Lost Creek Hollow ishi comes home

A hero has saved the long-lost Ishi from the evil cougar and has returned him home! Thread open to @Spring @Shikoba @Harlyn @Mordecai @Harlyn (pups too if you want!)~

Morning had broken, bright and brave, the sun shining in from a low horizon and turning the leaves of Lost Creek Hollow as green and golden as their first days. The border was quiet, this being home to a small band of loyalists whose numbers had been dwindled and terrorised by a cougar, Shardul. Soft steps could be heard on the leafy ground: Spring, from Phoenix Maplewood, had at her side Shardul's latest victim. The small white youth had found his paws, and walked silently and carefully with Spring. Once a happy and bubbly socialite called Ayishik Zonnetje, he was now just a traumatised wretch with no voice at all. Or, at least, a very Little Voice.

But his heart — which had been frozen and petrified in Shardul's grasp — was in tact, and had been getting warmer in his friend's presence and as they got closer to Lost Creek Hollow. He didn't know his packmates well, having been a Scout who'd spent so much of his time away from the borders, but now he missed them as if they were his own family, and yearned to be surrounded by them — warm souls, the epitome of safety.

Spring, still holding the poor battered and broken Ishi next to her.  She had finally found Lost Creek Hollow.  She still ached from that sprint and daunting escape but now Spring was proud that she had gotten her poor trammitized friend back home.

She waited at the border, just one foot beyond the territory.  She flickered her eyes to Ishi as she stopped, quickly examining him.  Spring had on the way back treated his wounds as to stop the bleeding for now and delay infection, but the real problem was what had happened to Ishi mentally and emotionally.  She still had yet to know.  she raised her head and howled for the pack, told them that someone was home.  Who knew whether they would trust her... a stranger.  At the moment it didn't matter at all to her, all that mattered was getting Ishi home.

Spring raised her head and howled for the pack, to tell them that someone was home.  Who knew whether they would trust her... a stranger.  At the moment it didn't matter at all to her, all that mattered was getting Ishi home.

It was a surprise to hear a howl, the native awoke quickly and did her best to get out of her den. Her shoulder made her very wobbly and uneven, the limp not very discreet.

Seeing no leaders around yet, Shikoba began to pick up the pace as best as she could. Surely, she had arrived to see two battered wolves at their doorstep. One held the white one by the scruff as he dangled, Shikoba's ears perked up as she continued her walk over there.

Coming close enough with a neutral stance, she looked over the other. Ishi? She asked, coming in closer but staying a bit back to prevent any attacks from this unknown. Bring him home? She asked, wondering if this wolf was the hero.

Hope no-one minds if this thread is a bit of a free-for-all, no strict posting order~ Also, just to clarify: Ishi's walking, not being carried. :)

Once the boy had got his terrorised mind in order, he would find himself eternally grateful to Spring, and desperately affectionate towards her. For now, however, while he knew this to be his dear friend and saviour, he was sort of taking her for granted, unable to verbalise or even mentally articulate how he felt about what had happened.

A wolf approached, and the little Scout had never learned her name. But as he saw her, so physically hurt but so nobly strong, a whole wave of images flashed in front of his eyes. Hazy memories of seeing her fight for him, a vague realisation that she wore scars because she'd tried to get him back.

Very quietly, his body low, he padded up to the tawny Gamma and sat at her side with a kind of strange loyalty, even having never truly met her. Gently, he leant his soft little figure against her taller form like a kitten leaning against its human.

Spring watched as another brown furred female like herself made her way into the scene and ask if she had brought Ishi home.  Before she could respond though, she watched as Ishi made his way to the other female’s side.  It made her feel comforted in a way, although Ishi had seemed very submissive.  It seemed he trusted this wolf and that was excellent for his current condition.

“Yes, I have brought Ishi home.  Away from the Cougar.”  She replied to the other’s question.  Her eyes then feel warmly once more back on Ishi.  Spring hoped that he truly felt at home here, that would be a vital part of improving his health, she wasn’t worried though.  “I’m Spring.”  She offered to the other female with a polite dip of her head.

sorry if this is kind of disjointed guys, i have a migraine out of this world. @__@

The howl had roused him from his thoughts, not that it would have taken much to deter him from what had become endless consideration of what to do. For now his focus remained on keeping what wolves they had left in the Hollow safe, and the howl that pulled him into the present and set his legs into motion pushed those thoughts into overdrive.

When he arrived on the scene, he immediately spied out Ayishik from the others. The white puff ball seemed worse for wear but on the positive side, he was alive. Shikoba had beat him here as well, which left the matter of the stranger that was much closer than he found he would have wanted. He caught the issuance of her name in the midst of his approach. He wove his way in near his packmates, offering a brief once-over of the healing Gamma before his attention diverted to the much smaller breed.

But it was not meant to linger there long either—soon his solitary gaze honed in on Spring. "You have our thanks," he offered gently. "But you should leave. We can't risk the cougar following your trail back to here."

*drags along @Pippin @Silas @Larkspur* Oh look it's a packtivity now! Surprise!! :D Sorry for the PP my babies <3

EDIT: OH! And there's still no posting order and we're not doing rounds with deadlines or anything either, I just wanted to make sure the whole pack gets here. @Little Voice please feel free to move along as you were :)

Harlyn heard the call. The voice was one she did not recognize, and so she had wanted to keep away just in case it would prove to be a danger. But the seconds seemed to drag on as her mind began to analyze while she should have been watching her children playing. There had not been any threat in that voice, but desperation and anxiety. That in itself kept her at bay, but soon enough she realized that it had been missing the one thing that ought to have kept her away: fear. The voice that called was not a fearful one. It was not being chased or savaged. It was worried, and it was determined. It was Ishi.

"Come on kids," Harlyn had said urgently as she made up her mind and got to her paws, wrangling them together so that she could speak succinctly and sternly to them, "You will come with me, and you will do exactly as I say at all times. You will stop where I tell you to stop, and you will stay where I tell you to stay. You will not wander from my side unless I tell you to. Do you understand me?" Three little heads nodded their agreement, and Harlyn gave them one final worried glance before she turned and headed towards the borders with them in tow.

She was careful in approaching, pausing here and there to make sure that it was safe to continue. When Harlyn spotted the gathering upon the borders, she'd urged them to stay low as she did until her eyes and nose confirmed for her that these all were friendly parties upon her doorstep. The alpha brought them forward then and strode to her mate's side, her ears catching some of the comments made by the stranger and all of Mordecai's words.

Harlyn gazed steadily at her packmates, feeling both relieved to see him safely home but also terrified. Would the beast just let him go like this, or was it already on its way here? Mordecai's instructions to the stranger - Spring - to leave seemed sensible, but hers was not the trail the demon would follow. She was not the one it would feel the need to take vengeance upon for this offense.

"Mordecai," Harlyn interjected with a remorseful glance at her pups, unhappy that they would be hearing this even though there was no other option, "It will come here anyway, whether she goes or not." She turned to look at Spring nervously. "Did the cat let you go? Does it know you took him?"

When her mother beckoned her, little Spur promptly obeyed, coming to sit before Harlyn as she laid down some stern ground rules. Too young to sense anything amiss, the Pi simply nodded, eager to please by following her mother's commands. The moment the Alpha female stood and began walking, Larkspur fell into step behind her, surefooted as she weaved between her brothers.

They came upon an interesting scene. "Daddy!" Spur called when she spotted Mordecai. Her big blue eyes then shifted slightly beyond him. She recognized the pack's Gamma, though she didn't know the two other wolves. When she noticed them, Spur gave a little squeak and immediately fled behind Harlyn's hind legs. She pressed against the left, peeking out shyly and staring timidly at the strangers.

While it's vaguely against what he'd much rather be doing (what with the urge for a nap beginning to catch up to him), he easily picks up on Harlyn's tone -- it left no room for questions, fuss, or otherwise, so he has to listen and consequentially, obey. The dark puppy picks along down the path she leads with his siblings constantly close.

The howl from earlier was lost on him since he'd been busy with play, so he doesn't quite understand what's happening here or why they're all going there with such strict instructions to behave. He's doing what he can to just acknowledge it as a nice walk with his family for now, anyway. It's only when a gathering comes into view that he begins to feel rightfully wary, and this weighs down his steps even if he sees the familiar face of his father among them.

Silas eyes the stranger the longest with a frowning look, but sticks painfully close to his mother in the meantime to see more.

Dutifully, and without fully understanding his promise, the boy sauntered after his mother and siblings – ducking when told, and trying not to stray too far, else he was met with a stern gaze. It was very much like an adventure – and while resisting the urge to nip at the heels and ears of his littermates, instead, the smaller boy kept his own pace with their own.
 
Once Harlyn moved forward, he watched with open curiosity at the strange wolf – and Ayishik, who did not seem well. Of course, at the tender age of twelve weeks, empathy was not something the boy had completely grasped in most moments, and so he plunked himself on his butt behind the steady figure of his mother, peering around the side of her leg with keen interest. “Ma,” he began, his tiny voice trying to reach Harlyn’s attention. “Ma – Pip hungwy.” He paused, blinking dotingly at her. “Ma?”

It was a little overwhelming at the border of Lost Creek Hollow as she was bombarded with questions.  She listened to every wolf speak, although she found herself smile on the inside when she saw the pups.  They were so cute, even if one was starring at her endlessly, the other hiding and another begging for food, she still found them all equally adorable.  She had always loved pups after all.  She made sure to keep a more businesslike face though, wanting to stay serious and on topic.  This was not a matter to smile about whilst talking of it.

“I will leave, but I did make sure to double back a couple times.  I also made sure to cross through some rivers and streams with Ishi in attempts to hide our scents.  You should be pretty safe here though I’m sure, I did my best to make no mistakes.  Then again life can be unexpected.  I advise you prepare for anything just in case.”  Spring answered to both Mordecai, as the Mother of the pups called him, and the Mother too.  Her eyes then flickered a little worriedly to Ishi.  “I gave Ishi some herbs on the way back to help his condition, but my work was quick, so he should probably be treated again.”  Spring added.  She really hoped Ishi would be okay.

The words had no more come loose from his lips when Harlyn's voice rang out behind him. Larkspur's voice followed barely a beat after, though by the time he had turned to bring them into his view she had gone into hiding, caged beneath her mother. It wasn't just her that he saw but also the two boys in tow too and with all of them out in the literal outskirts of their claim he felt the worst of sinking sensations come to him. Leveling off his gaze with Harlyn, he could only briefly convey concern before it was overrode with the simplest of suggestions: now?

But all of that was to be sent to the side momentarily, as Spring had found her opening to answer questions. Torn between focusing on his mate and Ayishik's rescuer, Mordecai was forced to turn an ear to the latter. She'd have to remain in his blind spot for now, though gradually he found himself bringing his solitary gaze around to her all the same. Prepare for anything, right. It left a bitter, if not sour taste in his mouth.

"Thank you," he offered her gently, though there was a note of dourness to be found. At least they had some time bought on their behalf, but how much or how much good it would do he could not say. Once again, his gaze left Spring for Harlyn. "We should go now, then." Whatever finality he could assign to that statement he did, though it was hardly his call alone.

Harlyn felt her children crowd about her legs, and though there was worry in her heart, she gave them an encouraging smile nonetheless. "Hush, child," she said softly to Pippin, planting a kiss upon his crown soothingly. Her attention went to Spring then as she responded to the query, and the alpha was quiet and thoughtful as she gleaned each bit of information from her. Relief reached for her, but worry kept it at bay. Hope, however, did manage to make itself known in a small splinter of her heart. Maybe they had time. Maybe it was not so bad as it seemed.

She looked to her mate, understanding his meaning immediately. Were it not for Ishi in poor condition and the fact that Shikoba nor their own children knew of what the alpha pair - for that's what Mordecai quite suddenly was now, without question in her mind - had been considering behind closed doors, Harlyn would be leading the departure from the Hollow right then. But instead, she bit her lip and turned to consider those gathered, and heaved a sigh when she again saw fewer options than she wanted to believe there were.

"Thank you for all that you have done for us," the druid said as she stepped forward and swept the stranger in a wolfish embrace, disregarding the fact that she didn't even know the name of the wolf showing her such gratitude, "It will not be forgotten. I pray for your safety and that no harm befalls you for what you have done to help us and our family." Harlyn closed her eyes briefly as she prayed, briefly sick at the thought that this selfless young woman might find herself now at odds with the demon cat for what she'd done to help their Ishi. There was no changing it now, though, and Harlyn could do nothing more than have faith that she would be well wherever her path now took her.

Harlyn stepped back after a moment and turned then to face the rest of her pack. She rose authoratatively then and fixed Shikoba and Ishi with a concerned but resolved gaze. "We must leave the Hollow," she said shortly, pain and determination in her tone, "We are too few to keep our claim secure and I will not risk the lives of my family to keep it. I do not know where it is we will go, and I can promise nothing of where we end up except that I will do all in my power to make sure that we are safe there."

The druid's gaze flickered to the faces of her children briefly and she felt her heart break for the turmoil she was so abruptly pushing them into. She turned back to her gamma and delta shortly, though. "This move is not without danger though, and I recognize that it is perhaps not one you would wish to join us on not knowing the outcome," She swallowed hard before continuing, for this was something she wanted greatly to dictate rather than leave up to them for she hated the risk that they may choose a different path than what she hoped for, "But it is my wish that you would stay with us. You are both family, and I do not wish to be parted from you."

"I believe Spring has bought us a few days, so you don't have to decide now," Harlyn added after a brief moment of deliberation, "But we will leave upon the third sunset from this day. I can't risk remaining any longer than that, for our childrens' sake. Ishi is in better condition than I could have hoped, but he needs time. We will remain together in this Hollow. You will both stay with us by our den for safety and so that I can tend to your injuries. Ishi will be well enough by then, and then.. we move." She fell silent then, but her gaze implored the rest of them to reply however they would. Again, her gaze flickered towards her children, but there would be plenty of time to answer whatever questions or concerns they had regarding this declaration. The pups had no choice in this matter, and Harlyn hoped quite fervently that Ishi's and Shikoba's hearts would insist that they too had no choice either.

While the adults exchanged words above her, Larkspur's hesitation translated into a tremor, which in turn gave way to gentle trembling. She glanced at Silas, who seemed nearly as perturbed by these events, before Pippin's plea for food captured her attention. Spur's own stomach turned at the thought of food during a situation like this. She was much too anxious to sympathize with her brother's hunger.

When Harlyn moved to face her subordinates, Spur pressed even closer, clinging to her mother. Although many of the Alpha female's words went in one ear and out the other, the rhythm of her voice soothed the youngster. It quieted her trembling, though didn't stop it entirely. She still cast apprehensive glances at the nearby strangers every few seconds, all the while trying to stay out of view behind Harlyn's hip.

He's intent with his stare, so much so that he'd blocked out his brother's hungry complaints without even realizing it, and the words flying overhead do not mean all that much to him. Silas listens and all it really does is make him sink closer to the ground next to Harlyn. Even in plain sight, he hopes he can be as unseen as he can be right here with Larkspur is already occupying prime hiding ground. He doesn't want to be a focal point of this gathering, not at all, and definitely does not want to disobey. So staying still seems to be the best route for him.

Eventually, somewhere after he hears the keyword "danger" out of all that his mother says, he has his entirely pale belly pressed against the warm grasses just next to her. Somehow, this doesn't bode well at all.. and even without understanding the whole consequence of the subject matter here, he nervously licks his lips while glancing up between all of the adults gathered.

All good! <3

The snow-white youth wasn't able to listen properly, for the torture of what he'd been through was still fresh inside him, grappling at his mind, seizing his heart, freezing his soul and — in the form of little tremors of weakness — reminding his small body what had happened to it. But as long as he remained here at @Shikoba's side, pressed lightly against her as though he belonged to her, he felt safe. Her scarred fur gave off a warmth that had alluded him so terribly, and whatever happened he would remain with her. He didn't speak, having little or no voice at all, but dimly recognised what was happening. A flee to the hills, a flee from the cougar. A disappearance into the great beyond — which was truly the boy's favourite place. His upbringing had been semi-nomadic, and as such he'd learnt to associate home with people, not with places. His instinct was to look to Spring, twitching and desperate to go with her to Phoenix Maplewood, but he remained where he sat, not strong enough to move, not moved enough to think.

The white prince had made his way over, very low and in silence. His body gently leant against the gamma's, she silently winced at the contact. Scars were still healing as blood had finally come to an end. She looked at him with a gentle gaze before sweeping his muzzle with a comforting lick. She was relieved to know her family was put together again, but the news about the cougar coming back brought her morale down. But what broke her heart the most was Harlyn stating news of their pack: it was broken.

They would have to flee the hollow, for their numbers had dropped and keeping their claim wasn't safe anymore. The children would be at risk, so would the others. The path would be unknown for them, and Harlyn asked that the two would stay, for they were family. Shikoba looked over with her scarred eyes and gave Harlyn a sad smile.

"Shikoba stay with pack. Pack is family. Shikoba protect family, protect brothers and sisters, protect small ones" she replied to her, seeing the small children with Harlyn.

Her direct statement was that the two were to stay close with Harlyn, near her den so they could be treated. And then they would move.

She held her tongue at an idea though, something she wished to vent out. She wanted to bring the numbers back in and hopefully be able to sweep out the cougar, once and for all. The silvery hell cat needed to be put in its place, underground.

He was hushed – and while mildly distraught that Harlyn had not agreed to his very serious whim, he did as he was told, a frown furrowing the brows of his golden face. As if on cue, his stomach gave a loud rumble, and pointedly, as the blossoming of childhood rebellion began to rise in the distinct presence of sarcasm, Pippin cast his mother a ‘look’ as if to say ‘I told you so.’
 
But Harlyn was busy, and while her words washed over him, they did so quite figuratively, as he gained no insight to what she was saying. His mind was simply elsewhere as he studied the adults about him, his own nerves lit with the nervousness that rolled from his siblings in waved – the lick of Silas’ lips did little to soothe him, and his own guard hairs began to lift.
 
As the adults conversed, Pippin studied them with suspicion – and dreamed of food to fill his rolling belly.

Spring felt a friendly warmth surge through her as the Mother, probably Alpha to by the authority she posed gave her a version of a hug.  For a few moments after that though, Spring found herself wondering what the male had meant by; “We should go now, then.”  Had he been meaning to tell her that she should go or did he mean something different?  Her question was soon answered by the Alpha female when she said; “We must leave the hollow.”  Spring eyes widened in slight disbelief.  Why was this pack leaving?  That question was quickly answered too.  Not enough wolves.  She wished she could help them, but she knew that she could never leave Phoenix Maplewood, at least at this time.

Spring frowned.  “I am so sorry.  I did not know your numbers were dwindling.”  Her eyes fell to the ground and she was silent for a few moments.  “I wish you all luck in your future.  Hopefully you will be able to start again, but I must get back to my Pack.  I don’t want them to worry.”  Her eyes then fell on Ishi, filled with warmth.  Then she turned and began to walk away.  Sadness plaguing her that this could be the very last tim she ever saw Ishi, or any of these wolves as a matter of fact.  They all seemed good, but unfortunately luck had not been on their side.

Last post from me!  :)

Closing this up! Thanks guys :)

Ishi and Shikoba were quiet after her declaration, but of course Harlyn hadn't expected her injured packmate to be able to really focus on what was happening just yet. Her gaze went to Shikoba who stood protectively beside the little white wolf. There was hope obviously upon the alpha's features. The gamma was part of their family, and though she would do it if she had to, Harlyn hated the idea of leaving her behind.

Fortunately, Shikoba announced that she would be remaining with the pack. Harlyn's muzzle broke into a smile and she stepped forward to embrace the woman. She shifted after a moment to return to her children, her gaze moving then to Spring as she bid them farewell. "Thank you again, for Ishi," Harlyn said before the girl left. She then turned to the wolves of the Hollow, steeled her heart, and motioned for them all to follow her back to the whelping den where they could rest.