Broken Boulder with a faery, hand in hand

Seemingly overnight, a circle of mushrooms have popped up to the east of the bolder. Where such a phenomenon would pop up in a place less traveled, a shift happens and it is drawn to the life of the wolves inhabiting. The closer one gets to the circle, the colder they’ll feel. A chill sweeps through and the changes in pressure is obvious. Everything feels displayed in neon, do not enter, but can you feel the undeniable pull of curiosity?

Written by @Mallaidh. Info 1, Info 2

He's been lethargic lately, slow to rise and typically eager to find any excuse to retreat to his den. Oddly enough, he awakes agitated this particular morning; he doesn't think it has anything to do with @Delight spending the night again, but he feels guilty as he slips from the den quickly and without a word. It's just better for both of them, he thinks, even if he feels like an ass.
The circle of mushrooms draws his attention immediately. He's never seen anything like it, but it gives him the creeps— maybe because he's thinking about Lennon now, and those mushrooms. Alarian has mostly put the experience out of his mind, but he recalls now the sense of betrayal he'd had to shove down in favor of dealing with unexpected hallucinations. Maybe Lennon was more of an asshole than he'd wanted to think.
It's stupid, though, isn't it? To be scared of some mushrooms. He draws nearer to sniff at them, wrinkling his nose a little. Well, they smell like normal mushrooms. He glances around the circle, and a childish urge to sit directly in the middle washes over him. He resists it— mostly because it'd be embarrassing to be found that way, but he's still sort of nervous for some reason, too.

He had spotted the ring and nervously ignored it at first. Pacing back and forth a good distant away, chewing on his lip. Bunyip awkwardly toddles back to the ring only to find someone else is there - dangerously close - at the ring.

No! Don't touch it. His no came out urgent but his voice had lowered into a soft whisper as he crept forward, closer to the ring across from the governor (who reminded him a lot of a fairy...perhaps he had made this ring). His tail swished between his ankles nervously as his nose hovered over one of the mushrooms.

You did this, didn't you? The tone wasn't rude, instead it was genuine and curious. Lively eyes looking up at the ragged male.

she is a child. of course curiosity outweighs the feeling of danger, for truly she had never been in a situation to feel like something bad might happen to her. even when her mother's teeth came too close, she knew she was in no real[ danger; emotional hardships are not the same as physical ones.

the two adults talk while solomon stumbles into the ring, belatedly recognizing the words of the strange male she had not met, and a shiver racks through her body as she cries out, m-muh! it was so cold here!

she looked from one adult to the other, and her feet seemed frozen to the ground. help!

alarian is avoiding him -- again -- he's not stupid. it's better than before given they usually sleep together but still, he suspects they need to have another talk about Feelings. this particular morning he doesn't mind the governor bolting out of his arms at the earliest waking moment, since it gives him a chance to rouse himself and head over to the den to check on the children. solomon seems to be going through a wandering phase -- it gives him anxiety, what else is new, but he lets her roam, trailing behind her with @Brilliance in tow (and possibly @Mali, if the boy takes him up on the offer to explore outside). 

he lets solomon get ahead of him a bit, stumbling onto the scene too late to do much but freeze, watching his look-alike stumble her way into a mysterious ring of mushrooms. the air here feels -- magic and strange and makes delight tense immediately. he does not want to go in the circle. looking between alarian and the other man he hasn't met yet, he calls tersely for his daughter: "hey, come out of there, sol...!"

Mali was tagging along behind, occasionally nipping at the end of Delight's tail (making a yip or a grunt each time he tried much like how a dove's wings and voice seem to be permanently intertwined) and generally getting underfoot.  Walking was kinda boring at times, so he found ways to keep himself entertained, even if those ways were uh.. Kind of annoying.

When they came to a halt, Mali again missed his target, careened off Delight's heel, then continued forward to peek around a front leg to see what his sister was doing.  The boy wasn't exactly the bravest of the troupe, so he hung back and watched, ears flicked forward intently.  Oooo, she was in trouubleeeeee..!

Bunyip's arrival startles him; he's kind of a weird dude, and Alarian is into weird but it's a little unsettling and a lot confusing and, well, besides that he's got a boyfriend now. It's a strange feeling, but he's decided on avoiding temptation altogether— no hot boys for you, Alarian "Dumbass Fuck-up" Keil. Fortunately, Bunyip is being anything but hot.
He flinches slightly, drawing back from the mushrooms mostly to fix a baffled stare on the other male. What? I didn't— Then something small runs past him, and he realizes a moment later it's Delight's daughter. Before he can really react, Delight himself shows up with his other children at his heels, and Alarian freezes for a moment.
Then he steps quickly into the circle after Solomon, ignoring both the chill down his spine and any possible protest as he retrieves her and plops her gently in front of her father. Don't let them eat the mushrooms, He tells him, glancing to Bunyip as he turns back to examine one of the mushrooms. They could be toxic, or hallucinogenic, or both.

Alarian he could handle, a fairy who was fairly harmless. It was the swarthy appearance of the fairy's partner and two toddling muddled figures that set him stumbling back from the group. Lips drew into a tight thin line before they seemed to tremble slightly. He had the eyes of a ghostly figure but his inky colors screamed danger, demon, etc.

Bunyip's tail took a comforting place between his legs as his ears flicked back. He wasn't sure if it was the chill in the air that sent a shiver down his spine or the appearance of so many beings.

The monster hunter coward was sorely outnumbered today.

it's a good thing that alarian comes and scoops her away from the circle, because she was just toddling over to nibble at one of the mushrooms, overcome by childish curiosity.

but between the cold and being picked up by alarian, the world starts to spin. she is dizzy. once she is set down at her father's feet she sways and tries to walk, but her legs cross over and she falls on her face in the dirt. she falls unconscious.

she is fine. but she does not yet wake.

tomorrow, she would wake up with a single spot of her very own.

mali thankfully does not rush to join his sister, nor does brilliance -- two of out three have inherited his good sense, at least. alarian rescues solomon from the odd circle (he forces himself to relax; really, it's mushrooms, not demons) and returns her. he murmurs a soft "thanks," reaching to nudge his nose against his cheek briefly before he turns to study the mushrooms. 

more important is his daughter's passing out -- delight makes a noise in alarm and reaches down, picking her up. she seems fine, just -- sleeping, or something. puppies fall asleep all the time. perfectly normal. no demons here. (even if the stranger with alarian is eyeing him as if he might be one). "i should get her back to the den," he says apologetically, muffled around her sleeping form, "have fun with your.. mushrooms?"

herding his children along, the singing-sunlight makes a hasty exit, eager to get out of the strange, mystical air of the circle.

By the time he was getting a little braver, taking a couple of steps forward (but not too far!) to sniff in the general direction of the mushrooms, that was about the time his sister zonked out for a nap and now suddenly they were being shepherded away?!  What!  But she got to check out the thing, why couldn't he.  This wasn't fair!  He whined and complained, but he allowed himself to be herded back somewhere less weird, even if he was going to sulk about it the whole way.