Broken Boulder it's getting late, and i

sorry the coming home post kinda really sucks, but yooo ALI IS HOME & HE BROUGHT FRIENDS !!
@ e & tweet; keeping vague abt some stuff & also assuming Ali already knows a couple things but let me know if I should change anything!

edit: paging @Xahi for when you're off PPC <3

Alarian had known from the beginning the journey would be difficult; it was, in some ways, less difficult than he had predicted— in other ways, more. If he hadn't already known @Queenie was pregnant, he did now. Ali had been around pregnant women— he knew what they smelled like. Thinking about it inspired a surprising amount of nausea. But he couldn't avoid her, so he was polite and he smiled and he talked about whatever you talk about when you're trying to hide weird feelings. Maybe it would have been different if he wasn't thinking about his mother, about the—
Then there was @Delight. Sometimes, Alarian wondered if he was okay— his pack had fallen apart, and the man he had mentioned loving was nowhere to be seen. And now he was trekking out to the middle of nowhere to live among strangers. Ali said nothing of it; he kept his friend company, though, and tried to be lighthearted when he could. At any other point in his life, he would no doubt have pried more— but now? Guilty as he felt, the thought made him more anxious than he could handle. His friend would just have to do without him sticking his nose in it, for now (how tragic).

It was an indescribable feeling, catching sight of the giant cracked boulder that marked his home. The Governor sucked in a breath and moved a little faster, ignoring the discomfort in the deeper, still-healing (and slightly aggravated from the journey) wounds. He glanced to his companions— his new packmates, now— and gestured for them to follow as he crossed into the territory. Alarian stopped just inside the borders, gaze sweeping across several things: the creek— Star Rock— the giant cracked boulder for which the territory was named.
He sighed softly, then tilted his muzzle skyward and howled, mainly for @Lanawyn and @Lily, but also to let the pack know he was home.

Korei Julia felt her heart pounding in her chest as she heard the call of a friend she knew very well. No, a family, a pack mate she knew very well. It was Alarian, he was back. She bolted up and as soon as she could, she was heading his way, howling happily to the air around her. Alarian had come home once more.

It really hadn't been that long since the Governor had left Bracken Sanctuary, but for Lily, it felt like an eternity. She heard the howl, and for an instant, she dismissed it as a daydream, an auditory hallucination. It was only after the last notes had faded away did it sink in--the call was real. He was home.

Eyes wide in excited joy, Lily raced through the Bracken Woods, where she'd been practicing her hunting, leaping over fallen branches and darting around the brush. She burst through into the clear and saw three forms just past the border, with a fourth--Korei, she thought, noting the lone ear, the white fur--rushing to meet them, making a racket as well. She slowed to a trot, her mouth opened wide in a grin.

She had thought she would be angry with him, for leaving again. That his homecoming would be marked with fury on her part, yelling, cursing. But none of the bile she felt or the words she'd muttered came to her now--there was only happiness, and above all, relief.

"Alarian." Her voice was gentle, sweet, barely a breath on the wind. It died as she noticed the relatively fresh scarring that marred his body, her smile dimming to a bewildered frown. "What happened?" she asked, brows knitting together in concern. Her eyes darted, first to the slim dark man, then his beautiful companion, her silky pelt a blend of colors she'd never seen before.

"Who--" She forgot her manners, meaning to stammer out another question. Instead, she caught herself in time, dipping her muzzle and blinking graciously at the two strangers. "Welcome. . .to Bracken Sanctuary. My name is Lily. This is Korei," Lily added, gesturing at the pale girl.

giving tindómë permission to fall apart was giving him permission to fall apart -- inwardly, privately, away from alarian and queenie's eyes. he couldn't completely withdraw, after all, with children on the way. so he's present enough to answer questions and to check in on queenie and to thank alarian for being so kind as to take them in. he wonders where @Jomyo's gotten to, and hopes she'll make her way to them again, maybe. 

but he can't make himself care about any of it. when everyone he'd loved died under rock and snow, he'd felt blank, but a different kind of blank. shocked. now he just feels hollow and he can't even bring himself to mind. 

delight stays behind alarian, quiet as his packmates rush to him. it's only when one of the women who appears greets them that he finds his voice, stilted and robotic. "thank you. i'm delight, and this is queenie." he glances at her, figuring she'd give herself - them - a better introduction if she felt up for it.

She arrived somewhat late on the scene, and to her present long-standing packmates her reaction might have seemed less than stellar (she had, of course, already seen Alarian and his injuries; she wouldn't be shocked here).  She was relieved, and that was evident enough in the way her ears slicked back and the corners of her eyes creased, her tail low and wagging at the tip.

For now she was silent; she observed the introductions, but she'd already done her part.
(Later, she would take Alarian aside and clean his wounds, maybe even get around to helping the new ones find a place to bed down.  But not here, not in front of everyone.)

The trip had been long and strenuous and for the first time, Queenie had been forced to acknowledge her condition. It displeased and frightened her to admit to her pregnancy, but there was no use in dismissing it any longer. Children would be born painfully soon; they ought to get used to the idea.

The move wasn't ideal. Queenie made no attempt at hiding her displeasure from Alarian or Delight, but she did restrain herself from being as bratty and naggy as she could have been. Still, upon arriving, Queenie refrained from introductions, giving only a weak smile once mentioned.

Xahi had been in her own world lately. The girl had been hiding away from most of her packmates since Lennon's disappearance, but she was aware that new faces had joined their once-little family. The pale sylph's heart was still mending itself together from her...Lennon's absence, and trying to find herself again. Alarian, the only one she had felt she had been able to talk to was also quite absent, which had caused the ghost to stretch even further apart from her family.
    So, when Alarian's familiar cry rung in her ears, the she-wolf was astounded. The masked young woman rose shakily to her feet, testing out her long legs a bit before flying into a sprint. Xahi raced towards the sound, stumbling a bit on her legs. She eventually slowed as she grew nearer to the sound of voices, to the smells of her companions. Xahi padded slowly towards the others, glancing and giving soft smiles to the new faces. The old ones, though, were what truly made her happy. Xahi smiled brightly at Korei and Lily, giving a respectful nod to Lanawyn, and turned to Alarian next. She gave him a fond look, something of a pooling mixture of sadness and joy at the same time. As greetings were exchanged and names shared, Xahi figured she would chime in. "Hello, Xahi. A pleasure to meet you." The woman analyzed the new wolves, her green eyes sparkling with newfound curiosity.

wrapping this up <3

It was Korei who came first to greet them— then Lily, and Lanawyn, and he felt something swell in his chest. With a look that said 'later' in response to Lily's question, he moved to greet each of them, bumping his nose against their cheeks and murmuring 'hello's and 'I missed you's. Xahi's arrival came as a late surprise; the sight of her made his heart skip. His friend had been so reclusive following Lennon's departure. He offered a smile, warm and genuine. It's good to see you, Xahi.
When the introductions seemed mostly over, he nudged Lily affectionately, hoping she would help settle Delight and Queenie, and gestured for Lanawyn to follow him. He led his sister away, intending to tell her of Delight's promotion— and of something else she needed to know.
Then he would flee as quickly as possible.