Silvertip Mountain I'm as real as you are

The night was warm the slowly cooling, the air still damp and heavy around him. Grayday panted happily as he reached his desired destination: the Glass Caves.

For a while, he simply sat and gazed around him, heart filled with a sort of emptiness he didn't know how to explain. The more he focused on the emptiness, trying to puzzle it out, the more it grew, until it became a feeling he could only describe as sorrow. And it was a sorrow he couldn't explain. Yes, he missed his family - but he'd dealt with that. Yes, he'd failed the little she-wolf - but what could he have done? He'd tried his best to help her, and she'd gone astray. He had a new family now, and yet...

There was still something missing. Maybe it would come with time, as he got to know his new packmates. Maybe, he would only find it when the dreams he'd set off with were realized.

He tipped back his head and gave a low, mournful howl. There was just nothing for it.

"Cat and Calf, please take this burden from my heart," he prayed, staring over the horizon, where the last pools of color were bleeding from the sky. "I've been a good wolf - I serve as well as I am able. Can I just be content, now?"

He had the uncomfortable feeling that he already knew the answer to that question.

He had spent a lot of time alone lately. Ever since Zaria died, and Steady had asked the pack to cannibalize her, Phocion had found himself withdrawn from pack matters. There had been so much death lately--and it all brought him back to his mother's demise, though the memory receded further into the past with each day. The normally-cheery white wolf was a shadow of his usual self.

So, then, at the sound of a mournful cry, Phocion reacted slowly yet steadily, trotting towards the call, his footfalls soft against the ground. The howl came from the glass cave, a place of reflection and solace for many a Silvertip wolf at any given time. He stepped into the cavern and found there Grayday, a wolf he had seen but not yet formally met.

Giving the gray male his space yet unable to keep quiet--there was some trace of his nosy personality remaining, after all--Phocion opened his mouth to speak. "Grayday. What's troubling you tonight?"

He looked over as the other wolf entered the cave, somewhat bemused by the number of white wolves he'd seen since entering these lands. Two in one pack, he thought, and I don't think they're related, either. But he didn't say that - he got the feeling they already thought he was rather dim-witted, and he didn't want to seem rude.

"Just taking things in, I suppose," he said instead, though it was only a partial truth. "Trying to reconcile my past with my present, dreams with reality and all that. And," he took a deep breath and shot a smile at the other male, "I guess I'm a little lonely."

Seeing that the other male was hanging back, Grayday laid down and flopped over, making himself as comfortable as was possible in the hard stone cave. "Call me just Gray or Day, by the way. The whole thing is kind of a mouthful. And you're Phocion, right?"

@Grayday I don't think they've met yet :>

The night air was cool but humid, the summer heat inescapable. After the recent mourning of Zaria's death--and the proceeds taken after it--things had been a bit quiet. Anita was shook by having to cannibalize the dead she-wolf, finding herself uncomfortable whenever her mind drifted back to the thought. She could hear a beautiful yet solemn howl in the distance. It was the howl of a wolf who felt lonely, and Anita saw no harm in checking in on this wolf. She by no means wanted to intrude, but figured she may go see what the matter was.

Footsteps light and quick, Anita neared a glassy cave. It was truly a sight to see, with glimmering walls visible even in the black of night. She went in quietly, smelling the scents of two wolves. One familiar, and the other a bit new. Phocion and...someone else from the pack? 

Anita walked inside, taking a quick note of the interior of the cave. It was breathtaking, but she had other matters at hand. Inside, she saw a white wolf who was recognized as Phocion, and one of the other pack members. Grayday? The two had never formally met, but Anita decided that this may not be the best time for introductions.

The question she was going to ask had already been asked by Phocion. Anita waited patiently for Grayday to explain what was wrong, and hoped that she didn't seem to nosy. Appearing out of the blue was something already, and Anita hoped Grayday was accepting of her presence.

A bittersweet feeling of sadness washed over him at Grayday's words, sorrow for his packmate's depressed mood punctuated by some lightness he could not place. Perhaps relief for companionship in these dark times? He had no idea.

"I'll call you Gray," he said with a smile. "As for the loneliness, well, I know where you're coming from. Just know that we're here for you through your troubles."

Movement from behind distracted him, and he turned to find Anita padding into the cave, eyes bright in the dim light. Phocion gave her a pleasant nod, feeling his own sense of loneliness recede at the appearance of yet another wolf. "Hey, Anita," he greeted her, still smiling warmly. "Nice to see you."

He'd been about to thank the other male for his kind words when he heard him greet another wolf. Anita, he thought, craning his head to look back at the reddish shewolf. His tail thumped the ground in greeting, and he hoped they would both stay for a while. Phocion seemed to identify with him, and there was a hurt in Anita's eyes that seemed like it could do with exorcizing.

"If you're not picky about the company, there's no need to be lonely any longer," he offered, speaking mostly to Phocion, but hoping it was understood that his words were meant for all present. "It's a nice night out, and it seems like we could all use a warm body and an open ear."

He took a moment to wonder if maybe these wolves didn't like to be as close to each other as his family had. Ezekiel had certainly seemed to resent him when he'd asked for help cleaning up his cheek. Maybe it was just him, though.

The two others in the cave seemed to be facing different struggles. It was disheartening to see, and although Anita had her own problems, they were not as apparent. It was odd, despite the gradual revival of the land, spirits seemed to falter. A voice spoke from somewhere, talking of loneliness. It belonged to Phocion, to Anita's dismay. She considered herself to be good friends with the male and was concerned. "Lonely? Well, if it helps, you have us," she motioned to herself and Grayday. 

     She looked at Grayday, who spoke softly in the night air. It was quite nice out, but something else was gnawing at Anita's mind. What was Gray upset over when I first came in? Anita decided it was better not to ask, but couldn't help but wonder. The howl he had made didn't sound like a happy one, if happy howls existed.

     "It is a nice night, isn't it?" She agreed, scooting a little towards the cave's entrance. She could see the open sky now, dotted with stars. It would be much more breathtaking if the mood wasn't so melancholy. Anita wished she was better with words when it came to times like these. She wasn't the most comforting type despite being quite the talker. Simply put, Gray's troubles were gnawing at her, but she didn't know how to ask him what was going on.

     Deciding to go ahead and ask, Anita braced herself as she let the question slip out. "So...what brought you here, Gray? What's troubling you?" Anita didn't make eye contact with the male as she chose her words carefully. Being a lower rank, she didn't want to seem offensive or pushy. The she-wolf sat patiently, turning to admire the stars.

His heart filled with a small warmth, like a tiny flickering flame, at Gray's words of wisdom. Silvertip would only survive if the wolves in it learned to trust and love each other a little more. The past several weeks had tested them all, but they would heal in time--if they put the effort in.

"I try to always keep my own ears open. I like to listen. I talk too much for my own good," he added with a chuckle, shaking his head in laughter. He turned to look at Anita, a smile still lingering on his face. "Yes," he agreed. "I have you guys."

Phocion began to stare absently around the cave, admiring how the starlight bounced and sparkled off the crystalline cave walls. "It's a beautiful night," he replied quietly, his blue eyes glimmering in the ethereal glow. He then was slightly amused, and touched as well, as Anita voiced the same question he had asked Gray a few minutes ago. They all clearly needed to talk about what was on their minds.

"It's settled. Gather 'round, friends. We will now convene this exchange of wisdom. We can call it the Soul-Invasive Super-Sensitive Yearly Discussion. Or S.I.L.L.Y. Discussion, if you will," he said solemnly, sitting up a little straighter. "I'll start - My name is Grayday, and I've been having trouble adjusting to life - for a little over a year, now. I was born to a loving pack, but I wanted to lead my own - and breeding rights. That got less and less important, the more time I spent alone. Now it's just hard not to feel that I never should have left."

It felt great to get that off his chest. He hadn't even properly known what exactly was bothering him about being in this new pack, but now that he'd said it aloud, it was clear to him. This was why he was taking their wariness of him so badly. Not because they shouldn't be wary, but because he missed the familiarity of his own pack. And he wished he would've stayed.

And I don't even know if I could find my way back. But it doesn't matter, now. Silvertip Mountain has taken me in, and I'm grateful. This is where I'll stay.

"Let's... save discussion for the end. Anita - has anything been troubling you?" he asked, still struggling to get his own thoughts in order. This way, they could all have time to figure out what they were feeling before their problems were examined.

Anita went to sit nearer to the others as Grayday invited them over. "S.I.L.L.Y? Well, it's quite the opposite," she managed to grin, liking how Gray tried to lighten the mood a bit. They could all use a bit of that, and that was referring to the whole pack in general. She listened as Gray spoke, her head tipped downwards as a sign of respect. He had probably been through a lot, and she thought it was right to sympathize.

Anita looked up as Grayday finished his statement. Assuming she was going next, the she-wolf sat up a bit straighter. "My name is Anita, as you probably already know. Like Gray, I've been having a tough time adjusting, but it's not too bad," Anita figured her troubles weren't as large as the other two's, since it wasn't always on the top of her mind. "I was a lone wolf for the most of my life, had those kind of parents who didn't think having a kid would mean taking care of it," she laughed lightheartedly.

"Adjusting to pack life has been a bit difficult, but I think I'm starting to get the hang of it," she spoke, thinking of Ezekiel. Did he always have to make things more difficult? The answer was yes. Anita had arrived more to comfort the other two, and didn't really expect to be inquired about her own problems. They were mostly being resolved by her own self, so Anita decided to let Phocion speak. She was curious about what was on his mind.