Moonspear Nobody to blame

Floki had returned a few days ago and had laid low ever since, avoiding contact with his packmates while he processed the events of his brief journey. He had met a handful of wolves, some friendly and others not so much, and had learned of two new packs in the area. Above all else, though, he was left with a sick feeling in his stomach whenever he thought of his father's desecrated grave.

To make matters worse, when he crossed the border into Moonspear he had discerned two things by scent: Wildfire wasn't back from her own scouting trip, and there was almost no trace of Tevinter to be found. He wanted more than anything to talk about Ragnar with Wildfire, but knew that he would just have to bite his tongue and wait until she came home. He had also wished to break his silence with Tevinter and tell his twin what had transpired; he was angry to find that he wasn't there, which only indicated that he and Charon were right and Tevinter had bailed.

Knowing that he had information to share with both @Charon and @Amekaze, the young Beta finally emerged from hiding and called for his leaders from the lower reaches of the mountain, the winter sunlight filtering through the trees and warming his back.

The summon was clear and crisp, so she dallied no longer on the quiet borderlands. She'd known of Floki's return, but assumed he was resting or, so let him have his solitude undisturbed. She guessed that if the news from the wilds beyond was pressing enough, she'd hear about it just when the time was right. But, since Jace had brought back nothing of noteworthiness weeks ago, she also reasoned that there maybe just wasn't anything to report this time around.

She picked her way along the most direct path and made quick work of the terrain at foot. When she spotted his silvered shades up ahead, her tail waved and she moved to nudge his shoulder in greeting once she got to him. He looked to be in one piece (from what she could tell , which was good -- and relieving all at once. "A little bit belated, but welcome back," she chuffed in greeting. Even if he was not freshly returned, this was the first chance she'd had to tell him that, so the thought remained anyway. 

It was no news to Charon that Jorunn seemed to have left them. He'd wondered about it before, aloud to Flóki even, when he had last searched for his brother. Charon imagined he'd go looking for Jorunn at some point soon, maybe check out Stavanger Bay or something. He wasn't even sure why; he was pretty sure that Jorunn had just up and left because he was a dick. Maybe he even wanted to look for him to be proven right, and so that he could be righteous about it too, saying he'd gone looking and Jorunn was the big dick. And Charon really thought he was — what else could he be, leaving Flóki, Kaylan and Thistle Cloud behind him without so much as a word?

Upon Flóki's call, Charon's spirits lifted and he made his way towards the mountain's lower reaches, guided by the light of the sun. Once Flóki came into view, Charon called out to him before he reached the pair that awaited him. "You're back!" Charon's tail wagged as he approached his brother and bumped his cheek, glad to have him back. He greeted Ame with no more than a charming smile before turning his attention back to his brother. Then he waited curiously for what news Flóki brought.

Both Alphas were prompt in responding to Floki's call. Amekaze was the first to arrive, greeting him with words and a touch to his shoulder. A moment later, Charon enthusiastically welcomed him back and pressed his nose to his brother's cheek. Floki's tail swayed at the warm reception, though now that Charon was present his stomach twisted into an uncomfortable knot. He dreaded talking about Ragnar.

"Thanks. I went up to Stavanger Bay, but on my way there and back I found out about two new packs," he said, jumping right in. "There's a group looking to settle in Neverwinter Forest. I met their Alpha female; they seem pretty friendly." Eshe had left a good impression on the young outrider. Ferahgo, on the other hand...

"There's also another pack on the coast," he added. He didn't know the exact location of Ferahgo's crew, but couldn't help but feel possessive of the beach beyond Stavanger Bay. It didn't help that he had a weird feeling about the pirate and his masculine companion.

Charon arrived soon after, and Floki didn't waste any time getting right to the facts. Amekaze's ears were pulled forward at first, but swiveled back as soon as the subject matter was revealed: two new packs.

She could be an indifferent neighbor if left alone and with plenty of space to spare. Any further pressure on that, or her associated hunting grounds, certainly inspired a quick iciness. But she listened on. Neverwinter forest was.. close, but not painfully so. She still didn't like it all that much, though, and this wasn't something she vocalized quite yet while she listened on. She enjoyed access to its resources and liked using it for travel reasons, so a pack there was certainly not advantageous to her, pretty friendly or not.

But not only that. The coastal one made her curious. "What were they like?" she asked, trying to gauge what else his scout trip brought back on them. The suspense Floki let build on them did make her wonder. Had it gone well? That, and she knew of their attachment to the coast considering it was his birthplace as well. She'd definitely feel prickly if someone came claiming next to the Sunspire and she had to know about it, after all.

It was surprising that there were so many packs forming. Most of all, it surprised Charon that Neverwinter Forest was a place they wanted to lay claim. It was as if someone'd smack their claim down on the Terrace or another nearby territory, compared to where Silvertip Mountain was. It'd been a while since Charon had seen FitzDutiful — ever since he had brought him the news of Moonspear's forming — but he could not help but instantly wonder what Silvertip's Alpha thought of this.

He was distracted by mention of another pack, though. "Where along the coast?" he asked, feeling equally possessive of it. He noted off-handedly, "I wonder what Silvertip Mountain thinks of having such close neighbours." But judging by Flóki's words, he had not (yet?) spoken to Silvertip's leaders about it, otherwise he might've shared some insights already.

Floki could see the brief and subtle concern on both Alphas' faces at the mention of Eshe's pack in Neverwinter Forest. Being young and inexperienced in leadership, he hadn't considered the way their claim would affect the wolves of Moonspear; it was far enough away that he didn't see it as a threat. But Charon and Ame both pressed for more information about the coastal wolves instead, and Floki pursed his lips as he considered his reply.

"I'm not exactly sure where they have settled, but I met their Alpha in Stavanger Bay. He called himself Captain Ferahgo. He was kind of...strange. He has an odd way of speaking," he said, glancing between his companions. He didn't have much to say for Silvertip Mountain -- although he considered their youthful Beta, Mason, a friend -- but talk of Ferahgo's crew only reminded him of Ragnar.

He looked directly at Charon then. "I also found out that someone...destroyed Ragnar's grave and took the skeleton," he said, his voice dropping in volume and pitch. Saying it out loud made him feel sick to his stomach, although Charon's reaction would probably greatly influence the way Floki felt about it.

She pieced together some sort of impression and would remember the title Captain Ferahgo for whatever it may be worth. She found it somewhat pretentious, anyway, but a strange manner of speech did interest her very briefly. That could mean many things although her interests did not have long to linger. The story developed further into a curious twist and went straight to.. graverobbing?

She knew her expression shifted to a very mixed one. Ame wasn't happy about more packs most of all -- be it here, there, or anywhere else honestly... and while she didn't have personal attachment to Ragnar nor his grave, the notion of it was highly suspicious. Why steal old dry bones? He'd been dead so long. His hackles shifted in a reflexive ripple as she sorted through this news.

If a scavenger had come along and wrecked it, that would be one thing. She did find it hard to believe it was just some mindless scavenger that had taken the whole skeleton away and even this long after the carcass would have no real use to anyone struggling to find sustenance in the Wilds.

Ame glanced between the boys to gauge their reactions with her own frown suggesting her thoughts on it. To her, it sounded awful.. and useless to bother with stealing bones (of a grave that to her knowledge, was tended to occasionally by the family), if they were trying to make some kind of statement, it went over her. Then again, she did not know Ragnar nor the Bay he had lead for a time as intimately as they did. Her ears slicked back and her silence was a pensively tense one for now, since it was far too easy to imagine the wolves with the self-proclaimed Captain being the ones responsible somehow.

Charon listened to what else Flóki said about this guy, Ferahgo. It was unfortunate that he didn't know the location of the pack. Hopefully it was not too near to Moonspear. Flóki's next words sent Charon bristling, however, the hairs in his neck pricking up defensively at the mention of Ragnar's desecrated bones.

They were just bones, but Charon knew that they meant more than that to some of his family. He felt that Flóki looked unsure how to respond, and he decided impulsively to try and make his brother feel better. "It's just bones. It sucks that some disrespectful ass would do such a thing, but Ragnar's memory lives in our hearts, not in some bones buried somewhere." Charon felt pretty angry at whoever had taken them but this seemed like the best solution for the present situation: pretend to be casual, like it didn't matter much what had happened, so that Flóki wouldn't feel too bad about it.

One ear turned towards Amekaze, though she did not offer a verbal response to the news. Her countenance and body language were enough to convey her disgust with the situation. Floki's gaze remained focused on Charon, and he was surprised, at first, by his brother's answer. "It's just bones," he said, and with a jolt, Floki realized that he was right. Although he had virtually no memories of Ragnar to hold dear, it didn't really matter that his skeleton was gone. Besides, the old viking's faith dictated that he was living eternally in Valhalla now that his mortal body was dead; Floki still wasn't sure he believed that, but in a weird way, it was a comforting thought.

He sighed softly, still feeling disgruntled but slightly better about the whole situation. He wouldn't be able to put it behind him until he had talked it through with Wildfire. And as for Tevinter, he would just have to see the destruction with his own eyes; he wouldn't hear the news from Floki's lips. "You're right," he agreed, flashing a small smile at Charon.

With a small shake of his head, he redirected his own thoughts to the other information he had shared with his leaders, shifting back into an outrider's mindset. "Anyway. Do you have any other questions? I think I covered just about everything..." he said thoughtfully, racking his brain to see if there was anything he had forgotten. He didn't think so.

Indeed, they were just bones. That did help ease some of the tension about the topic it seemed because it was true no matter how you looked at it. Thistle would probably be saddened to know about this having happened, but there was nothing they could do now that the damage was done. Ame still didn't trust the idea of more packs along the coast and wouldn't until she knew they stayed away from here. 

She shook her head once she couldn't come up with anything else distinct to question about, since he'd covered his bases well with what his travels had taught him. "Nothing really comes to mind," she said softly and glanced to Charon. She mainly appreciated knowing what she did now and wanted to mull it over alone next, especially if there was a chance Wildfire may bring back more news of a similar nature -- assuming she traveled in any of the same directions. She may even find out where the coastal pack had settled.. unless they were notably secretive about where their claim truly was. But, a lot of the things she wanted to know more about would just take time to see how it unfolded.

"Nope," Charon tacked on when Amekaze said that nothing came to mind. If something did pop up, he'd just go and find Flóki later. He was curious for the new packs, and he hoped that Dhole and Flóki would bring him more information soon about them and their whereabouts and how friendly they were. However, as things were, Charon was already quite glad with what information he had got.

Neither Alpha had anything further to discuss with Floki, so he gave an affirmative nod of his head. He had done his job, and it felt good. This was the first time he had truly exercised his role as an outrider beyond just exploring and mapping out nearby territories. He hadn't necessarily set out with the intention to glean information for his leaders, but he was pleasantly surprised when it turned out that way.

"Okay. I'm headed to the borders for a patrol," he said with a swish of his tail. He then stepped forward to nibble gently at the underside of Amekaze's chin and nudge Charon's cheek. With that, he pivoted and was on his way, feeling quite accomplished.

She was satisfied and with a slowly waving tail, she chuffed a soft thanks before Floki could leave entirely. Ame was happy with his choice of duty because his effectiveness was certainly noteworthy. Since she had always been one to appreciate skilled scouts (whereas some alphas may have no real use of them), she was quick to favor him for it.

Anyway, after she watched the silver scout go on his way,  she gathered herself up for much the same. On her way past him, she smeared a lingering lick onto Charon's cheek and then loped off in a different direction than the beta.

Charon nodded as Flóki said he would go to patrol and returned a nudge to Flóki's shoulder, and then he looked at Ame. As she passed, Charon managed to land a nip on Ame's cheek before she wandered off, and he, too, went off in a different direction. Knowing that Flóki was headed on towards the borders, Charon remained in land and found a nice perch from which he could watch the landscape of the Teekon and drift off into a peaceful slumber, feeling content despite the knowledge of all the new packs round them.