's husband, tail wagging rather excitedly. Yes, things are coming along nicely! The borders are large, but of course we have the best help in the Wilds, she grinned.

The expression on him was something Toad had noted, but miscalculated completely. So focused had the huntress been on the formation process of the Glen that she had momentarily forgotten about young Mira, who was still missing. While Toad had been patrolling the new borders, she had also been hoping for some faint sign of the girl. Everyone had turned up completely empty on leads as to where she might be. Toad had begun to fear the worst. Although her smile faded somewhat, she was not going to bring it up unless her father chose to.

In her experience, such challenges were hardly helped by fuelling the worry of loved ones.

Toad nodded. Many from Moonspear were assisting in the forming of the Glen while also hunting for lost Mira. Once the Glen was established, the Ostregas and allies like her would form one of the fiercest fronts in the entire Wilds. It was a bold move. They would be pushing closer to other territories. They would need diplomatic types to massage their neighbours into allies.

There are many deer in the Glen. They range about from what I've noticed. Moose and elk browse in the forests, but they're more elusive, she explained, thinking back to what she had seen both during her time before Moonspear and within the last few days. My guess is that the herds will scatter at first as they notice we're there to stay, but the grazing is too good for them to move permanently, she noted. In winter, she imagined a superpack hunt that would involve both those on the mountain and below. Such hunts could prove beneficial for everyone; hunting on the mountain was something she figured wouldn't be trivial with ice and snow coating the ground.

Mm-hm, she agreed quietly, visualizing the southern territories in her mind. Tales of great Redhawk hunts had long been stamped into Toad's memory from her elder sister. She hoped only that one day she might be able to assist in such an epic with the Ostregas.

As Dirge mentioned a hope for taking the Glen, Toad's smile faltered. Once again, Mira entered into her mind. She refused to bring it up, however, and instead focused on the plurality of his words. What other nuisances have there been? The question was honest, but Toad immediately clarified. Forgive me, I only settled a few months ago, she said.

Perhaps she should have been better informed on other events. There was always that danger of touching a sore spot on people, though.

Toad listened intently, concern stretched over her face as Dirge relayed that Osiris in fact had just fought off some vagrant at the borders. She often lived in her own bubble and didn't hear about things unless someone told her or there was a message about it. She wondered if Sialuk would start sending out the morning news with her howls. Toad let out an annoyed sigh, angry that anyone would dare to challenge their mighty family. Perhaps Toad should have been patrolling the borders more — though, she wasn't exactly much of a fighter.

As he described the hopes for the hunting grounds, Toad nodded firmly. It's a lot of ground to secure, but I'm confident we'll manage it, she confirmed, thinking in her head all of the borders that would need to be defended. She blinked, pausing to think about Neverwinter. Is Neverwinter an ally? They've been hunting in the glen before this, I'm guessing? It was a real question; she hadn't actually heard much about the relationship between the two packs.

Because they would be sharing a border, this presented a very real diplomacy issue.

Toad wondered how pissed off Neverwinter would be at the pile of Moonspear wolves butting up against its borders. To Toad, it hardly seemed like a good form of diplomacy, but then she wasn't an expert on that. She assumed that Osiris, though he was a bit of a youngster himself, knew what he was doing. Dirge did too. Right?

Toad didn't respond to the assertion that they had reached an accord. Her guess was they wouldn't be pleased. Dirge confirmed that with his next words, at which she nodded. Yeaah, she said softly as he sighed. He was right, though. They had as much right to it as anyone since Moonspear had controlled it for so long. They have elsewhere they can hunt and plenty they control. They'll hardly starve, she said, rather harshly. The only thing she worried remotely about was passage to The Heartwood and beyond. The Glen's territory effectively cut off the most efficient route from their forest.

Dirge agreed readily with her. It was not as though they were dooming the Neverwinter wolves in some way to extinction. Though she would have preferred that the Neverwinters be fully allied to the Ostregas, she knew that this was a lot to ask from a young pack leader. Perhaps in time, the wolves from the neighbouring forest would be able to see that the Moonspears and their allies and descendants had everyone's best interests in mind. Perhaps, one day, they would be together as one.

I am, and a good one when I have support, she said simply. She realized after she had spoken it might have sounded as though she didn't feel she had support. When I hunt alone I do well enough, but it's not the same, you know? she clarified quickly.

There was a beauty in the hunt. She loved the adrenaline rush. She loved that things did not feel fully complete during a hunt. There was a constant need to fill in the unknown with the known through scent and sight and knowledge. For Toad, at least, it was through others that she did this. The buzz of not knowing where the quarry was was steadied by her comrades working with her to flush it out.

Of course, hunting alone had its uses. Toad had been quite diligent in filling the Moonspear caches whenever she had the chance, especially when Hydra and Kukutux still had a lot of work to do. She hoped that this had been helpful, though it wasn't something she would ever expect a thank you for.

Dirge was similar in his desire to hunt collaboratively. He was right, of course. Hunting together was the better and more natural way of things. There was so much involved in a pack hunt and typically they were more dangerous than the small critter hunts she had become savvy at, but they were nearly always worth it.

I will, she said, listening to his insights closely. Dirge had much more experience tracking the specific herds that she would need to start keeping track of. Though the Glen was growing, there were only a handful that had strong hunting skills. Bronco would be a great asset in particular, she knew. I expect a great many will head for the river when the snows start to hit, she agreed, nodding strongly. She expected that having at least one person to track the movements of the herd would be invaluable as they grew in number. If it was a hard winter, Moonspear would surely benefit from the knowledge, too.

She shifted topics then, smiling calmly. You must be very proud of your son. He rallied us together like an expert for someone so young, Toad observed. Normally, she would have been a bit nervous about following one who was, in reality, barely a man. She believed in Osiris, though, not least of all because of good breeding and parenting.

Toad noted his tone. He was pleased that his son had aspired to do something that benefited the entire family as well as future generations. Surely next year's Ostrega litter would be fat and healthy, more than in any other year. Toad wondered what Dirge might have said if Osiris had chosen a different, stupider path. There were many rogues roaming about as the leader had mentioned. Surely, with such types there also must have been groups of them with some kind of destructive purpose.

Toad had seen young wolves be lured into such roving bands before; she doubted Dirge would have been so pleased.

It's good that you did, you know, push him, she said. This wasn't about the Glen or holding territory, although that was a nice little side bonus. He has only strength in him now, and more to come, I'm sure of it, Toad declared, nodding once more. Too many youngsters strayed far from the path their parents had set for them. The Dirge and Hydra had been lucky to have a child that had chosen a good path, even if they had nudged him toward it.

Dirge said they hadn't pushed him. She thought about it. She disagreed. He'd said exactly that; they had encouraged him because he had partially chosen it. They had suggested it, which for parents was in general choice enough. Dirge said it was the choice of Osiris, but Toad felt the temptation to challenge a leader she greatly respected. Dirge was wrong.

The suggestion was itself the strong, usually imbalanced guidance that came naturally to leaders. She wanted to say something, but didn't. Everything had worked out, so there was no lesson to be had.

Then, Dirge surprised her by bringing up Mira. Toad had been avoiding the subject the entire time, and wasn't sure what to do. N-no, she confirmed, but expanded, we're looking. She recalled the odd little thing as a pup. Toad knew that she would be found. She had to be found.
There was nothing to do if a cub went missing and none were held accountable.

We will kill the one responsible, if she was taken, said Toad. Her voice was harsh. Serious. Unkind. She fully wanted that. She thought it likely Mira was dead from unknown causes. However, if by chance she was alive... there would be consequences for those on the trail.

Of course, I won't keep you, she answered, her concentration suddenly broken from the flash of mob murder that had taken her. No doubt, he had plenty of ground to cover in the never-ending search for Mira. Toad nodded rather solemnly to Dirge and offered a small goodbye as she turned. I'll see you, she said, moving uphill toward the heart of the mountain. At the very least, she could fill some caches while she was on Moonspear. With everyone searching for the lost child, she knew it was probably the easiest thing for her to do to help out.