Hushed Willows not idly do the leaves of lorien fall

this doesn't have to be long, just a howl back so that she knows larkspur is ok

Lost! Oh, how could Starbuck have lost her charge, sweet Larkspur? The days had been harrowing, for Starbuck feared that some bay wolf or another might come charging after them at Skellige's command. She had already betrayed Deirdre. To lose Larkspur and abandon her to the wilds would be insult to injury.

There was, however, a scent. Though not an excellent tracker, Starbuck could follow her nose as well as any hunter. It was only by following Larkspur's trail, though scattered in places, that she came upon the pack's borders. Here Larkspur's scent mingled with others, then crossed into the heart of the territory. Starbuck stopped well away from the scent line, settled on her haunches, and let up a call to the trees and hills. Has Larkspur come home safe?

It was immensely difficult to leave her mother's and brother's sides so soon after being reunited. They had been apart for far too long. And they were still missing Mordecai and Pippin. But when the familiar voice called from the direction of the borders, Spur's heart skipped a few beats. "I'll be right back," she whispered, then slipped reluctantly from The Crook.

She could have howled a response, yet Starbuck deserved a face-to-face meeting. Larkspur reached her within fifteen minutes of the howl and let out a breath. "Starbuck. I'm fine. I'm safe. I'm back with my family." Well, most of it, she thought mournfully. And she could no longer ask Deirdre to cast more spells to bring them back.

Thinking of the pale witch put a lump in Larkspur's throat. "Will you..." Her quiet voice shook, then failed her. She paused, collected herself and started over. "Would you give a message to Deirdre for me?"

Long minutes passed with no answer, and Starbuck began to worry. What cause was there to meet her query with silence? Scenarios popped into her head, and none of them good. Starbuck began to pace, concern eating at her patience, until she heard the approach of another.

Larkspur! she exclaimed, relief loosening her stance at once. I am glad to hear that you are well. And that you have found your family. I did not mean to draw you away! There was something comforting in seeing Larkspur, safe among the willows of her home, that word of mouth could not bring.

At Larkspur's request to carry a message, Starbuck nodded. Of course, said she.

Starbuck looked genuinely happy and relieved to see her. Spur smiled, touched. This she-wolf scarcely knew her and yet treated her like a pack mate. They had almost been as much. Suddenly her mouth tasted sour. She swallowed thickly, drawing in a breath and then sighing softly.

"Tell her..." she began, then paused to think a moment. "Tell her I said thank you for everything. And that I'm sorry I ran away. I just couldn't be that close to Skellige after what he did to me," Spur explained, "and my daddy." Would Deirdre understand? Or was their friendship forever damaged by Spur's broken promise?

"Tell her..." she said again, sounding a bit like a broken record, only now her voice began to quaver as a bitter lump formed in her throat. "That I love her."

Starbuck listened to the message attentively, committing them to memory. As she departed she would continue to mumble them under her breath, adding a physicality to the memory. Currently, she only listened, and noted that Larkspur seemed emotional. Well, why wouldn't she?

The last piece of Larkspur's message, the most heartfelt, caused some ugly jealousy to seize up. Starbuck was quick to quash it. Sharing was caring, and goddamnit did she care. I will, she said kindly. Deirdre will forgive you, dear Larkspur. I am sure of it.

Starbuck promised to pass along the message and Spur worried her lower lip, wondering if there was anything else to add before letting the woman be on her way. It then occurred to her that Starbuck had taken the time to track her down when she could have just gone home. She had wanted to make sure Spur was okay and made herself available to take this intel home with her. Larkspur was thankful, though surely there must be a way to repay her.

"Would you like something to eat before you go? Or a place to rest?" she asked. "You've been very kind and selfless," Spur added quietly. She didn't quite deserve the treatment, yet she was immensely grateful for it. Offering some rations or a warm, safe space to sleep was really the least she could do.

The days had been long and her chances to sleep few. She had eaten when she could, catching what small game she could manage. Starbuck still did not find herself suited for travel, and the thought of sleeping unprotected and alone was an unsettling one. All I have done is my duty, she deflected, though secretly she was pleased. If it is not trouble, a safe place to rest my weary legs would be wonderful. Tresspassing was what had gotten them into all of this trouble to begin with, but Starbuck wouldn't be tresspassing. She was invited.

The she-wolf took her up on her offer for a safe place to sleep, so Larkspur hesitated a moment, then motioned for her to follow. She stayed close to the borderline, unsure as to whether the current leadership minded having an outsider any deeper in the territory. She led Starbuck to a copse of willows straddling the very fringes of the Keep, ducking beneath their feathery fronds and settling near the roots. She gestured for Starbuck to make herself comfortable.

She intended to stay close and keep quiet while Starbuck caught up on her rest, though before she fell into silence, Spur voiced a question that had sprung up in her mind. "Starbuck," she started, then hesitated before finishing her query, "do you know why Deirdre seems so fond of Skellige?" Maybe Deirdre's pack mate could help her understand and make sense of this painful situation.

Nervous still about the fact that she was, in a way, tresspassing, Starbuck stayed close to Larkspur and always put herself closest to the border. Larkspur led her through the Keep, never straying deeper. For this Starbuck was glad. How much would the invitation of a youth mean to the leaders here? 

The willow copse Larkspur led her to drew a sharp, pleased gasp from her. Your home is beautiful, Starbuck sighed as she slipped between the fringes of a willow. As Larkspur spoke, Starbuck found a hollow beside one gnarled root and circled once, then twice before laying down. I do not know. I am sorry. It is as strange to you as it is to me. They seem as different as night and day. Deirdre was the day. She was warmth. Skellige was the night, dark and cold. There was much and more that bothered her about Donnelaith's neighbors.

Spur smiled gently when Starbuck complimented her home. She peered at the draping fronds around them, which drifted in a soft summer breeze. Although it was mostly shady, bits of sunlight dappled the ground where it peeked through the streaming willow leaves. It really was lovely, though it was only within the past day or so that Larkspur had finally accepted it as home.

Starbuck couldn't shed any light on the matter. Larkspur's blue eyes returned to her and she bit back a sigh as her heart throbbed in her chest. "Rest here as long as you need," she said quietly. "I'll be right over here," she added, moving to poke her head out from beneath the draping boughs. "And when you wake up, I can get you some food for the road."

Falling quiet, she dropped to her haunches. The fronds trailed across her pale golden shoulder blades, tickling her, but Larkspur didn't mind. She felt sheltered but could still keep an eye out should anyone approach. She didn't think anyone would bother them here but she wanted to be prepared in case any of the Marauders were curious about the outsider lingering near the borders.

There was great magic in the tree, whose boughs danced and sang in the sweet sussurrus of the wind. It would be enough to lull her even were she well rested. In her state, it had her yawning almost immediately. Larkspur offered her food before her departure, beating back another yawn, Starbuck said, that would be so kind of you. Thank you, Larkspur, thank you so very much.

And with that, she lay her head down and was folded into the warm arms of sleep.

She dreamt that the willow was an old man. His fur was made of the green willow-fronds, his eyes and claws were chips of bark. The language he spoke was not one her ears could understand, but where they failed her heart succeeded. He spoke to her mind, to the eye that was her mind, and she saw glimpses of what was to come, and she learned from him some of the magic only the trees knew.

Starbuck woke suddenly, and could not find what exactly had woken her. She lifted her head to peer at her surroundings, searching first for Larkspur's presence.

Nobody came by, though it suddenly occurred to Spur that Harlyn might worry about her prolonged absence. She stepped away from the willow, keeping it within view but going far enough away to howl a message without disturbing Starbuck. She let her mother and brother know she would return to The Crook in a little while. She then decided to use this time to fetch a morsel of food from a nearby stockpile. With half a rabbit tucked in her mouth, she padded back to keep watch over her sleeping guest.

She's more a friend to you than Deirdre is now, a voice whispered in the back of her mind. It made Larkspur's insides ache hollowly. She didn't believe that. The witch had been her tried and true friend for a while now, always willing to lend a listening ear and a helping hand. Skellige was definitely a complication, as was Spur's own broken promise, but surely they could repair this one day? As the minutes trudged past, Spur found herself growing desperate to make things right between herself and Deirdre. Her message via Starbuck was the first step.

But she didn't rouse the messenger, waiting quietly and patiently until Starbuck woke naturally. Spur noticed and smiled, nudging the meat toward the sleepy she-wolf. "Here you go." Nothing in her mannerisms implied any rush. Spur was eager for Starbuck to pass on her message but after what they had been through together, she would actually miss the woman's soft-spoken company.

The dappled light was not harsh, but Starbuck blinked a few times to chase away the vestiges of sleep. She smiled gratefully at Larkspur, who must have left while she slept to find the meat she now offered. Starbuck stood, then stretched her paws in front of her, a great yawn escaping her as she did so. 

She took the half rabbit and ate it quickly, ravenous now that she had slept so deeply. When her hunger was sated she smiled again and once again thanked Larkspur. Thank you. Your hospitality is greatly appreciated, but I do not wish to overstay my welcome. I should be off while there is still light. Starbuck felt connected to Larkspur now, and though it would be sad to part, she had a duty to deliver the message.

Spur dipped her her head in response to her guest's gratitude. She wished she could be as eloquent and genteel in manner as the likes of Deirdre and Starbuck. But that was an idle wisp of a thought that drifted away on the late summer breeze as Starbuck polished off the meat, then said that she must be going. The sun would set soon but if she departed imminently, she might make it home by nightfall.

"Thank you for everything, Starbuck," Spur said, positioning herself to walk the she-wolf to the nearby borderline. Once they reached them, she paused, staring out at the world beyond the Keep before her blue eyes found Starbuck's delicate, pretty features. "I hope I can call you friend. Maybe one day, I'll see you again." But she couldn't be sure she was welcome at Donnelaith—if she'd even want to go that near the bay ever again—so she left it at that, lips pressing together as she bobbed her golden head again, this time in farewell.

good thread! go team!

At last they said farewell, standing now at the borders of the Keep. Starbuck smiled, thrilled that she had won Larkspur's friendship. They had been through a great hardship together, after all, and nothing brought two wolves together better than solidarity in the face of hardship. Ah me, parting with friends always brings such great sorrow. You will always have friends in Donnelaith, and I will come if you have need of me, she promised. For now, farewell, Larkspur. May fate shine upon you. And, with her goodbyes said, Starbuck delved back into the wilds.