Redhawk Caldera Tell The World I'm Coming Home (Rejoin)

The last eight months had been rough; there was no doubt about it. Her physical appearance supported that. Scraggly, unkempt fur that didn't look like it'd been groomed in at least a month. A couple new scars hidden beneath the knotted mass of fur that certainly hadn't been there when she had left. Her ribs where faintly visible, courtesy of not eating as much as is considered healthy. Talking to herself wasn't exactly considered sane either.

"Almost there... Almost there..." Somnia muttered to herself. She had one intention: Get to the Caldera. That intention was greater than everything else, even the basic needs like sleep. She hadn't slept in a couple days, and was in terrible shape. It was lucky she hadn't ran into anyone who had wanted to do her harm, as she could have easily been dispatched in this state. She hadn't meant to let herself slip into this condition, but returning to her pack had just seemed so much more important than personal hygiene and health. Besides, in her sleep-deprived state, she actually believed that she could fight someone and win if they got in her way of going home.

Somnia heavily plodded on until a familiar landmark greeted her eyes: Redhawk Caldera. Her breath hitched. Euphoria started to bubble up inside of her as her tiredness faded away temporarily. She was almost home! With a new pep in her step, she walked faster towards the borders. Her tail started to wag a mile a minute as the scent of her non-blood-related family hit her. Somnia let out an excited howl. Before she could think better of it, she threw herself at the strongest-smelling spot on the border near her. She rolled around in her pack's scent, trying to recover the scent that used to stick to her, but did not anymore.

Sorry for the hold up! I've been itching to get to this thread but Thanksgiving was busy this year! :)

It finally seemed as if things with Finley were improving, and because of that, Elwood's spirits had lifted. No longer did he feel like he had to avoid his mate or tiptoe around her; instead, they were slowly getting to know each other again and settling into a semblance of a normal routine. He only hoped that their improved relationship would have a positive impact on Eljay -- it was long past time for them to do something right for their son.

The silver Beta heard the howl while burying the remains of a rabbit he had caught earlier in the day. He gave the ground one last pat then set off towards the borders, moving with a spring in his step. As he drew nearer, though, a frown darkened his features. The wolf that had called appeared to be rolling on the ground, rubbing her scent in where it didn't belong. Needless to say, he didn't recognize Somnia.

With a snarl, he bore down on the female, lips drawn back from his teeth as he snapped at her. He did not aim to strike her, but his teeth clipped the air near her belly and his growl demanded that she move away.

It's fine! I'm taking it you had a good Thanksgiving then? :)

Somnia recognized Elwood's scent a moment before she saw him. Before she could even begin to comprehend and process this external stimulus, things went terribly wrong. She froze, her belly still facing the sky as she felt the flash of teeth way too close. It took her a moment to finally comprehend. Elwood had attacked her! Any previous joy at returning home dissipated, replaced by undiluted fear. Fear of rejection, as well as for her life.

Somnia turned her head slightly, just enough to be able to look at the wolf she had considered to be part of her non-blood-related family. She didn't dare look into his eyes after what just transpired, lest he take it as a challenge. Instead, Somnia look at his paws. "Elwood...?" It was a whisper, her fear laced in her voice. "Does the Caldera not want me anymore?"

She had never handled rejection well, whether it was intentional or not.

I did! I hope you had a good one, too! <3

The wolf froze in her wallowing, her limbs becoming perfectly still. She angled her head to glance up at him, though she expertly avoided making eye contact. It wasn't until she spoke and identified him by name that Elwood took a sudden and sharp step backwards, caught off guard by the familiarity of her voice and the implication of her question.

He blinked, looking the she-wolf in the face. She was disheveled and appeared as though she could use a hearty meal, but he soon realized that he was staring at a ghost from the past. "Somnia?" he said slowly, his voice colored with disbelief. The Beta fell back onto his haunches, shaking his head slowly.

"Get up! I'm so sorry, I didn't realize...where have you been?" he asked, still having a hard time believing that she had simply materialized on the borders. He had spent hours searching for her -- as had Peregrine and Finley -- and they had finally had to accept that Somnia was gone. And yet, here she was, looking a bit worse for the wear but still herself.

Thanks, and I did too! Sorry if I'm a bit late with my replies. Last week I had three different honors courses tests, at least four quizzes, and a college level essay to write, appropriately called the long essay by my teacher. Unfortunately, it made wolfing a bit hard.

It seemed to have been a mistake, as Elwood's tone and demeanor changed suddenly when he realized it was her. Somnia sat up, but was still a bit shaken. She had never actually been attacked by Elwood. Sure, they had rough-housed, but it had never been serious. "I'm guessing you've had no trouble scaring invaders off," she joked weakly.

As for where she had been, that was an interesting story. "I had went exploring at first. It was only supposed to last a couple days. But then I was climbing up a mountain, and I slipped and fell. Apparently I hit my head and fell unconscious. When I woke up, there was this strange wolf who said she was a healer and helped heal my wound and took care of me until I woke up.

"I thanked her profusely, but told her I would have to go, as I had my pack to return to. Then," her voice took on a bitter tone, "she told my I couldn't leave! That because she had helped me, I owed her and her pack! She said that in order to pay her back for possibly saving my life, I'd have to serve her pack, like some sort of indentured servant!" At this point, Somnia was practically yelling. It was rare for her to get really angry, as she her emotional side seemed to prefer to represent itself with sadness, not anger. However, being held against their will would make a number of wolves angry.


Her voice dropped at this next point, displaying the hopelessness she had felt as Somnia mentally relived it. "I tried to escape. I tried really hard. One wolf just isn't a match for a whole pack though." She had some new scars to prove it too. "Finally, they let me go. I came back here as fast as I could." Somnia looked at Elwood, trying to gauge his reaction to her tale.

Wow, sounds like school has been keeping you super busy! Hopefully you'll have a little bit of a break over Christmas...? My last day of work is this Friday, and us teachers are just as excited about the break as the kids are! ;)

"You have no idea," Elwood murmured in an off-handed manner at Somnia's mention of invaders. The pack had buckled down considerably on their security measures in the time that she had been gone. He quieted, though, and refocused his thoughts when she launched into an explanation of what had happened to her. The tale was long and Elwood listened intently, although her wordiness made him want to smile; it was so familiar, and he found he had missed that trait.

By the time she finished, her voice elevated almost to a shout, Elwood's brows were knit with consternation. It was troubling to learn that she had been injured and unable to return; that hit much too close to home, he realized. Had Roz not been the one to find Finley, the very same fate could have befallen her. Although Somnia's frustration was evident, she calmed and almost seemed apprehensive as she waited for the Beta's verdict.

"What an adventure," he quipped wryly. "I'm glad you're back, though, and I think Peregrine and Fox will be too. We looked for you after you disappeared, but couldn't find you...I'm sorry." Had they searched further, they might have saved her from a whole lot of trouble; but if there was anything Elwood had learned from Finley's ordeal, it was that he couldn't dwell on the past. "Come on; let's talk and get you something to eat," he said, gesturing for her to cross the borders with him.

I probably will. Even though the teachers keep me busy, they're not big fans of homework over break. I have school up until the 23rd this year, but I think break lasts until the fourth with the days the weekends fall on. Yeah, many of my teachers have somehow managed to link Christmas themes into our lessons, which eventually leads off-topic. A couple teachers have relented the day before break to let us bring in food and watch a movie during class time. :)

"It's fine. It couldn't have been helped." Somnia replied to his apology. If anyone was to blame, it was herself, for going out in the first place. On the other hand, she had had a lot of time to think over her mistakes, leading her to the conclusion that mistakes will always happen, but they could be limited. Somnia wouldn't be as fond as venturing outside the pack, but not all excursions resulted in harm.

When Elwood mentioned eating, hunger pains flared up. Held against her will, Somnia had found herself at the bottom of that pack, which equated with being at the bottom of the pecking order when it came to feeding. She hadn't had a good, fulfilling meal for a while, and almost started drooling on the spot.
However, Somnia managed to keep her saliva in her mouth, and swallowed it.

"Sounds good to me." She replied, getting to her feet and following Elwood. "So, what's happened since I left?"

Nice! We are having pajama day on Friday, and it's an early release, so it should be a crazy/fun day!

As odd as it had been to find Somnia at the borders, Elwood found himself settling into conversation with her as if it hadn't been months since he had last seen her. It felt akin to slipping on an old, comfortable glove. He was glad when she agreed to a bite to eat, and led her towards the nearest cache. She didn't look like she was up to hunting, and he didn't want to make her wait while he caught something fresh.

She wanted to know what had happened in her absence, and he gave a wry chuckle. What hadn't happened while she was gone? "Well, the reason that I was so aggressive initially is because we had an incident where a wolf infiltrated the borders and attacked Wildfire," he explained, frowning at the memory. "Long story short, it was one of Peregrine's estranged daughters. Luckily, Wildfire is fine, but Fox and Peregrine kind of shut down the borders after that. We're not so friendly with strangers anymore," he said with an apologetic smile.

"And Finley and I had a son back in June. Elwood Jr -- he goes by Eljay," he continued, his expression warming at the thought of his mini-me. "I'll have to introduce you to him soon." He guided them towards a copse of short trees, where he knew a small amount of meat was stored.

That sounds really cool. Do the teachers get really into the events like that at your school?

Somnia grimaced as he talked about what had gone down with Junior and Wildfire. (Yes, I've done a good share of occasional RHC stalking.) Peregrine had never been the luckiest when it came to family, but to think that his daughter would attack the other, younger one?! Well, Elwood's reactions earlier were justifiable at the least. Somnia remembered the Caldera being well patrolled and protected before all of that went down. To increase the security even more? Had they slacked off a bit that day, or had they been doing the norm and still got infiltrated? Would the Caldera practically be a fortress now? She couldn't blame them if it did; they - Somnia included - were protective wolves who cared about their family members.

She nodded with understanding as he stated the effects. Then, he said something that was truly surprising. Somnia stopped in her tracks and gaped at him for a few seconds. "You have a son!?" She exclaimed in shock. How could she be so out of the loop? If he was born in June, that would mean he was around 5 or 6 months old, right? Somehow, Somnia had never pictured Elwood having kids, or Finley for that matter. She didn't doubt their parenting skills, but the idea of them having kids just seemed so foreign. Her mind typically classified new, foreign things along with change as bad until it proved to be a good thing. It was a good thing, but it was also a change, and usually changes = bad.

If Elwood had a son, that meant... "You're a father..." Somnia looked at him appraisingly. While Elwood was quite responsible, and probably an outstanding father, her mind was currently being counterproductive, picturing all the snowball fights and other silly times they had had.

Yeah! And our principal gets into the spirit too, so that's fun. :)

She didn't verbally respond to what he had said about Junior and Wildfire, but instead latched onto the second piece of information that Elwood had shared. This caused the Beta's face to split into a broad grin. Her incredulous tone made him laugh out loud; by now, he was used to the title, but at first it had seemed strange. Neither he nor Finley had been cut out for parenthood, and despite their flaws and failures along the way, he couldn't imagine his life now without Eljay.

"I know, right? And Finley's a mom," he chuckled, likely voicing the more unbelievable fact. Even he hadn't expected to tame the wild Finley and make a mother out of her. "Once you get settled, I'll bring Eljay by to meet you," he said as he drew to a halt. He lowered his nose to the ground and gave a sniff, then stepped to the base of a particular tree. Its roots protruded from the ground and he was able to pull the dirt away with his paws, revealing a rock-lined hole in which rested a lean hare.

He used his mouth to remove it, then dropped it at Somnia's feet. "Here you go. I caught this the other day with Peregrine," he said, thinking of the playful competition that he had lost.

Oh shit. Finley was a mom! While Somnia believed that Finley could rise to the challenge of being a good parent, she also believed that some wolves were just not cut out for it. She could imagine all the parenting lessons that could go corrupt under her supervision. How had the Caldera not been destroyed while she was gone? Could a caldera even be destroyed? If there was a way, no doubt would Finley and any of her surely devious offspring find it. Prompted by Elwood's laughter, Somnia let out a small, weak laugh. How had Elwood survived parenthood?

Despite her previous thoughts, Somnia perked up when Elwood mentioned meeting him. "I would love to meet him!" She exclaimed, tail wagging as she thought about meeting the kid. Even if he did happen to be troublesome, surely he would be fun and exciting! It would definitely be interesting, especially when she would inevitably find out he was nothing like she was expecting with him sharing Finley's blood.

Then, Elwood brought out the food. This time, Somnia did start to drool as most of what he said was lost on her. All she knew was that she was hungry after her long trek home, and that rabbit was for her! Somnia almost forgot to utter a, "Thanks," before flopping down devour the meal on the spot.

Elwood smiled, watching as Somnia tucked into her meal eagerly. He settled back onto his haunches, wrapping his tail around his forepaws as he quietly observed her. It still seemed almost surreal to have her back, although he did worry that she would end up like Ashton -- he had vanished and reappeared, only to go missing once more. He pursed his lips, considering mentioning Somnia's former beau, but decided against it. That would be something to discuss another time.

Instead, he returned to the topic of his family. As though he had read Somnia's mind, he said, "Eljay's pretty reserved. He's a little clingy and likes to spend most of his time with me and Fin. I really thought he would end up being a daredevil like her, but he's the complete opposite." He shifted his weight, then added, "It doesn't help that Fin had an...incident about a month ago. It's actually scarily similar to what happened to you -- the first part, anyway. She went exploring and got hurt near Moonspear, then couldn't get herself home. Luckily, the wolf that found her was a loner who was familiar with the caldera, so she came and told me and Wildfire where to find her."

He shook his head gently as he recounted the horrific experience. "Anyway, yeah, Eljay's been stuck to her like glue since then. I think he's afraid she'll go away again." He rambled partially to fill the silence while Somnia ate, but also because he knew that she would truly care to hear what had happened to his little family.

Licking some of the rabbit blood off of her lips, Somnia refocused her attention to Elwood as he spoke about Eljay and Finley. Somnia's eyebrows involuntarily raised in surprise when he revealed that Eljay was a complete opposite from Finley. It seemed that when it came to Elwood being the parent, the apple didn't fall far from the tree. However, with Finley, the apple tree somehow produced an orange that fell on a slope and rolled to the bottom of a hill.

Then, there was news of Finley's most recent disaster. It wasn't too surprising that the Beta had found more trouble. Adventure was in her blood, and it couldn't be helped. Even if Finley was finding more ways to accidentally hurt herself, and consequentially being a slight burden, it was easy to overlook any vices when it came to her. Finley is just Finley. With all that unique spunk, how could she not find a place in your heart? The only differing facial expression Somnia displayed was a quizzical glance at the mention of Moonspear. However, she said, "Motherhood doesn't seem to have changed her much. She still has the urge to adventure in her blood, it seems. I think maybe I'll pay her a visit after I settle back in. Hopefully she'll be fully recovered by then, if she isn't already."

After Elwood continued on to talk about Eljay stuck to her like glue, she added, "Maybe I could even help occupy the little Eljay for a bit if she needs a break? I might be able to come up with some games that could distract him from that fear long enough." Somnia had, after all, won the Caretaker game contest for Peregrine and Fox's Firebirds. Even though she was the only one out of three contestants to see it through to the end.

Want to finish this thread up and have a new one? :D

Elwood nodded heartily; Somnia had hit the nail right on the head in her description of Finley. After her incident, however, he wasn't sure how eager she would be to venture into the wild again -- for now, she was content to stay within the boundaries of Redhawk Caldera, but just the same, he had the feeling that cabin fever would strike her at some point. Just as Somnia had said, Finley was an adventurer by nature; it was just what she did and what she was known for.

He gave a polite smile when his friend mentioned paying Finley a visit. The Beta female would certainly be surprised to see that Somnia had returned. There had been some tension between the two girls before Somnia left, but he hoped that Finley would have put it behind her by now. "Yeah, I'm sure she would love to see you," he replied with a wave of his tail. His ears then perked as she proposed spending some time with Eljay and even teaching him some games. He had nearly forgotten the elaborate game she had planned to show Fox and Peregrine that she would be a good caretaker for the firebirds. It seemed like that had happened so long ago.

"And I just know that Eljay is going to be a huge fan of you. That's a great idea," he said. His gaze strayed to the remains of the rabbit carcass at Somnia's feet. "We can go find a place for you to rest once you're all finished," he offered. Although he wanted to keep catching up with his old friend, he could also see how worn out she was from her travels.

Sure! :D

Somnia gave her tail a quick wag as Elwood assured her that both Finley and Eljay would be glad to see her. She could just imagine the fun she could have with Eljay, as well as Finley. Then, Elwood mentioned getting some rest. The fatigue she had felt prior to finding Elwood hit her like a brick wall. Rest was a really good idea. "Sounds good to me." She replied, fighting back a yawn. 

"My old den shouldn't be too far off. I still remember the lay of the land. You can come with me if you want, but I don't think I'll have a problem finding it for myself." After letting the offer sit in the air for a moment, she set off in the direction she needed to go. Either with, or without Elwood in tow.

I'll archive this and tag you in a new thread soonish! :)

Even as Somnia replied, Elwood could see a yawn threatening to escape her mouth. He wasn't at all offended when she implied that she could find her way to her old abode; she invited him along, but he could understand that she probably was in need of some alone time.

"I'll come check in on you soon," he said with a wave of his tail, "and we'll set up a playdate for you and Eljay." He grinned, then turned to leave. Before he departed, though, he added, "I'm really glad you're back." The words were spoken earnestly, and he bobbed his head then turned his paws towards his own den.