Lost Creek Hollow Lightning in a jar

Maia had wondered if @Terance would still be at the hollow where she'd left him, and she was elated to find that he was!!! Not only that, but @Sarah still seemed to be here too, though whether either were actually around had yet to be confirmed.

She made it here in record time, for her, getting lost only once along the way!!! If @Bronco had indeed chosen to come along, maybe it was his help, or maybe she was actually growing up a little.  Nah, never that.

As soon as she reached the edge of the territory Maia let out a joyous, boisterous howl announcing that she was here and her family better come post haste and see her!! She couldn't wait to see either of them, she'd missed them so much and had so much to tell them!!!!

maia!! terance's ears swiveled quickly as he realized the voice calling through the clearing belonged to his bouncy little sister. he nudged arbiter, who he had been chatting with, and set off towards the borders to find the girl.

he noted with bittersweet pride how grown she looked the moment he laid his gaze on her. how long had it been since he'd seen her? too long!! but he was excited to see her here, now. maia!! the stone purled, jogging forwards to embrace her in a wolfish hug, i missed you!! i'm so glad you're here. he gave a soft sigh into her fur before retreating from her grip, tail wagging as he looked her up and down. 

how are you? he asked, starting with the basics.

It was always good to see Terance, if only as a reminder that she wasn't the only one in their family who had inherited their father's size.  Before he even said her name, she was speeding towards him, and collided with him with admirable enthusiasm.  TER!!  

She wasn't satisfied until she'd thoroughly hugged, then gave him a good look over.  You're getting greyer, bro, she said teasingly, shoving at his shoulder.  As if she should talk - she was mostly silver.  I'm great!!! Better than great, actually! How are the kids?! Is Sarah here!?  Rapid fire, true to her style, and only pausing to breath before she was prepped to launch into her news.  News that Sarah needed to hear too, of course, maybe even more than their brother.  But she just couldn't really wait!

hi i am SO sorry -- final projects literally murdered my motivation for posting and i lost this thread ):

after their adorable sibling reunion, terance audibly inhaled, her comment bringing a furrow to his brow. w-what? i am not!! he returned, almost defensively, but a smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth showed he wasn't really offended. but he'd definitely internalize this later. how old was he, anyway? did arbiter notice? shoot. 

kids are great!! terance chimed anyway, though to her second question he faltered a little, feeling guilty. ah, sarah's not here. she hasn't come home in a little bit... i'm not positive where she went but, i'm she'll come home soon, i wouldn't worry, he said with a frown. if he would've just paid more attention to her... maybe it would've been better, maybe she wouldn't have had to leave. but god, was she a rock to be around. terance wasn't sure she was handling the death of their parents well -- maybe because she blamed herself -- but he tended to avoid her more often then not. don't know why he has such a hard time forming relationships with his sisters.

why are you so great? he then asks, trying to quickly change the subject.

no worries!

Oh.  Maia was visibly disappointed to hear their sister wasn't around.  I had something really important to tell her too!  Possibly even more important to tell her than Terance, though he needed to know too.

I went home, she started, and her voice dropped.  It was horrible.  She didn't really want to go into details, but she imagined he would be able to guess.  Seeing the entire forest decimated had been harder than she could ever imagine.  But while I was there, I found Cori and Cass and everyone! They all made it out.  Everyone except...  she stopped, took a breath, and then smiled.  This was good news, not bad, and she was happy to be able to tell it.  They moved a little ways south, out from where the fire was.  She didn't know if he'd ever make it to visit, but she'd promised she would let them all know where to find them.

terance nodded with a small smile. when she comes home i'll tell her, he promised, head dipping once. and then, he let his little sister dive into explanation. 

though his frown faded when maia began to tell him what was so important, he did feel a feeling of relief wash over him as she continued. admittedly, and sort of guiltily, terance had felt entirely removed from the situation. his own family members potentionally engulfed in flames and terance had hardly grieved over it... it felt like he had so much going on here, so many distractions of his own, that the situation had never fully settled in. another reason why he had so blatantly avoided sarah when she lived here for so long... 

how are they?? he asked with a wave of his tail, pushing aside his own inner demons as they reminded him that he was a terrible son and brother, and what are our newest siblings named? i can't remember if sarah told me.

It didn't occur to Maia that Terance wouldn't be just as happy as she was, or that he would not even know her siblings much.  So if he wasn't properly happy, she didn't notice; he was her big brother, she adored him, and either way she'd have shared the news.

They are great!!  They'd rebuilt, and while it would never be the same pack without their parents, it was something just as welcoming.  Maia had thoroughly enjoyed her time there.  Janus, Jupiter, and Junona.  They were kinda annoying but also super amazing.  Kinda runs in the family I guess!  She stuck her tongue out at him, then jumped in for another hug.  Ughhh its just really good to see you and be back!

everyone thinks that about their younger siblings, teased terance, who hardly meant it. wraen and sarah he found far more uncomfortable to be around than maia, who was a little ball of sunshine on feet. maybe that was unfair to say, since sarah had seen so many hardships -- and it was him who was rude and cold. but he pushed it away, selfishly. 

i'm so glad you're here and safe, he purled to her gently, wrapping her in a hug as she jumped forward. he gave her head a few gentle, loving licks, before asking, are you headed back to find wraen? he figured the answer was yes, the two were just so close.

Rude!  She exclaimed but clearly didn't mean it.  Even if he did find her annoying, a fact she had worried about quite often through the years, she knew he loved her and it didn't bother her much.  

Yeah.  I knew it would be hard to leave with winter and everything, so I wanted to come here first.  I thought maybe I'd stay a bit though and say hi? If that's okay.  Just for a day or two, long enough to see Treason again and have a nice meet and greet with her nieces and nephews.  How could she be the best aunt ever if she didn't see them?

OHH! And I had a really, really good idea for spring!!  Back to barely contained enthusiasm.  The idea had struck her as she was traveling and she hadn't been this hype about something in a long while.

As they walked, she described her plan to come and tell stories in the summer so that she could meet any kids they might have.  It'd be the perfect opportunity for her to stretch her creative muscles too!

figure we can bts say she stopped for a bit and met everyone if you want! <3