Blackfoot Forest What happened?

@Ezekiel went to make this thread to continue the timeline! :3 Light PP on Zeke, let me know if you want it changed but I figured they were together anyhow :P! AW!!!

Valette came over the mountain, expecting Rosings borders to be there. However they didn't seem to be there. There was a weak smell coming from the territory. Though she could only smell it because she knew where to find it. Valette frowned and let out a howl, a howl for her friends. But they didn't seem to be there. She looked at Ezekiel with confusion on her face. "It seems Rosings has left their territory," she spoke to him with definite confusion in her words.

She didn't think that they would want to leave their home. But they did lacked members. The alpha female Liri had told her so. Did that mean that there was no other pack in Rising Sun? Her mind started to rattle then this region would be perfect to settle their pack here. Now they only needed to find a suitable territory!! Valette grew rather excited, though she quickly dimmed down that excitement because it didn't seem inappropriate considering her friends were gone.

She let out a soft sigh. "Wonder what happened to them. But that probably means the region is without wolfpacks?," she questioned.

hope you don't mind b (:

The day Stark brought Amara back to Marauder's Keep had been a strange one.  Banner stuck by her brother's decision, of course, but she also decided to hang back and let the Alpha do his thing.  He was the one practiced in dealing with mothers and children, after all.  It was the least she could do to allow the other female time to settle.  In fact, if she were a betting woman, the short Beta would say that Amara was ready to pop any day now.  So she probably should have stuck around the Keep but curiosity got the best of her and she took off at an ungodly hour to head south.

Her arrival at the forest was without incident.  Banner ran most of the way, but she also took the last several miles at a brisk walk so as to not be out of breath when she entered the former home of Rosings.  Only a few minutes had passed before she heard a howl cut through the air.  Frowning, the dark chocolate woman decided to head back in the direction she'd come toward the former pack's borders.  Her bright green eyes narrowed thoughtfully when she spotted two wolves in the distance.  One didn't look familiar to her but the other..

She blinked.  Valette? she called out in a cautiously optimistic voice.  Slowing her pace, the lady Marauder offered a friendly woof in greeting to the charcoal female she'd met a couple of months ago in the marsh and her male companion.

No problem Banner :)

Ezekiel was having the time of his life, traveling around with Valette. They'd become even closer friends with this journey, and Ezekiel was glad. They weren't technically boyfriend and girlfriend, but that didn't matter to him. Best friend or girl friend, as long as he got to spend a lot of time with Valette, he was happy. They stopped as soon as they reached the top of the mountain. Looking down below at at for a moment, Ezekiel missed Valette's sad and confused expression, until she spoke of course. So this was where the Rosing's pack was? The forest looked habitable, but not exactly what he would call home. 

He could tell that Valette was sad about her friends not being her, but honestly he didn't care much about the other pack. He'd never met them, and even though they were supposedly friendly, he didn't really love the idea of another pack dropping in for visits all the time. But he knew that Valette had liked them, so he did feel bad for her. Sorry they left, but that means we have this whole territory just for us! So it's not all bad. He said with a smile, now a bit more excited to go and explore. The whole territory was theirs for the picking, and they would chose the best territory together. 

Or so he thought, they had the whole territory to themselves, before a mahogany furred female appeared over a hill, coming towards them. At first Ezekiel's muscles began to tense, his fur prickling. He stepped forwards defensively, trying to look bigger. He didn't want to fight, but he would if it was to protect Valette. But the female have a friendly woof, and said Valette's name. Did they know each other? Confused the large grey wolf paused for a moment, glancing back to Valette with a puzzled glance. His aggressive posture eased a bit, replaced by a curious expression.

OMG YES! Of course you are welcome!

Valette was surprised when she heard her name. Her hazel eyes quickly registered the form of Banner. She let out an excited squeak. "Banner!," she greeted and sidestepped Ezekiel's protection. The young female trotted up to her friend. She gave her a friendly nudge. Her tail wagging. It was good to see her explore so far from her own lands. It meant that she took her words to heart and she was becoming an explorer!

Valette looked over her shoulder at Ezekiel. "Ezekiel! This is Banner, my friend from Marauder's Keep!," she introduced. She then looked at Banner. "Banner this is Ezekiel. He is ... uhhh. Well the Beta of my pack," Valette decided to go with that. Because to call him a boyfriend she found that was perhaps a too heavy of a label for their relationship right now. They hadn't really shared that many kisses yet, or, you know anything else.

"Do you know what happened to this pack?," she asked curiously. [b]"We are here for a possible move, and last time I was here Rosings was still settled here. Did they relocate?,"[b] she asked curiously. She knew she could trust her friend and give her such information.

The male was clearly less than thrilled to see her.  Banner's ears turned back a fraction when he fell into a protective stance.  She wanted to make it clear that she wasn't a threat, but pinning her ears against her skull seemed to be overkill.  Besides, Valette recognized her a second later and rushed over for a friendly greeting.  The lady Marauder's bright green eyes shifted from the cautious male to her friend before she offered up a smile.  Hello, she said, nudging the other female's cheek.

The charcoal female introduced her companion and Banner nodded politely in his direction.  Ezekiel.  Huh.  Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully.  Something about him was familiar but she couldn't quite place it.  She wasn't sure what to say, though it turned out that she didn't need to say anything, really.  Valette explained what they were doing here and her head tilted a bit as she took it all in.  I don't know all the details, but the pack disbanded a little while ago.  The former Alpha female now resides in my pack and she's very close to giving birth.  Banner frowned, just now realizing that as a leader she probably should make it a priority to find out what had happened.  Stark likely knew and he'd tell her.  An unsettled feeling came over her - what if there was something sinister behind Rosings dissolution?

@Banner Since Ezekiel became inactive, and I am not sure when his player will return shall we continue this with Ezekiel in the background? :) I'd like to use this for my trade!

Valette was happy to see her friend. She hoped that Ezekiel was not too protective of her. It seemed that he seemed to be holding himself back. It was a common thing for him to do. So Valette didn't mind it. She was used to talking to others and she liked seeing Banner again. She considered her a friend. Her tail wagged at the nudge on her cheek, greeting the other back the same way.

[ob]"Oh so sad they disbanded! I didn't realize they were that small when I came to visit them. Well that means this valley has no packs then,"[/b] she thought out loud and looked with a hopeful gaze at Ezekiel. She then thought about the other's words. "Liri? Pregnant? She didn't look pregnant when I saw her?," she spoke with surprise in her tone, confusing Liri with Amara whom she hadn't met.

"Anyhow. It is good to see you. Ezekiel and I are looking for a possible new place to settle our pack. So it could be we will be moving away from silvertip mountain. I will come inform you once we are settled," she promised.

works for me!

One of the things Banner enjoyed most about Valette's company was that she never had to feel self conscious about her social skills.  The other female was naturally outgoing and had no problem steering conversation forward.  The chocolate Marauer's tail wagged while she listened to her companion speak.  Truthfully her own knowledge on Rosings was .. well, she didn't have any.  Amara had kept to herself so far and the right opportunity to make more than small talk hadn't introduced itself.

She frowned again upon hearing an unfamiliar name referenced as the Alpha of Rosings.  Er.. no, Amara.. she offered quietly.  At least, I thought she was the Alpha here..

The news of Valette's pack, however, caused her frown to disappear.  Are you founding your own pack or is your current one relocating? she asked, curiosity coloring her voice.  If you don't mind my asking, what's the cause for the move?  Hopefully nothing dramatic or painful had happened to cause an entire pack to uproot itself!

great!

Valette thought about the name she heard, it might have been familiar but she wasn't entirely sure. "Maybe she was the alpha too?," she shrugged lightly. It didn't matter to her much, after all the pack was no more as hash as that sounded. The darker female wagged her tail lightly.

Though, it did seem she had been creating a bit of confusion. "Oh! Our pack is just relocating. We aren't starting one of our own," she spoke quickly, feeling a blush come up because that would imply Zeke and her were really together and ready to settle down. She was far from ready.

"Overcrowding. There were more and more packs moving in around us, and then I remembered this valley with only one pack, and well, now none!," she explained to the other. "So in a few weeks we will be around here somewhere I believe. But I can drop by your borders if the move if permanent if you like that?" Valette liked to be in good contact with her friends.

That reminded her! "Has Tavi been found?," she asked more softly. "And the other puppy? I met Stark after I met you on my travels," Valette explained, because it might have been confusion to how she knew this.

She nodded thoughtfully while Valette spoke.  Overcrowding, hm?  Well, that seemed to be as good a reason as any.  Luckly they didn't have that kind of problem with Marauder's Keep, though Banner supposed it'd only take one pack settling down too close to their borders for things to start feeling.. cramped.  Congratulations, then, she offered with a smile.  It sounds exciting.  Maybe a little stressful, but I'm sure your pack will settle down in time.

I'd like it if you could come visit at the Keep when everyone's settled.  We'd be happy to have friends and allies, she said in her low voice.  Her charcoal friend's chipper additude was rubbing off on her and Banner rather enjoyed it.  This was just what she'd need to get her through the journey back up south.  Octavia is.. still missing.  Our other missing?  Back home, she explained, a frown flickering on her dark brown face.  I trust Stark treated you well?  Her question was punctuated with a smirk, the kind only a sister would have as she spoke of her brother.

Valette nodded in return to Banner. Hopefully they would settle there and she would be able to work on her relationship with Ezekiel more. She liked that idea. "It is not stressful yet, but I can imagine the move will be, then I probably will have self doubt if I picked the right territory," she admitted. Valette was confident in her own way, but she had her moments of doubt like every normal person.

"I'd like that,' she instantly returned. She had the idea that Steady liked more allies too, one they could call upon in trouble. Though the word that Octavia was still missing, the wolf she knew as Tavi was concerning. The female let out a worried sigh and shook her head. "I'm sorry to hear that. Is her son alright?," she asked. Still if he wasn't there wasn't much she could do about it. She could tell him about how great his other was but then that just made him miss her more perhaps.

Valette put the worry of her face and chuckled lightly. "Oh he accused me of Octavia's disappearance and yelled at me but when I assured him that I was not he grew more friendly. He was just upset to lose her, it was clear he liked her," Valette shrugged a bit. "And in the end he was quite friendly. I'd like to think we ended on good terms." Valette didn't know Stark was Banner's brother, only that they were in the same pack.

At the mention of Tambourine, her ears flicked back briefly.  He's doing surprisingly well.  I think at this point he's spent more time without her than .. with her, she admitted with a sad sort of smile.  Pups are resiliant, I'll give them that.  Banner had been one of those resiliant little things once upon a time.  It was a shame that some wolves lost that strength with age.

A scowl crossed her dark brown face when the charcoal female admitted that Stark hadn't been very friendly to her at first.  Please excuse my brother, he's been through quite a lot in the past few months, she said, agitation coloring her voice.  Doesn't give him the right to be a total ass, she mumbled.  Banner sighed loudly and shook her head, returning her bright green gaze to Valette with a rueful smile.  I'm glad he remembered his manners eventually.

Valette was not too surprised to hear that. She had been a good friend of Tavi but she had not always been around. She had been a wanderer. Still one would think that if a wolf is a mother that they would not just leave their pups unattended. Hmm.. "I'm glad he is doing well," she admitted with a light smile, though it was still saddening to hear he had to grow up without his mother.

Valette nodded at her other words. She knew pups could be resilient. She herself was an example of that. Her mother died and it made her only stronger, same for her father leaving them even before that. Valette had to laugh at Banner's words. So Stark was her bother? Interesting. "It is alright, you can tell him so," she assured him. "He already apologized before and I don't hold grudges."

Valette nodded. "I made sure of that. I told him so myself that he should have some manners," she laughed, she said something like that, or didn't agree with him. Oh well. Now it was all in the past. "Good to know that this region in empty though. That means we will definitely settle here! Thank you for the information, Banner. Now I don't have to cross a whole mountain range to get to you, perhaps I can visit more often!"

Good, she chuckled.  I can only remind him so many times before he tunes me out, she said with a grin.  Of course it wasn't true and Valette likely knew that, but there was nothing wrong with a little friendly ribbing, especially when her dear brother was involved.  Stark and Banner relied on each other like only the closest of siblings could manage and it actually brought her comfort to know that he'd check her if need be.

At least you'll have space to breathe, she offered with a shrug.  The Marauders didn't feel the same strain as Valette's pack and hopefully they never would.  But the way things changed in the Wilds.. who knew what the future held for the wolves of the willow trees?  Casting a look back in the direction she'd come from, Banner shifted her weight between her front paws.  We'd certainly love to have you, she replied with a friendly nod.  Speaking of, I should actually get going.  Now that I have good news to relay, I want to get back to Stark as soon as possible.  Her tail wagged a few happy beats at the thought of something positive to bring back to the Keep.

Valette had to laugh because it was often with men that this was the case it seemed. However she didn't commented on that because Ezekiel was there too. The girl chuckled and agreed silently. She was indeed happy that they had more room to breathe and hunt too. Because normally when they chased after deer they could go into someone's territory and that was really a bummer. No one wanted to trespass on accident or have to leave their kill in someone else their territory.

"Alright! We should go and scout out these lands for our alpha. It was good seeing you," she smiled at Banner. Clearly happy with the information she had given, this was clearly the same on both parties. Valette wished her goodbye and hoped that she would see Banner soon enough. She then left with Ezekiel, thinking that splitting up would make them cover more ground.

-end-

Thank you for this thread! :D